Cash is king. Well, actually, Amazon is king. And it certainly creates a lot of cash. Not only does Amazon continue to dominate e-commerce, but it also impacts almost every line of business—from supermarkets to web services. Now it’s even getting into pharmaceuticals.
The folks over at Amazon are not dumb. They test, and they try. Often times, they even fail. But while they push the limits of getting to market, they’ve also proven to be patient. More importantly, they’re very calculated.
Consumers are on the move, and their expectations are higher than ever, thanks to supply chain innovations pioneered by fashion industry front runners. Speedy product development and great logistics management have helped brands like Zara and Uniqlo expand their brands’ presence and popularity in North America, bringing new benefits to consumers and new challenges to retailers.
Consumers are not only starting their holiday shopping earlier, they are treating themselves to gifts when shopping for family and friends. During the 2015 holiday season, 50% of shoppers bought something for themselves when shopping for others, a seven percentage point increase from 2014, according to Deloitte.
Consumers’ willingness to stuff their own stockings during the holidays means retailers need to be thinking about ways to entice consumers to splurge on them- selves, in addition to developing promotions that appeal to early-bird holiday shoppers.
