The right way to build a modern retail firm

MOST retailers recognise the importance of combining the best of digital technologies and physical stores to profitably create a seamless and consistent customer experience across channels. There's a good reason for this. Their most valuable customers are engaging with them across all channels: store, mobile, social and online. Some retailers find that these omnichannel customers spend two times to five times more than customers who buy in only one channel.

But many retailers tell us it is difficult to build the right organisation to deliver on their omnichannel strategy. It's easy to make mistakes that have disastrous consequences.

Consider the rough path taken by an early leader in omnichannel. The retailer recognised the need for highly aligned assortments and chose to make every merchant an omnichannel merchant, with responsibility across both physical stores and digital channels. While the principle of alignment and shared vision was right, most of the merchants found the small digital business to be a distraction from the physical stores. Many had no experience with digital and ignored the business altogether. Digital growth stalled, even while the online market expanded by 15 per cent.