Physical stores can still thrive in the post-pandemic era
BRICK-AND-MORTAR retail stores can still thrive in the post-covid-19 era, according to an official of a major industry solutions provider.
“Malls and retail stores can remain relevant and thrive in a post-pandemic period, and provide shoppers with a great shopping experience, such as faster transaction, systematic inventory of products, and a cleaner and healthier environment, Zebra Technologies APAC Vertical Solutions Lead for Healthcare and Retail George Pepes said in a recent online interview with BUSINESSMIRROR.
“People still want to go to a physical stores. Retailers, however, must provide them convenience and safety,” he added.
Right now, Pepes said the transition of retail stores in their IT infrastructure will be from hardware to software. In this shift, Pepes said retail companies will tap software companies to develop the software needed to make their operations more efficient.
With the continuing onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic, he said retail firms are right now making adjustments to a market that now prefers online transactions mainly for health and safety reasons.
Furthermore, Pepes said the current scenario has shown that people now shy away from buying luxury items, opting to purchase basic items, such as food and medicine.
Pepes also highlighted the importance of retraining the staff so they can respond to customers in an efficient manner.”
The staff needs to be retrained to be able to deliver quality service to clients,” Pepes pointed out.
He stressed it is important to upgrade the skills of the staff to complement the technology upgrade of the IT infrastructure.
Pepes noted that the transition of retail stores should be viewed on a case-to-case basis stressing that individual retail stores have their own capabilities and limitations.
“The big ones will be able to adapt to the new changes faster while the smaller players will do it on a gradual basis,” Pepes said.
Pepes said executives of organizations should the lead the way in initiating change that will connect the front-end to the backend operations.
Citing a research. Pepes said 64 percent of the retail staff in the Asean region have no training on the new technologies.
“The training of the retail staff on mobile shopping is quite important because 60 percent of the shoppers in the region use a mobile phone,” Pepes said.
To ensure the safety of customers, frequent sanitization of retail facilities has become a necessity. However, the disinfection of devices used by their frontline staff is equally important in curbing the spread of the virus.
Pepes said it is also vital for retailers to regulary clean and disinfect point-of-sale equipment, tablets or mobile computers, and receipt and label printers used by store associates.
“It would be counterproductive to expect frontline staff and store associates to wash their hands multiple times a day, only to touch dirty devices immediately afterwards,” he said.
Zebra also stressed the importance of cleaning mobile devices, as these become easily contaminated with bacteria from the constant handling of staff.
According to a whitepaper on devices used in healthcare, a typical mobile device has 18 times more bacteria than a public toilet door handle.
Furthermore, Zebra said supermarkets, pharmacies and convenience stores must thoroughly disinfect the plastic parts, as well such as the housing and nooks and crannies to prevent the transmission of contagions.