Research

November 18, 2024

Unlocking Shopper Reactions to Secured Products

November 05, 2024

Feeding the Future: Transforming Fast-Moving Consumer Goods with Data Driven Intelligence

August 19, 2024

Retailers' Blind Spot for Holiday 2024

August 12, 2024

Fixing Inventory Distortion. Are we there yet?

In 2024, inventory distortion amounted to over $1.7 USD trillion worldwide, a decrease of 2.8% from 2023 (Out-of-Stocks improved by 3.7%, Overstocks by 0.7%), and a decrease of 12.0% from 2022. The total lost is equivalent to approximately 1.0% of the global GDP, or the entire GDP of Australia. - From IHL Services

August 06, 2024

Majority of retailers in ‘theft crisis’ mode, with a third saying resources for detection and reduction are insufficient

New research reveals that almost two-thirds (64%) of large retailers in the UK and US agree that the impact of theft has reached a crisis point. In addition, over four-in-ten (42%) believe that theft is more of a concern today than it was twelve months ago. - from Avery Dennison

July 22, 2024

McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2024

Which technology trends matter most for companies in 2024? New analysis by the McKinsey Technology Council highlights the adoption, development, and industry effects of advanced technologies.  The two trends that stood out in 2023 were gen AI and electrification and renewables. - From McKinsey and Company

July 08, 2024

Five 2024 Holiday Shopping Predictions

Holiday shopping will look different for retailers this year.  After remaining largely resilient throughout four years of economic uncertainty, consumers are finally feeling the pinch.  Nearly a third of global shoppers (32%) reported using alternative credit services like buy now, pay later (BNPL) more frequently this year. - From Digital Commerce 360

June 29, 2024

Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2024

The Top 10 Emerging Technologies report is a vital source of strategic intelligence. First published in 2011, it draws on insights from scientists, researchers and futurists to identify 10 technologies poised to significantly influence societies and economies. These emerging technologies are disruptive, attractive to investors and researchers, and expected to achieve considerable scale within five years. - From the World Economic Forum

June 21, 2024

State of the Consumer 2024: What’s now and what’s next

Consumers no longer fit into traditional archetypes. Some of the most influential consumers of tomorrow are currently underserved. What consumers want is changing too. Weakened brand loyalty, affordability over sustainability, and heightened interest in wellness products and services reflect the preferences and priorities of consumers across ages and geographies. - From McKinsey & Company

May 20, 2024

What matters to Today’s Consumer: 2024 consumer behavior tracker for the consumer and retail industries

This report is the third in our annual research series that examines evolving consumer behaviors. This year, we find that many of the behaviors we noted in our 2023 report have persisted, with consumers continuing to express concern about their personal financial situations amid rising inflation. However, this concern has dropped significantly in the past twelve months as just 43% of consumers worry their personal finances will worsen over the next 6–9 months, compared with 80% who were concerned that they would worsen in the equivalent period last year. - From Cap Gemini

May 13, 2024

2024 Work Trend Index Annual Report: AI at Work is Here. Now Comes the Hard Part

AI is being woven into the workplace at an unexpected scale. 75% of knowledge workers use AI at work today, and 46% of users started using it less than six months ago. It’s paying off as users say AI helps them save time (90%), focus on their most important work (85%), be more creative (84%), and enjoy their work more (83%). - From Microsoft & LinkedIn

May 06, 2024

Retail’s Hidden Advantage: How RFID & Computer Vision’s Radically Improve Operational Improvements

Companies that are already using RFID technology in our study averaged profit growth in 2023 that was 57% higher than those who do not. And they are expecting their profits in 2024 to be 88% higher than those not already using RFID. Companies are 34x more likely to use computer vision already and 35% more likely to invest in computer vision in 2024 than below average performers. - From IHL Services

April 22, 2024

Deloitte Global Retail Outlook 2024

After a prolonged period of suppressed consumer spending, macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, and rapid changes in consumer behavior (among other things), the global retail industry stands at a crossroads; forced to make decisions about long term investments in new technology and business models while at the same time managing the rising cost of doing business and a decline in the spending power of consumers. - From Deloitte Insights

March 26, 2024

World Happiness Report 2024

The top 10 countries have remained much the same since before COVID. Finland is still top, with Denmark now very close, and all five Nordic countries in the top 10. But in the next 10, there is more change, with the transition countries of Eastern Europe rising in happiness (especially Czechia, Lithuania and Slovenia). Partly for this reason the United States and Germany have fallen to 23 and 24 in the rankings. -  A partnership of Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the WHR’s Editorial Board.

March 19, 2024

British Retail Consortium UK Retail Crime Survey

Once again, the crime survey shows a massive increase in violence and abuse, reaching the levels experienced during the pandemic at nearly half a million incidents a year. It also shows a massive increase in customer theft, doubling to just shy of £2 billion; a lack of confidence in the police response, with 60% rating it as poor or very poor; and a continuation of the rise in cyber crime. From the British Retail Consortium