Retail itself isn't withering – buyers are simply moving away from the high street, but where do the latest trends lead?
The volume of transactions where the entire purchase cycle is completed in store will continue to fall, but the need for consumers to interact with goods physically will, however, continue to be met through the traditional store; the desire for consumers to touch, feel and even smell is universal from China to Australia, the US to Spain – quality is just too difficult to assess in the virtual world. But more importantly the traditional store will provide the channel through which the consumer can complete the last mile of the retail journey when they just cannot wait for their goods to be delivered, or when delivery to a physical address is just not practical.
