Future of Retail
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INDEPENDENT PUBLICATION BY RACONTEUR.NET #0572 07/03/2019 FUTURE OF RETAIL RETAIL IS MORE MAKING ETHICAL FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT 03 THAN JUST A JOB 06 SHOPPING SMARTER 12 FOR MODEST FASHION RACONTEUR.NET 03 FUTURE RETAIL CAREERS OF RETAIL Making retail more Distributed in than 'just a job' Published in association with In a sector known for high turnover, some brands are realising the benefits of nurturing and investing in employees to develop long careers Ana Santi only works on Saturdays. Those cus- Contributors tomers know that, so that’s when they ost of us, at some point, have visit the store.” Amy Hawkins Ana Santi M worked in retail on the shop How retailers choose to engage China-based journalist, she Former editor at Drapers floor. During school holi- with, and thus retain, retail staff writes about technology and commentator for days, in-between jobs, while trying depends on their size and type of and culture, and has the BBC and Sky News, to work out what career to pursue. business. Mr Ruis says: “At the pre- appeared in The Guardian, she writes extensively The Sunday Times, Foreign across fashion, business Perhaps it is, in part, this attitude of mium end, you talk more to custom- Policy and others. and culture. a temporary, passing endeavour that ers, you engage in conversation. John leads to a high turnover of store staff Lewis is a great example because of in the retail industry. its pension and bonus schemes. If Daniela Morosini Gouri Sharma Latest official figures show that the you’re a Tesco or M&S, the environ- Award-winning beauty Independent journalist writer and trend-spotter, formerly with Al Jazeera average staff turnover in the UK was ment is more about productivity, so she contributes to a number English, she writes 16.5 per cent in 2016, a figure which the opportunities are different.” of titles including Vogue, extensively on culture, includes sectors with very high turn- Indeed, Marks & Spencer has Refinery29 and WGSN. current affairs and over, such as construction and retail. pledged to support its staff by provid- emerging trends. “Some people are attracted to retail ing one million hours of work-time because it’s flexible. It offers part-time community volunteering between Joe McGrath Joel Clark Editor of Index Trader and Former staff writer and hours, for example, so quite often, 2017 and 2025. The retailer’s focus Insolvency Today, he was editor at Risk.net and people do move on, and that’s OK. It’s is firmly on employee wellbeing, previously editor of What FX Week, he covers pointless to fight it,” says Peter Ruis, pledging to launch an independently Investment magazine financial markets, managing director, international, benchmarked health and wellbeing and deputy editor of healthcare, workplace and at lifestyle retailer Anthropologie. framework to support M&S staff on Money Management. environmental issues. “Others, like graduates, see it as a way physical and mental health issues. in to the brand. At Anthropologie, There are plans for health and well- Oliver Balch Rich McEachran we’ve had retail staff move into buy- being learning and support to be Journalist specialising in Journalist covering tech, ing, merchandising, public relations, included in all employability pro- sustainability, business startups and innovation, at junior level.” grammes by 2022, together with men- and travel. He is the author he writes for The Guardian, Artificial Photography/Unsplash of travelogues on South The Telegraph and The key is to identify the retail assis- tal health training. America, India and Wales. Professional Engineering. tants with a passion for customer “M&S has always taken employee service and nurture them from the the confidence and knowledge to really want to have a conversation wellbeing seriously and we have an very beginning. “If you get them sell,” says Karen Millen's global retail with the customer, who want to sell, established wellbeing programme,” on to a management training pro- director Louise Mitchell. “We’re look- who love being with the product,” says Beth Rochford, M&S wellbeing gramme straightaway, they’re more ing to launch the app internation- says Ms Mitchell. “They have their manager. “It includes a dedicated likely to stay in the business,” says Mr ally this year. We’re also looking at own blogs and strong following on online mental wellbeing area on our Ruis. “The issue is how much they’re how we can bring online and in-store social media.” wellbeing portal with tools and mate- engaged in the business as a whole together even more. For example, you And flexibility, which has previ- rials from mental health experts Publishing manager Head of production and how much the brand invests in see a dress online, but you’re not sure ously contributed to retail’s high designed to support M&S employees Ellen Shannon Justyna O'Connell them. If you create opportunities for about the fit. So, we connect you to a turnover, is now becoming an attrac- and line managers alike in both pre- them, you create loyalty.” stylist at store level, either by phone tive proposition for longevity. “The vention and support.” Associate editor Digital content executive At Karen Millen, the womenswear or video.” future of work is about being flexible; Research by the Chartered Institute Peter Archer Fran Cassidy retailer has invested in a new in-store Over the last year, Karen Millen’s people are not having life jobs any- of Personnel and Development Managing editor Design app through a partnership with approach to recruiting store staff has more,” Ms Mitchell adds. “For exam- and consultancy firm Lane Clark & Benjamin Chiou Grant Chapman Mercaux aimed at equipping employ- evolved beyond simply filling a shop- ple, we have a great store stylist with Peacock, published in November, Kellie Jerrard ees with the technology needed to floor vacancy. “We hire people who her own Instagram following and who says employers are increasingly pri- Harry Lewis-Irlam deliver a better customer experience. oritising development and wellbeing Celina Lucey Samuele Motta The app is an end-to-end solu- of staff, with 97 per cent of employ- tion that brings digital and in-store EMPLOYMENT OF RETAIL ASSISTANTS IN THE UK ers planning to maintain or increase Head of design together to better equip shop staff, spending on employee benefits over Tim Whitlock providing them with practical, real- the next two years; the main internal time information on stock and deliv- drivers being to attract, recruit and eries. It also combines with more retain employees. creative functions, such as outfit M&S has also set up an employ- Although this publication is funded through advertising and building and styling, with inspiration ee-led group called the Buddy sponsorship, all editorial is without bias and sponsored features from marketing lookbooks and social Network so colleagues can sup- 13,000 are clearly labelled. For an upcoming schedule, partnership media. After successful trials, it was 9,000 port each other’s wellbeing through inquiries or feedback, please call +44 (0)20 3877 3800 or rolled out to all stores last month. 951,000 443,000 face-to-face chats in London and email [email protected] With the app available on each Manchester, or with conference Raconteur is a leading publisher of special-interest content and store’s multiple iPads, shop assistants calls, as more than half the network’s research. Its publications and articles cover a wide range of topics, can engage customers with outfit sug- members are based in stores. including business, finance, sustainability, healthcare, lifestyle and technology. Raconteur special reports are published exclusively in gestions and check availability across Clearly, smart retailers have not The Times and The Sunday Times as well as online at raconteur.net the Karen Millen retail portfolio and placed all their eggs in a digital bas- The information contained in this publication has been obtained online, and place orders. Crucially, ket, but instead have found news ways from sources the Proprietors believe to be correct. However, the app connects all retail employees to empower the people who engage no legal liability can be accepted for any errors. No part of this in Karen Millen’s UK stores, so they with their customers face to face. publication may be reproduced without the prior consent of the can communicate and share ideas Through technology, flexible working Publisher. © Raconteur Media across the country. Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time and a holistic approach to employees, “We looked at the tools we could employees employees self-employed self-employed retailers have given store staff some- @raconteur /raconteur.net @raconteur_london provide that would give retail staff Office for National Statistics 2018 thing of true value, a career. raconteur.net /future-retail-2019 RACONTEUR.NET 03 FUTURE RETAIL CAREERS OF RETAIL Making retail more Distributed in than 'just a job' Published in association with In a sector known for high turnover, some brands are realising the benefits of nurturing and investing in employees to develop long careers Ana Santi only works on Saturdays. Those cus- Contributors tomers know that, so that’s when they ost of us, at some point, have visit the store.” Amy Hawkins Ana Santi M worked in retail on the shop How retailers choose to engage China-based journalist, she Former editor at Drapers floor. During school holi- with, and thus retain, retail staff writes about technology and commentator for days, in-between jobs, while trying depends on their size and type of and culture, and has the BBC and Sky News, to work out what career to pursue. business. Mr Ruis says: “At the pre- appeared in The Guardian, she writes extensively The Sunday Times, Foreign across fashion, business Perhaps it is, in part, this attitude of mium end, you talk more to custom- Policy and others.