This article was originally posted in Forbes

Retail has undergone a rapid change of pace over the last few years. With investment in technology expedited by the evolving consumer demands, a number of retailers are now focusing their efforts on making their digital transformation more effective and advanced. According to Statista, the retail automation market has been valued at approximately $14.9 billion in 2023. By 2029, this number is expected to have doubled—reaching $29 billion in only six years.

The next few years will be vital for the retail industry, with new solutions being developed on a seemingly weekly basis. Those who are not already investing in retail technology need to start soon or risk falling behind the competition.

Retailers Have To Want To Change

Disruptive innovation, by definition, replaces older technology investments with new solutions that deliver improved operational efficiencies, better customer experiences and, ultimately, higher profits. The issue for many organizations is that they often cling to past investments for too long, still expecting a continued return on investment (ROI) and shuddering at the thought of spending more financial resources on technology to replace older investments.

Different retailers will find themselves in unique positions. Some may have had legacy technology for years and might not know where to start. Others may have already made investments but haven’t been able to realize the value in them. The first step is recognizing exactly where the business stands.

Creating The Right Foundations

Structurally, retailers are typically set up in a way that does not facilitate effective digital transformation. Traditionally, retailers started with brick-and-mortar stores before e-commerce was introduced and heralded as the newer, cooler way of selling products. This created an inherent division between the two channels—fiercely competing with each other.

In many cases, in-store functions and e-commerce operations are conducted separately. However, in today’s omnichannel world, the two need to work together in real time, and this is the challenge facing many retailers over the last few years.

Fundamentally, retail businesses need to take a step back and look at their brand from the view of the consumer. Today’s consumer purchases through a range of channels; organizations need to embrace this, and they should be looking to restructure around this changing demand. The second step to any form of digital transformation lies in understanding what the customer wants. In the current landscape, the customer wants convenience. Online and in-store operations need to unify in order to deliver a frictionless experience for consumers.

Driving Internal Buy-In

It’s one thing knowing that change needs to happen; it’s another to get everyone on board with it. This is where internal challenges can arise.

Stakeholders can quite easily take one look at the associated costs of new technologies and shut down any suggestion of innovation. Meanwhile, store managers or associates might not be too enthused by the idea of training to use new devices in-store when they struggle to see the benefit. Buy-in is necessary across all levels of the retailer, and the most effective way to deliver it is from the top down.

It starts with the vision—showing board members the long-term benefits and, importantly, ROI. They need to understand and get on board with the way that the landscape is changing—driven by the consumer’s demands for convenience and personalization.

Another integral factor in creating buy-in comes from the understanding that this is not an overnight investment. Instead, it is the gradual evolution of the business. Much of today’s urgency in retailers is coming from the recognition that they needed to change years ago. However, they cannot go at break-neck speed immediately. There will be disruption, not everything will go completely seamlessly, and retailers will need to ramp up gradually.

Investing in technology relies heavily on well-oiled change management. Everyone is used to operating in a certain way, from the CEO right down to the latest trainee sales associate. Digital transformation changes everything, and it will be a challenge to come to terms with it.

The sooner that board members recognize this is a slow process and that it will not be without its challenges, the quicker there will be top-down buy-in.

Coming To Terms With The Tech

With an understanding of where the business sits and what its customers need, retailers can now focus their attention on the technology.

While buzzwords such as “omnichannel,” “frictionless commerce” and “seamless customer experience” have become the hot topic, many retailers cannot give a detailed explanation of what they actually mean.

Immediately, this causes significant issues. A lack of understanding eventually translates into a lack of strategy and direction. In such a highly competitive environment (primarily governed by the meandering expectations of consumers), retailers without guidance can quickly fall behind the rest of the pack. By blindly investing in technology they don’t understand, retailers are unable to optimize their use of the solutions they have purchased, failing to drive ROI and making unnecessary losses.

Finding The Right IT Partner

An IT provider should not be thought of as simply a vendor but, rather, a partner—an extension and the technology backbone of a retailer.

In such a fast-paced industry that is becoming increasingly reliant on technology, retailers should not be looking for a partner that will fill an order and forget about them. An IT provider should care about how the business performs. It should have deep industry-specific experience, have seen similar cases previously and have the ability to consult, provide insight and deliver the right solutions at the right time.

As the complex retail sector continues to evolve, it has never been more important to invest wisely in technology. Retailers cannot afford to get this decision wrong.

The right partner will be able to scale a retailer’s technology stack in line with its growth, providing new technologies that demonstrate new capabilities as and when they are required. This choice is imperative not just for the implementation of that technology but for long-term business sustainability and growth.

Sergey Kozhevnikov, VP of Product Development, Teamwork Commerce. Read Sergey Kozhevnikov’s full executive profile here.

Supply chain management has risen to prominence in recent years, owing to widespread disruptions caused by geopolitical tensions and subsequent supply chain bottlenecks. According to an Accenture survey, 75% of retailers experienced negative business impacts as a result of supply chain disruptions. As a result, investment in supply chain agility and resilience is a top priority for 96% and 90% of retailers, respectively.

Because of the prevalence of last-mile delivery issues, as well as reliance on suppliers who are frequently experiencing difficulties, global and local retailers need to review their inventory distribution network and create a seamless experience based on a unified commerce approach. The significance of a well-functioning supply chain cannot be overstated. It serves as the backbone that connects various components of a retailer’s operations, ensuring the smooth flow of goods and services from suppliers to customers.

In today’s competitive retail environment, where customer expectations are high and demands are constantly evolving, businesses must grasp the importance of an efficient and effective supply chain. By being proactive and embracing technological advancements, retailers can mitigate risks, optimize operations, and ensure that their supply chains operate effectively in an ever-changing business landscape.

Supply Chain Challenges

Retail supply chains operate in a dynamic business landscape, facing multifaceted challenges that require careful navigation. Demand volatility has added complexity to already challenging supply chains as retailers must anticipate and respond to fluctuating consumer preferences and behaviors. This has resulted in inventory management becoming a delicate balance, ensuring optimal stock levels to avoid overstocking or stockouts.

Furthermore, as more retailers adopt an omnichannel approach, smoothly integrating numerous channels raises complications in providing a consistent customer experience. Retailers need to deliver highly tailored customer service while developing and sustaining solid supplier relationships, guaranteeing quality control, and adapting to sustainable and ethical practices to meet the demands of conscious consumers. It is undeniable that retailers require real-time visibility across the entire supply chain to make informed decisions.

Deploying the Right Technology

Retailers are recognizing the need for a digital transformation, or more specifically, a supply chain digitization. With the advancement of technology, businesses may now approach supply chain management from a novel perspective, employing lateral thinking and utilizing new technologies to obtain unprecedented visibility into supply chain operations. Furthermore, retailers now have access to data-driven insights into their operations, allowing them to make better decisions about operational processes and distribution networks.

For retailers, staying ahead of the curve in today’s world means having the right technological solutions at their fingertips. Teamwork Commerce’s innovative, user-friendly, and augmented technology solutions help businesses overcome a variety of challenges, from streamlining processes to improving the customer experience, all aiding in optimizing the supply chain. With these tools, companies can be more agile and responsive to changing market conditions and customer needs.

With Teamwork Commerce’s Inventory Control technology in place, retailers can set new horizons for their omnichannel strategy and focus on creating a fully-integrated shopping experience that meets both their strategy and consumer needs. Teamwork’s customizable Inventory Cost solution is designed to help businesses optimize their inventory costs and gain visibility into their stock. It is built for efficiency, allowing businesses to access their inventory levels at the touch of a button and ensure consistent stock management.

Additionally, Teamwork Commerce offers order management capabilities, allowing businesses to handle and complete consumer orders across numerous channels in an effective manner. This tool assists businesses in streamlining their order processing procedures, improving order accuracy, and providing customers with quick order updates. With this in place, retailers can take the next step toward an exceptional customer experience (CX). 

From Efficiency to Excellence

In today’s highly competitive business landscape, a strong supply chain foundation is the key to delivering exceptional customer experiences. It enables companies to meet customer demands with agility, efficiency, and reliability, setting them apart from the competition. It empowers companies to anticipate customer needs, manage inventory effectively, and fulfill orders promptly, allowing them to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Once retailers have overcome supply chain challenges, they are able to focus all of their efforts on developing an excellent CX.

Creating Opportunities Out of Challenges

Retail businesses have had to rapidly adapt and deploy the appropriate technology to overcome the challenges in their supply chains. The key is to adopt a holistic approach that streamlines operations and focuses on customer-centric experiences. As retailers strive to improve their omnichannel services and adapt their supply chains, implementing technological solutions can help by managing inventory movement, improving the customer experience, and leveraging analytics to provide data-driven insights on how to continuously improve processes.

As shoppers flock to stores and websites to purchase their summer essentials, retailers must navigate ways to make the most of the summer shopping peak. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF) forecast, United States retail sales are estimated to expand by 6% in 2023. To capitalize on this busy shopping period, retailers must cater to rapidly changing consumer behavior.

Today, consumers demand a seamless shopping experience at their own convenience. From product recommendations and discounts to automated checkout processes – convenience and customization have become a common part of consumer expectations. Any variances in consumer inclinations can directly affect retailers, and they must comprehend how to meet the needs of their customers while out-maneuvering the competition.

To make the most of the upcoming shopping peak, retailers must be able to create a more efficient and cost-effective way of doing business while also being able to ensure a high-quality shopping experience for their customers. Technology can serve as a great facilitator to help retailers advance their capabilities to meet customer demands. In fact, a 2022 Coresight survey estimated that more than two-thirds of retailers plan to increase their investment in technology over the next three years.

From the supply chain through to in-store operations – retailers are deploying next-generation solutions to boost their sales, efficiency, and profitability.

As shoppers flock to stores and websites to purchase their summer essentials, retailers must navigate ways to make the most of the summer shopping peak. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF) forecast, United States retail sales are estimated to expand by 6% in 2023. To capitalize on this busy shopping period, retailers must cater to rapidly changing consumer behavior.

Today, consumers demand a seamless shopping experience at their own convenience. From product recommendations and discounts to automated checkout processes – convenience and customization have become a common part of consumer expectations. Any variances in consumer inclinations can directly affect retailers, and they must comprehend how to meet the needs of their customers while out-maneuvering the competition.

To make the most of the upcoming shopping peak, retailers must be able to create a more efficient and cost-effective way of doing business while also being able to ensure a high-quality shopping experience for their customers. Technology can serve as a great facilitator to help retailers advance their capabilities to meet customer demands. In fact, a 2022 Coresight survey estimated that more than two-thirds of retailers plan to increase their investment in technology over the next three years.

From the supply chain through to in-store operations – retailers are deploying next-generation solutions to boost their sales, efficiency, and profitability.

Accurate Inventory Is a Must

Manual entries with traditional inventory solutions are clearly not enough to meet today’s retail requirements. Not only do manual entries slow down the entire process, but they also do not guarantee the required accuracy due to human error. This can further lead retailers to make inappropriate inventory decisions in areas such as production, procurement, and distribution.

To boost efficiency and profitability, retailers must be able to ensure that the right amount of product is in the correct place and accessible when required. This can be achieved through the deployment of the right technology. For example, the Teamwork Commerce Inventory Management System is designed to help retailers automate and streamline their processes, so they can reach the next level of success.

The core principles of the solution are advanced functionality, data-driven information, analytical insight, and strategic analysis. With this information available at the click of a button, retailers are aware of every single detail concerning unit availability, location, and status. This technique helps retailers maintain a proper balance between stock and demand, particularly when there is an increase in consumers and an exponential increase in demand.

Ahead of summer’s shopping peak, having the right technology can help retailers track their inventory more accurately in real time. In addition, retailers can further prevent stock-out situations whilst avoiding overstocking items that aren’t selling fast. Moreover, retailers must advance their in-store technological deployments to ensure a top-tier shopping experience for their customers.

Strengthening the Brick-and-Mortar

Summers tend to be a busy shopping season for retailers and customers alike. Long queues and delays can be a nuisance for customers, compromising their overall experience with the retailer, thus, retailers must find an efficient way to bust queues and keep up during periods of high demand.

One way retailers can help in-store associates serve their customers more quickly is by introducing a mobile point-of-sale (POS) system which allows staff to serve customers from any part of the store. Teamwork’s Mobile POS system operates exclusively on cutting-edge iOS devices with Apple UI/UX (User Experience/User Interface), this system has revolutionized the checkout experience and created a better customer journey. What’s more, the solution is also designed to facilitate complex calculations, increase efficiency and leverage advanced technology processing capabilities.

Taking Personalization to the Next Level with Secure CRM

During busy periods, retailers need to obtain accurate data about their customers to ensure success. In a cookieless world, first-party data has become increasingly valuable for businesses. This data, which is generated by customers’ interactions with websites, apps and other digital properties, provides an unprecedented level of insights into customer behaviors and preferences. It is the jewel in the crown that can help them understand their customers better and offer them a personal shopping experience.

Knowing that data is a game changer for retailers, Teamwork Commerce’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool offers a comprehensive overview of customer interactions with a business, allowing retailers to track customer behavior over time and make informed decisions. By leveraging this data, retailers can create tailored experiences for their customers that will keep them returning. For example, by leveraging customers’ purchase history of previous summer seasons, retailers can better understand customers’ purchase budgets, categories and preferences.

In addition, the solution offers an overarching holistic view of the consumer journey, from gaining insights into the customer retail journey to analyzing the customer’s overall information and finally providing a customer-centric service to the consumer. Integral to the state-of-the-art solution is data security, it ensures the utmost security for safeguarding customer information. By keeping it in a centralized location, the CRM makes sure that all data is secure and compliant with industry regulations.

With an increase in customer requests during the summer season, it becomes imperative for retailers to prioritize setting up the right mechanisms to ensure that customers have a hassle-free and enjoyable shopping experience. To maximize commercial success, retailers need to develop and execute a comprehensive strategy that relies on technological solutions. These solutions streamline processes and enable retailers to concentrate on optimizing the customer experience from start to finish.

Providing an efficient and personalized customer experience is vital for success in today’s competitive retail landscape. The Point-of-Sale experience is a critical moment where businesses have the opportunity to leave a lasting impression on their customers. It’s not just about completing a transaction — it’s about creating a memorable and seamless interaction that enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty. This is why Teamwork Commerce developed its RFID-Powered Self-Checkout solution, to simplify the checkout process for in-store customers.

This innovative solution enables global retailers to provide their in-store customers with seamless shopping experiences. It employs Radio Frequency Identification (RFID technology) to enhance the efficiency and speed of the checkout process in retail stores, replacing traditional barcode scanning with RFID tags and readers that offer several benefits for both customers and retailers. Here’s how RFID In-Store Checkout assists retailers in improving their operations and increasing retail sales:

Improved Efficiency

RFID technology allows faster and more accurate check-out processes. Unlike traditional barcode scanning, which requires each item to be scanned individually, RFID readers allow multiple items to be identified simultaneously, reducing check-out time significantly. This increased efficiency allows customers to experience shorter lines and shorter wait times, resulting in a more satisfying customer journey.

Enhanced Inventory Management

RFID tags attached to products can be detected quickly and accurately, enabling real-time inventory tracking. Furthermore, as items are sold or restocked, the system automatically updates the inventory status, ensuring accurate and up-to-date information at all times. And with RFID-Powered Self-Checkout, all in-store items will be equipped with RFID tags – enabling retailers to gain a better insight into their inventory.

This helps to avoid out-of-stock situations, ensures better product availability, and reduces the likelihood of missed sales opportunities. Accurate inventory management also aids in optimizing product placement and reducing overstocking.

Personalized Customer Experience

RFID check-outs make personalized customer experiences possible. Retailers can collect data on individual preferences, purchase history, and browsing patterns by integrating RFID technology with customer loyalty programs or mobile apps. Retailers can use this data to provide tailored recommendations, targeted promotions, and customized offers to customers at the point of sale. This personalization improves the customer experience, boosts buyer satisfaction, and fosters loyalty.

Minimized Shrinkage and Theft

RFID technology increases security measures for retailers. Retailers can effectively track and monitor inventory movements within the store by attaching RFID tags to products. This improves the detection of unauthorized removal or theft, lowering the risk of shrinkage. RFID’s enhanced security assists retailers in asset tracking, creating a safe shopping environment and minimizing losses.

In today’s competitive market, the Point-of-Sale experience can make or break a business. It’s the final touchpoint where customers decide whether to become repeat customers or look elsewhere. Investing in a positive and engaging experience at this crucial stage is essential for long-term success. To remain competitive retailers must consistently push the boundaries of innovation and remain agile to continuously changing consumer demands.

RFID-powered Self-Checkout is the latest in a long line of technologies that are improving the overall customer experience, and retailers need to partner with the right IT provider to ensure that their retail technology operations are innovative, scalable, and sustainable. And most importantly, geared to generate long-term growth.

Customers crave convenience and personalization, and the Point-of-Sale is where these factors come together. By offering streamlined processes, tailored recommendations, and seamless payment options, businesses can significantly enhance customer satisfaction and drive repeat business.

Want to get a demo of how this solution can enhance the customer experience? Please get in touch.

Ana Santana

Business Development Executive at Teamwork Commerce

For the latest edition of our new blog series – Five Minutes With… – we get to know Ana Santana, Business Development Executive, based in Teamwork’s Tampa office. Growing up in Chicago, Ana’s love of retail inspired her to take a leap into the retail technology industry. Here, she tells all about her time in the sector and her experiecne at Teamwork Commerce…

• What is your role at Teamwork Commerce?

My role is Business Development Executive, so I am responsible for sourcing and developing leads and will pass them over to the Sales team when the time comes. I spend a lot of time building relationships with prospective clients.

• Explain your career path. What inspired you to join the retail tech industry?

I’ve held various roles within recruiting, operations, and hospitality but the constant among all of my roles has been the desire to communicate and build relationships with others toward one common goal. This (along with a love for retail) is what I believe has inspired me to join the retail tech industry.

• What is your favorite thing about working in the retail industry?

My favorite thing is seeing the changes and evolution of the retail industry firsthand. It’s one thing to be a consumer who has opinions with the ability to sway trends but it’s another to be a part of a team who can directly impact the lives of fellow consumers via our modern tech stack both in-store & online.

• What is the best career advice you have ever received?

I would say the best advice I have received is “Always be willing to learn & use your resources”. Even when you think you know it all, there is someone who can teach you more. Then, repeat the cycle & be that person for someone else.

• What is your favorite thing about working at Teamwork Commerce?

Really feeling cared for professionally AND personally. Everyone wants you to succeed here – and that is the same value we strive to give to our clients.

• Who are your key role models/inspirations?

I have plenty of role models in my family and famous culture. However, I always try to imagine the most ideal inspirational woman & actively take steps each day to become that woman.

Rapid Fire Round…

What is your favorite…

• Book – The Power of Now
• Movie – Almost Famous
• Album – One Thing at a time by Morgan Wallen or Bloom by Rufus Du Sol

• Most people don’t know that I…

Was the first in my family to move away from home (Chicago) & graduate from college with a 4 year degree.

• In my spare time, I…

Am usually at the gym or looking to try new restaurants.