White Paper: How To Capitalize On Customer-Centric Merchandising In A Diverse Marketplace

The retail industry's growth period of building store after store has nearly exhausted itself. For many years, retailers have focused on building bigger and better stores. However, this tactic has tapped the majority of major and mid-tier U.S. markets. In addition, these stores are beginning to show signs of age. It is essential therefore for retailers to re-focus their strategies to optimize their existing store network.

When adding hundreds of stores every year, numerous retailers found it efficient to take on a one-size-fits-all approach to their merchandising strategy. However, this tactic doesn't optimize sales or meet consumer need on a store-by-store basis. Shoppers today seek solutions that fit their needs; diversity in every sense is immense across the store network. Different store, consumer and market conditions combine to produce product demand, sales volume and mix that vary greatly. The averages approach often results in missed assortment opportunities, incorrect stocking levels and exposure to products that are out of proportion to what the customers at each store want most. Indeed, industry experience has shown the only consistent factor across stores is diversity. To help alleviate these issues, retailers can employ a customer-centric approach to merchandising.