Oh, what a year — the coronavirus pandemic dominated the headlines in 2020, and rightfully so. However, the year was also punctuated by some important retail milestones that had nothing to do with the pandemic itself, milestones that, when one stops to look at them, say a heck of a lot more about where retail is headed than some upteenth, ad nauseam story about the virus accelerating e-commerce or curbside pickup at darn near every retailer in the country.
No, and as put forth last year, 2019 was the real tipping point, not 2020. 2020 was just a supercharged, microbial extension of what was a preexisting groundswell. A foundational transformation was already underway, and, while many companies reaped the rewards of shifting their operations towards pandemic-induced changes in shopping behavior, many of these actions would have happened organically over time regardless.
The real headlines, the headlines that mattered the most in 2020, were far more subtle and substantive. Look closely, and they either confirmed suspicions already out there or hinted at the next brushstrokes on a still-to-be-painted canvas far more than some plexiglass divider on a checklane every will.
Source: Forbes
Omni Talk is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga founded Omni Talk in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail. 