The IREU recently released a report on Europe’s leading retailers and what they are doing to be considered among the Elite. To earn Elite status, retailers must perform at an exceptional level across all dimensions, including: footprint; strategy & innovation; customer experience; operations & logistics; merchandising; brand engagement; and mobile & cross channel selling.

For 2018, the companies that performed at an Elite level were:

  • Apple – Mobile and Consumer Electronics 
  • Argos – Consumer Packaged Goods
  • H&M – Apparel 
  • IKEA – Furniture & Home Accessories 
  • Tesco – Consumer Packaged Goods  
  • Zara – Apparel 

The new additions to the list were Argos and Tesco, while Apple, H&M, IKEA, and Zara were all incumbents. These retailers represent the best of European multichannel retail. Below is a quick look at what they are doing to be considered Elite.

Online Retail is Maturing

Online retail in Europe is maturing quickly. New technology is launching all the time but many retailers are not satisfied with even the basics. For example, despite many available tools for creating mobile sites, many retailers are still not geared up for mobile sales, even though mobile has been a steadily growing channel for years. The best advice for retailers is to remember the basics: having a quality product, a sound user experience, dependable stock management processes, and a reliable checkout experience are must-haves for success.

Sales without Borders

When it comes to online shopping, the IREU report shows that having a global-citizen approach is popular and it works. Amazon Vice President Eric Broussard told the Las Vegas ShopTalk conference in 2017 that approximately 25% of sales by Amazon’s merchants were across borders—an increase of 50% from 2016; that stat falls in line with a 31% growth in Amazon’s total net sales. Broussard noted: “A customer shops in German, pays in Euros and gets very rapid fulfilment for a product from a U.S. seller.”

Looking Ahead

At a strategic level, the challenge for European retailers is to deliver multichannel, consistent, and innovative offerings that can scale across many countries. Any established or emerging service that works for multichannel retail is worth tracking across the span of core retail disciplines—logistics, customer service, localisation, and liquidation.

To learn how B-Stock can help EU retailers increase recovery rates on overstock and returned merchandise allocated for secondary market liquidation, request a demo today.  

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Author

Editorial Team

Author

B-Stock Editorial Team

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