Driving Business Value and Enhancing Customer Satisfaction for Retailers

The advent of e-commerce and the emergence of big-box retail chains have radically transformed the retail industry. Traditional retailers face unprecedented pricing pressure from goliaths like Wal-Mart and Amazon who negotiate massive volume discounts with their suppliers. And the Internet itself has fundamentally altered the way in which consumers make purchasing decisions, often to the detriment of traditional "high street" retailers. In an instant, a consumer can search hundreds of sites around the world to select a merchant based on price or just about any other criteria.

It is suddenly a much smaller and more competitive world. Many traditional retailers are fighting for their very survival. Independently-owned businesses are becoming a thing of the past. Long-established national chains are closing their doors or are being forced to merge with competitors to stay afloat.

To survive, retailers must find ways to cut costs or learn to make the most of their ever-decreasing margins. To thrive, they must compete on factors other than price. To compete with the giants, successful retailers must offer unique and differentiable services plus outstanding customer experiences.