Shopping for Growth

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Shopping for Growth SHOPPING FOR GROWTH HOW RETAIL AND WHOLESALE CAN BOOST GROWTH AND CREATE JOBS IN EUROPE MANIFESTO FOR THE NEW PARLIAMENT AND COMMISSION IS About EuroCommerce SV EuroCommerce represents KAUPPA the retail, wholesale and VIRKE international trade sectors FI in Europe. Its membership NO includes commerce federations EKL and companies in 31 European SVENSK HANDEL countries. Commerce plays a EE unique role in the European RETAIL IRELAND DANSK ERHVERV SE LTA economy, acting as the link LV between producers and the IE DK BRC LPIA nearly 500 million consumers MKB LT RND across Europe, over 100 million UK times a day. NL PIH See page 10-11 for more facts and figures BGA POHID about retail and wholesale in Europe. COMEOS HDE BE www.eurocommerce.eu SOCR PL DE CLC LU CZ ZOCR SK CDCF WKÖ CGI AT OKSZ FCD VOSZ TZS HU RO SI APED FR AMRCR CCP ANGED PT ASEDAS CEC IT ES CONFCOMMERCIO FEDERDISTRIBUZIONE EL ACCI NCHC GRTU MEMBER ASSOCIATIONS MT CCCI CY MEMBER COMPANIES AFFILIATED FEDERATIONS - AEDT - EUEW - AMPD - FECC - CBL - FENA - CEDDEC - HGK - CELCAA - HUP - DSE - IELKA - Ecommerce - Independent Europe Retail Europe - EDRA - SACAR - EFF - Seldia - ETRC - STL - ETV - VSIG As of December2013. FOREWORD We are at the dawn of a new European legislature. The next five years will be critical in returning the European economy to growth and job creation. Retail and wholesale can contribute, given the right economic and policy conditions. The sector is the interface between producers and consumers, serving 500 million European consumers every day. Consumers choose between retailers each and every time they shop. So retailers compete daily for a share of billions of annual shopping trips across the EU. Retailing and wholesaling account for 1 in 4 enterprises in Europe, contribute 11% of Europe’s gross added value and provide 1 in 7 jobs. Our sector employs nearly 30 million people. It offers varied careers, whether to young graduates, to older people with limited skills, to those seeking part-time work to combine with caring responsibilities, or to cutting edge technical experts. To deliver growth and create jobs, the sector needs the right policy framework. Barriers remain to flexible trading : a Single Market in goods and services is not yet a full reality ; labour markets in some Member States are inflexible, preventing retail and wholesale from adapting to customers’ needs ; protec- tionism impedes global trade. The sector is undergoing a major transformation, driven primarily by the rapid expansion of the digital economy. Retail and wholesale are adapting at pace, anticipating customers’ changing needs and prefer- ences. This e-commerce revolution has coincided with continuing recession in many Member States. Consumer spending is down and competition is fierce, putting a premium on innovation and efficiency, while making it harder to earn a return on investment. Our main proposals for the next five years are for : > a digital policy that helps retail and consumers in the digital age > a plan for European retail and wholesale competitiveness and more open markets > a voluntary approach to fair relations with suppliers and to sustainability At EuroCommerce we bring together associations representing retail and wholesale in 31 European countries along with small and large companies from across Europe. We represent all retail channels, all types of wholesale, and all commerce business models in the EU. Our broad and diverse membership gives us strength and legitimacy. We welcome the increasing recognition by EU politicians of the important role of commerce as an economic driver. In January 2013 the European Commission published its European Retail Action Plan. It sets out a strategy to improve further the competitiveness of the retail sector and to enhance the sector’s economic, environmental and social performance. This policy ambition now must be firmly embedded in policy-making. The EU institutions should ensure retail and wholesale are at the heart of their thinking. With the right policy and legislative environment, our sector will respond, supporting growth and creating jobs in the European economy. Baroness Neville-Rolfe, DBE, CMG Christian Verschueren President Director–General 3 WE NEED A POLICY THAT HELPS RETAIL 1 AND CONSUMERS IN THE DIGITAL AGE The retail and wholesale sector is in the midst of a global digital revolution bringing fundamental changes to the way consumers shop (see box). Many retailers, small and large, are embracing digital technology and multi-channel retailing, combining traditional bricks-and-mortar shops with online services, and offering new delivery solutions, such as click-and-collect. Wholesalers are also adapting to the digital age. www. Customer-centred developments include > more sophisticated and personalised communications with consumers through different channels ; > changing store footprints in towns and cities, driven by consumer choice and new forms of commerce ; > new online and multi-channel formats disrupting the retail market and capturing market share, including manufacturers’ own online outlets and flagship stores ; > retail companies seeking to become vertically integrated, controlling the whole value chain ; > new and different skills requirements and job functions ; > consumers needing new and safe payment solutions to pay online and across borders. Retailers and wholesalers are adapting to meet changing customer The digital revolution empowers consumers as never before. They expectations, investing in technology, operations and talent to have increased access to price and product information, making deliver multiple channels and their seamless integration. They it much easier to find the best deal. Consumers increasingly are changing their business models and offerings. ‘Digital native’ expect to buy what they want, how they want and when they entrepreneurs are launching new retail businesses everywhere. want it. Consumer confidence in the full range of channels is This digital transformation poses a challenge to traditional paramount. The sector serves 500 million consumers every shopping areas which need to reinvent themselves to compete. day, providing helpful information and consumer protection. Struggling town centres affect the social fabric of communities Multi-channel retailing changes the interaction between consumer so traditional forms of commerce need help in adapting to this and retailer as the ways in which consumers choose products, digital revolution. Legislation and policy should be developed in pay for them, return goods and seek redress alter. Consumer ways that are fair to all forms of retail and wholesale. policy and regulation also need to evolve to match these changes. 4 The challenge for policy-makers is to keep pace with the shifting landscape of com- merce, adapting the legal, regulatory and policy framework. Policies to unleash the potential of commerce in the digital age should include : A single digital portal 2 for retail and wholesale… A level playing field in policy 1 and legislation for all forms and channels of commerce… … would help traders seeking to establish cross border e-commerce businesses or to adapt to this new land- scape. An online one-stop-shop providing user-friend- … policies should be developed to reflect changes in ly information on legislative requirements in every consumer demand, removing unjustified and unfair Member State (e.g. VAT regimes, product requirements competitive advantages to particular retail channels and establishment rules) could also showcase best (‘channel-neutrality’). This applies particularly in areas practice case studies of traditional retailers or such as taxation, employment law and environmental wholesalers reinventing themselves and city centres obligations. adapting to the new competitive landscape. Swift adoption and implementation Consumer policy and legislation 4 3 of the Regulation on interchange fit for the digital age and bank fees and Payment Services enhancing consumer trust in new Directive… forms of commerce... … should cap card fees to the benefit of consumers and … including the swift implementation of the Consumer make online payments more competitive. Rights Directive, proportionate regulation on data pro- tection, and modern and efficient ways of providing consumer information. 5 Completing the Digital Single Market... … ensuring world class ICT infrastructure throughout Europe, … educating all EU citizens, so that they are digitally savvy ; including broadband and mobile networks, to support this is crucial for getting jobs and for living a convenient multi-channel operations. life in the digital age. See our policy guidance paper on e-commerce and multichannel retail for more details. IN 2013, EUROPEAN E-COMMERCE WILL REACH A TURNOVER OF €350 BILLION 350 € 350 bn Europe € 338 bn Asia Pacific + 20% / year* € 318 bn N. America 300 * CAGR 2009-2013 Source : EMOTA 250 + 15% / year 200 € 185 bn + 42% / year 150 € 167 bn 100 € 84 bn 50 0 2009 2013 (est.) 5 WE NEED A PLAN FOR EUROPEAN RETAIL AND WHOLESALE COMPETITIVENESS – 2 TO REMOVE BARRIERS TO GROWTH AND JOBS CREATION As Europe’s largest private sector employer, closely linked to 500 million consumers, retail and wholesale have the potential to drive Europe out of the deepest economic crisis we have faced in over 80 years. Strong but fair competition in retailing is the best guarantee to keep prices down and preserve consumer purchasing power. By working with their suppliers, providing routes to market, retailers and wholesalers ensure the best deal
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