Retailers See Promise Across All Channels; Innovation Will Be Key to Unlocking Revenue Potential
November 11 2015 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
CIT Releases Annual Retail Outlook Highlighting
Retailers’ View on the Retail Sector
- Industry Executives Expect Sales to
Grow For 2015 and See Increased Revenues Across Channels
- Growth and Investment Going Toward Web,
Mobile, Social Channels
- Retailers are Concerned About Their
Supply Chains and Taking Steps to Prepare for Potential Unexpected
Changes
Retailers are feeling confident about their financial situations
– projecting growing sales and revenue – but many feel significant
investment toward innovation in an omni-channel strategy including
website, mobile and social media channels will be needed to remain
competitive. These are some of the key insights found in the 7th
annual CIT Retail Outlook study conducted online among 250 senior
middle market retail executives by Harris Poll, on behalf of CIT
Group Inc. (NYSE:CIT), a leading provider of commercial
lending and leasing services.
Most retailers report feeling optimistic about their prospects
for sales and revenue growth. About 70% predict good results from
sales in all channels when looking toward the near-term future,
with about 6 in 10 (58%) projecting that holiday sales increases
will reach 6% or more. As a result, around half or more of
retailers surveyed indicate they plan to increase hourly employees
(62%), in-store exempt employees (49%) and employees dedicated to
Internet/mobile sales (62%) during the upcoming holiday season.
However, the confluence of online presence, mobile applications
and innovative brick-and-mortar retailers means that retailers must
invest in innovation to remain competitive. Most respondents
characterize revenue as growing from website (71%), in-store (59%)
and mobile (57%) sales. Retailers are placing an emphasis on tech
when setting their priorities for the coming year.
“The report corroborates what we have been observing over the
past few years with our clients and provides us insight into what
retail executives are focusing on, both in terms of their near-term
tactics and long-term strategies,” said Burt Feinberg,
President of CIT Commercial & Industrial Finance. “We’re
witnessing an increased fusion between brick-and-mortar, web and
mobile strategies intertwined with social media to build brands and
customer loyalty. The use of improved customer data is helping to
achieve efficient targeted marketing using these mediums to build
sales to all generations – from millennials to baby boomers.”
KEY FINDINGS
- Malls Replaced by Pop-ups and
One-Stop Shops: The bell is tolling for malls, with more
than 4 in 10 (45%) retailers reporting a continued downward spiral
in the relevance of the American Mall as inevitable. In its wake,
more than 6 in 10 (62%) believe pop-up retailers are creating
greater competition for larger, more established retailers and
“one-stop shop” retailers, such as Walmart or Target, will become
the stores of the future (61%).
- Web Presence More Important than
Brick-and-Mortar: More retailers feel that revenue is
growing from website/web stores (71%) versus from physical stores
(59%). And 58% go as far as to say that brick-and-mortar-only
stores will not survive in the future. One complication is that
more than 6 in 10 (63%) believe that it has been challenging to
implement an omni-channel strategy that provides a seamless
experience to consumers.
- Increased Investment into Mobile
Strategy: A large majority of retailers (72%) see having a
mobile app as a competitive edge, with more than half (57%)
believing revenue is growing from mobile. As a result, nearly 2 out
of 3 retailers (62%) expect an increase in the number of staff they
devote to Internet/mobile sales channels for both the holiday
season and upcoming New Year.
- Regulations Not Seen as a Barrier to
Growth: Most retailers view federal laws/regulations involving
labor (54%) and manufacturing (54%) as having a positive impact on
the growth of their business.
- Top Trends for 2016: At least
60% of retailers surveyed indicated the following as trends for
2016: new products; creating a web presence; better use of data
analytics; incorporation of chip-enabled credit and debit cards;
free shipping, returns and in-store returns; and movement of
business functions in-house.
- Confidence in Data Security
Planning: More than three-quarters (79%) report having
effective plans to deal with risks in cyber security and data
breaches at point-of-sale. Nearly 3 in 4 (74%) feel that
chip-enabled credit and debit cards provide protection for
consumers.
- Bolstering Supply Chains: Half
(50%) of the retailers surveyed feel concerned about their supply
chain. Sixty-one percent report expanding supplier partnerships,
more than half (57%) are increasing utilization of technology for
logistics planning and 54% are building inventory early to prepare
for potential unexpected changes in their supply chain.
EDITOR’S NOTE:
CIT thought leadership content can be found at View from the
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Methodology
This study was commissioned by CIT and conducted by Harris Poll
through a multi-phased research approach. An online survey within
the United States was conducted between August 26, 2015 to
September 21, 2015, among 250 financial decision makers within the
retail industry working at companies with revenue between $5
million and $3 billion. In addition, to better understand key
challenges facing retailers and how they are addressing these
challenges, a moderated qualitative online bulletin board
discussion was conducted from September 23, 2015 to September 24,
2015 among 11 financial decision makers working at companies with
revenue between $5 million and $3 billion.
About Harris Poll
Over the last five decades, Harris Poll has become a media
staple. With comprehensive experience and precise technique in
public opinion polling, along with a proven track record of
uncovering consumers’ motivations and behaviors, Harris Poll has
gained strong brand recognition around the world.
About CIT
Founded in 1908, CIT (NYSE: CIT) is a financial holding company
with more than $65 billion in assets. Its principal bank
subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A., (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender) has
more than $30 billion of deposits and more than $40 billion of
assets. It provides financing, leasing and advisory services
principally to middle market companies across more than 30
industries primarily in North America, and equipment financing
and leasing solutions to the transportation sector. It also offers
products and services to consumers through its Internet bank
franchise and a network of retail branches in Southern California,
operating as OneWest Bank, a division of CIT Bank, N.A.
cit.com.
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CIT MEDIA RELATIONS:Matt Klein, 973-597-2020Vice
President, Media RelationsMatt.Klein@cit.comorCIT INVESTOR
RELATIONS:Barbara Callahan, 973-740-5058Senior Vice
PresidentBarbara.Callahan@cit.com
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