The Covid-19 crisis has quickened the pace of key underlying fundamental trends that were already influencing the retail sector rather than grinding them to a halt, according to a KPMG report.
The Global Retail Trends 2020 report identified four trends that “every retail executive should be watching as they rebuild their business towards the new reality,” KPMG said.
The trends are an evolving retail business model, a sense of purpose moving to the forefront, a rethink of the costs of doing business and placing customer choices under the microscope.
“Within mainland China and Hong Kong, the pandemic proved that shoring up customer relationships may be key to staying afloat in a post-pandemic market,” KPMG said in a statement.
The global health emergency has seen traditional stores shouldering heavy hits while online orders have experienced rising trading volumes as well as new clients.
“When preparing for a post-Covid-19 environment, retailers in Hong Kong will need to revisit their business models to better connect sourcing, logistics, customer interaction and product sales both online and offline,” said Alice Yip, head of consumer and industrial markets, Hong Kong, at KPMG China.
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