Trends Indicate Emergence of New Retail Era

# Trends Indicate Emergence of New Retail Era

New trends are emerging that could completely transform the future of retailing, particularly in regards to supermarkets. Those trends include:

## Rental Retail An increasing number of consumers are showing an interest in renting the products and services they need. Now, the trend that began with such companies as Uber and Airbnb is extending to retail. In fact, a growing percentage of consumers indicate they would be willing to spend money on a monthly basis for rental subscriptions.

## Enhanced Reality Retail With more consumers becoming interested in transparency, there is a trend toward the use of virtual reality headsets to help consumers view how products will actually look and function before they make a purchase. ##

Classroom Retail Consumers are also increasingly interested in taking advantage of retail spaces that can be used not only for purchasing products but also for learning new skills and even building social networks.

This trend could be particularly applicable to supermarket operators. Some supermarkets are offering cooking demos and classes in their stores as a way to tapping into this trend and enticing customers.

Supermarkets could offer everything from healthy cooking classes to demos on how to prepare the latest food trends, such as fusion cooking or global inspirations.

## Sensory Retail Customers also now want to take advantage of the opportunity to have their senses awakened with extraordinary experiences. In particular, consumers are focused on the ability to explore products via smell and sound. Food tastings have been a popular trend in the last few years, and this trend is one that is expected to remain strong in the supermarket industry.

## Enhanced Loyalty Programs Loyalty programs have always been a popular way to encourage consumers to shop at a supermarket, but there is now a trend of encouraging consumers for making food lifestyle choice. Such choices could include exercising, recycling, eating, and even volunteering at a charity.

Want to tap into this trend?

Use points in your store that receive the bulk of consumer attention to promote your loyalty programs, such as with wobbler signage on the "Shelf Edge" or on unavoidable places such as "the face of the entrance or exit door".