According to Forrester, physical retail will continue to drive the bulk of retail sales – and will for quite some time.
Even during pandemic-induced mandatory shutdowns and with additional safety concerns, consumers have shown they will continue to shop in the store when they feel it is a viable option.
The top reasons for shopping in-store are to test products 47 per cent and being able to walk away with an item after purchasing 38 per cent, Forrester found. Consumers also like to make returns in physical stores. Forty-one per cent said online returns are difficult and over a third of consumers said this has discouraged them from purchasing online. Over half of respondents said they prefer in-store returns.
Post-Covid consumers are both digitally savvy and channel-agnostic, Forrester noted. They are open to exploring more shopping options (52 per cent of US online adults enjoy trying new brands) and more likely to take advantage of digital’s “self-service” environments (63 per cent spend time comparing products before making a purchase.) This combination has raised the bar for retailers, Forrester said, as they rethink, redesign, and repurpose their store environments beyond simply offering tactile product experiences.
