EDITORIAL Kingfisher, ScS and Nike on how retailers and brands are adapting the way they sell as customer habits change post-pandemic

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In today’s InternetRetailing newsletter, we’re reporting on how retailers from B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher to Nike and ScS see shopping changing, post-pandemic.

Like them, many retailers will be considering and planning for how shoppers will want to buy in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. While online shopping has subsided from the kind of peaks that were seen during lockdown, the share of sales taking place online still seems to be running significantly ahead of pre-pandemic levels. And while Covid-19 restrictions are at an end, it seems likely that many office workers will now work from home more often than they used to.

That’s certainly how Kingfisher sees customer behaviour changing – and it believes those shoppers will remain keen to improve their homes and gardens. It sees faster delivery, smaller shops and greater convenience as being the key to getting it right for its customers and thus to growing its business for the future.

Nike is looking to a future in which more of its customers buy directly from the brand. The retail brand has reported rising sales, with direct sales growing quickly both in-store and online. At the same time, it is selling slightly less via wholesale.

Meanwhile, sofa retailer ScS is investing in both online and stores – and ensuring that both work together for in-store shoppers who want to buy across both channels. The retailer is still affected by supply chain delays and driver shortages that have had knock on effects for fulfilment to customers, reducing its sales and resulting in a first half pre-tax loss at the bottom line.

Elsewhere, we’re reporting on GlobalData’s latest predictions for spending this Easter, and on warnings that the effect of the P&O Ferries mass redundancies will already be being felt on supply chains that are already stretched.

In today’s guest comment, Cas Paton of OnBuy argues that it’s time to redefine what a marketplace is.

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