Savvy shoppers have the power says PwC

ONLINE retail is predicted to continue to surge in the coming years as price-savvy consumers shop around for bargains.

A report, ‘Pick ‘n’ Mix – meeting the demands of the new multi-channel shopper’ by business advisers says power is shifting from retailers to consumers and that traditional chains need to adapt to survive.

The effect on the sector of social media and the popularity of new channels such as mobile and TV shopping are expected to increase.

PwC says 60% of shoppers are expecting to spend more online in the coming 2-3 years.

The survey of more than 1,000 consumers shows how Internet shopping has moved from being used occasionally to become routine, with 14% of people now buying on the web more once than once a week, compared to only 4% in 2007, while nearly one in five respondents say they are spending more than half of their disposable income online.

Martin Heath, partner at PwC in Manchester, said:  “Nobody needs reminding that the retail industry is facing a tough time and will continue to do so for some time yet.

“Profiting from the acceleration of the uptake in multi-channel shopping merely adds to the list of challenges: as consumer needs change at a faster pace, greater flexibility to continually alter and adapt business models will be increasingly critical.

“Shoppers haven’t abandoned physical stores yet, they are just using them for different things and in different ways.

“Our analysis shows that the reason people go to stores is growing increasingly polarised between the two extremes of entertainment and convenience – a number of retailers are already grasping the implications of this trend and are adapting their advertising and store formats accordingly.”