The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has revealed that sales of homeware and other non-essential items plummeted by 1.6% in November despite Black Friday deals encouraging the sale of cosmetic and beauty products.
Retailers could be in for a bleak midwinter as consumers focus their spending on essential products amidst a persistent cost-of-living crisis.
Retailers can gain a “competitive edge” by faster sourcing more products from alternative supplies in the run up to Christmas.
Jeff Eckel, Director at e2open said, “Retail is being hit hard by plummeting consumer confidence. But cutting costs isn’t necessarily the only way retailers can win customer loyalty and bolster sales.
“Success over the last leg of the holiday period will hinge on the ability to ensure availability of goods, as well as offering seamless communication and real-time updates on orders when product shortages do occur.
“Retailers can gain a competitive edge when they have complete inventory visibility and management from local distribution centres down to faster sourcing of products from alternate suppliers.
“They can achieve this by leveraging logistics plans that are both flexible and scalable, employing new technologies such as predictive algorithms to mitigate disruptive events.
“Ultimately, greater visibility means greater opportunity to diversify suppliers and face tight production deadlines – vital to minimise risk, fulfil orders, and bolster consumer confidence this festive season.”
