Department Stores As Warehouses: Online Retail Strategy

01-04-2017 16:19:31

The mutual benefit on both sides of the app makes Shoppi a practical tool for anyone looking to transition to a more online-based sales strategy in an increasingly mobile world.

Over the past decade, brick-and-mortar stores have experienced steady and significant declines in revenue. Fewer shoppers are visiting physical stores for a variety of reasons, including the convenience of online shopping and the diversity of options. Motivated by competition from online retailers like Amazon, many physical retailers are broadening their online options, if not moving to online sales exclusively.


One business model some stores are adopting is the “in-store pickup” strategy. This allows shoppers to find and purchase items online, then pick the items up at a physical location. If the items are already in stock at the shopper’s preferred location, this can be a quick way to reserve products and ensure they will be ready when the shopper arrives. For items that are not always in stock, many retail chains can either have inventory shipped to that store for the shopper or move products from one store to another for the shopper’s convenience.


In this model, stores become less of the retail hubs they formerly were and more like sophisticated, specialized warehouses. The stores double as fulfillment centers, allowing retailers to ship products quickly from one of many locations, rather than attempting to ship to everywhere from one storage hub. This strategy can benefit shoppers as they have the ability to place orders online and can access the retailer’s full catalog, and it can benefit the retailer by consolidating many of the processes associated with this change in consumer behavior, whether in-house or through a retail platform.


Using Shoppi’s versatile software, retail businesses can simplify order management and workflows, from marketing to distribution. Through its multimedia capabilities, retailers can build and maintain their own brand identity in channels that reach customers directly. The platform also allows retailers to view data such as sales patterns in order to better structure their target markets and marketing plans. Shoppi can also identify the nearest stores to each customer’s location, streamlining the order fulfillment process. Payment options are included in the point-of-sale solution.


When shoppers interact with brands through Shoppi, they interact with retail brands according to their preferences, enhancing their experiences and their perceptions of the brands. The ability to pick up products from stores near them adds a layer of usability and ease. For brands, Shoppi channels essential functions into one intuitive process and provides feedback on the performance of the brand and its products. The mutual benefit on both sides of the app makes Shoppi a practical tool for anyone looking to transition to a more online-based sales strategy in an increasingly mobile world.



Tags: shopping,blog,warehouse