In good disaster movies, anyone can be a hero. They remind us that only through facing adversity can we reach our full potential. In many ways, 2020 had all the makings of a Hollywood disaster movie: Empty streets, facemasks, environment suits, closed borders... For the fortunate among us, it’s the closest we’ll have come to experiencing such drama in real life. 

For the retail industry, as well as food and beverage (F&B), the impact has been no less dramatic. From amongst the debris of five-year plans and annual forecasts, businesses are getting to their feet, dusting themselves off, and surveying the world around them. It might seem a bleak picture. But beyond the initial fallout lies the possibility for new beginnings. The road to retail recovery lies in reinvention. Now’s the time to tear up the traditional playbooks and prepare for an age in which every interaction is digital and every experience matters.

At a time when lockdowns are still ever-present and recessions loom, consumers are re-evaluating what’s essential. As they become more selective, securing loyalty becomes critical. It's not enough to open their wallets, you have to win their hearts.

But how do you secure customer loyalty in a market where things seem to change almost by the week?

We created this report to help you make sense of this new landscape and understand how retail recovers from COVID-19. We commissioned the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) to provide analysis of the current state of retail and F&B businesses around the world. We explored our own data to measure the impact of unified commerce on businesses' success. We interviewed 25,157 consumers from across Europe, the US, Asia Pacific, and Brazil to understand what people expect from shopping and dining experiences today. And we spoke to leading brands including Aesop, Domino's Pizza, Joe & The Juice, and MUJI to learn first-hand how they're adapting to this new world of commerce. 

Omnichannel

Siloed systems