Much of what is written discussing digital transformation in retail suffers from the "shiny object" syndrome. Too many distractions (e.g. VR, AR, blockchain) and not enough focus on how to drive hard top-line and bottom line value.
Leaders need to focus on clear priorities for digital investment: whether that be improving end-to-end innovation speed, sensing consumer preference or driving operating efficiency.
Last year, we made some projections about what we’d see in retail in 2018. Some of those panned out big time (mobile shopping, e-commerce, data collection), while others lagged behind (VR headsets still haven’t quite caught on in the retail space—and at this point, I’m not sure they ever will). We've also heard countless stories about Amazon Go and other new disruptive retail environments.
