Minding the Store

摘要

E-commerce is rapidly growing, but it takes a village. As digital sales continue to dominate, retailers are discovering their fleets of stores are aiding that growth while asserting their own relevance in the total retail landscape. This proved especially true in the second quarter, as reported by a range of retailers - from discounters to department stores. Digital is Kohl's fastest growing segment - thanks in part to its stores, triggering the chain to more closely align the two. "With the continued acceleration of our digital business, our stores are doing an amazing job supporting our fulfillment strategies, fulfilling close to 40% of digital units during the second quarter," explained CEO Michelle Gass during Kohl's Q2 conference call. "A firming up of brick & mortar trends" is driving what Macy's chairman and CEO Jeff Gennette described as "the big difference in our business in 2018 versus 2017." Other stores in the Macy's fleet are also getting facelifts, including click & mortar features like in-store order-pickup kiosks as well as localized merchandise and the inclusion of more Backstage off-price locations into existing sites.