As the internet economy grows, so does the importance of last-mile delivery, which is the final step in the increasingly competitive and costly process of moving items to customers’ homes as quickly as possible. Quick commerce (“q-commerce”) offers significant growth potential expecting to reach a global market size of around Euro 448 billion by 2030.
Read MoreCompanies like Rapha, Ryzon, or Soho House have managed to create communities that speak to the human need for belonging. From nature, us humans are social species. People desire an identity and are motivated to become part of a community.
Read MoreIn 2009 Yael Aflalo, a model turned fashion entrepreneur, opened a vintage clothing resale business she ran part time from the back room of a Los Angeles retail store. Called Reformation, it sold stylish secondhand items or garments made from re-purposed materials. In 2013, the brand was scaled into an e-commerce business with a downtown factory and three boutiques — a vision honed by Ms. Aflalo’s experience, gained earlier in her career, of the environmental and human toll the global fashion industry was taking.
Read MoreThe online clothing resale market has expanded 21 times faster than regular retail since 2016 and it is expected to more than double in size reaching USD 41 billion in the next three years, according to a report by online reseller ThredUp. With revenue increasing, brands and retailers that previously disliked resellers profiting from their wares are forced to act and acquire these up and coming players, in order to play a role in this market.
Read MoreNo one is immune to a bargain — not even those who can spend GBP 30,000 on a watch. At Watches of Switzerland, an authorised dealer, an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak automatic in rose gold sells for GBP 42,600, but the same watch is on offer at "grey market" website Chrono24 from US dealer Watch My Diamonds for USD 34,850 (GBP 27,227). It is impossible to ignore that the grey market is becoming a powerful force in the watch industry, which is worth USD 62.5bn, according to Euromonitor.
Read MoreThe world’s online shopping giants are following smaller web retailers into what might appear to be the merchandising past. Amazon, Alibaba and most recently JD.com, are operating brick-and-mortar stores, joining companies such as the formerly web-only Warby Parker and Outdoor Voices and reoccurring pop-up events by the likes of Gymshark and Aday. Even Tencent, the Chinese games and social media giant, is doing deals in retail.
Read MoreCall it the brick-and-mortar versus e-commerce problem. However, merging the two offers an opportunity to create a truly personalised experience both online and offline, which is why personalization is a top priority for organizations in 2018. Research shows that nearly three out of four consumers responding to personalized offers, recommendations or experiences.
Read MoreAs 2017 was heralded to see the death of retail, as boutiques and department stores were closing its doors driven by changing consumer habits, price wars and the threat of Amazon, high-end e-commerce remains a bright spot in the shopping landscape. Online luxury sales jumped by 24 percent this year, according to a recent study by the consulting firm Bain & Co. and the online sales of personal luxury goods are expected to make up 25 percent of the market by 2025.
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