Fincredible MacroTalk December 22: Omnichannel Retail By Default
Management commentary on omnichannel retail from $WMT $COST $KR $CVS $NKE $JWN $WRBY $LOW $BBY $SBUX
Every day more companies get on board with new selling strategies to distinguish themselves from the rest, whether it’s through the creative use of mobile apps or more personalized shopping experiences. Corporations are innovating every day to reach more consumers in more ways and reduce buying friction as much as possible.
In this post, we’ve gathered recent quotes from company earnings calls on the strategies these companies are implementing to make buying as effortless as possible, as well as the success these strategies have had.
All quotes are sourced from Fincredible.
Superstores
The competition for sales is so fierce in the superstore segment, that omnichannel capabilities are now a must for all these stores. Having the option for delivery and pickup are no longer differentiators, and companies are looking for more ways to innovate and fulfill their customer’s needs through a frictionless model.
“Our omni model is a substantial competitive advantage as shopping behaviors continue to evolve. Customers want choices on how they shop. And our unique set of assets with a network of stores, expanding digital capabilities, robust distribution networks and innovative services very effectively serve their evolving needs….
I'm optimistic about Q4. I continue to be very excited about the evolution of Walmart into a one-of-a-kind omnichannel company.”
M. Brett Biggs, CFO
“Our e-comm mobile app, we continue to improve the site with additional features. Thus far, as I've talked about in the last few quarterly calls, we redesigned the app header and footer. We've updated and improved the menu layout. Our members now have the ability to view warehouse receipts online via both the app and desktop. Our co-brand Citi/Visa card can now be linked to the digital membership card and can be used for payment. Our members are now able to much more easily reschedule e-comm deliveries in the U.S. and Canada, same goes for rescheduling returns, returns pickups. And delivering in the first half of the new upcoming new calendar year, labeling a fulfillment -- a better labeling of fulfillment methods, members will be able to easily see fulfillment options, be it e-comm, same day and even nearby warehouse availability of a particular item -- at a particular level.
We're rolling out new e-comm kiosks in the warehouse, with video signage and easy touchscreen ordering. As well, we're rolling out e-commerce lockers. Currently in the U.S., we have 112 locations with more -- and we plan to more than double that number during calendar year 2022.”
Richard A. Galanti, Executive Vice President & CFO
“We're totally focused on making sure that the sheds open strongly, and we continue to maintain outstanding NPS scores, or net promoter scores, with our customers. And I am super proud of our team in Florida and Monroe, both in terms of how they continue to connect with the customer and continue to improve.”
William Rodney McMullen, CEO
“In today's hyper-connected digital consumer-driven world, the demand for omnichannel pharmacy is greater than ever. We continue to modernize our operating systems and enhance the integration of pharmacy model simplifying consumer interactions and driving further engagement with our customers.”
Karen Sue Lynch, CEO
Clothing Retailers
Clothing stores like Nike took advantage of this holiday season to show their power over the digital world. They transform the way the consumer buys so that the experience of buying would be a journey customers would not forget.
Nordstrom and Warby Parker might not be as advanced as the sports leader brand but are also showing interesting results regarding omnichannel retailers.
“As we connect consumers with the strongest innovation athlete roster and brand storytelling in the world, we're also elevating their experience through one NIKE marketplace. We're creating the marketplace of the future where we serve consumers with seamless, consistent and premium experiences.
Through NIKE membership, we increasingly know and serve our consumers across a connected marketplace.”
John J. Donahoe, CEO
“Recently, I had an opportunity to visit one of DSG's newest concepts, the House of Sport Door in Rochester, New York. I must say I was blown away at the store's unique service model, interactive sports experience and enhanced showcasing of product, which creates a true destination for consumers and will alter future expectations at retail.
We're fulfilling our vision that through connected member experiences and inventory, powered by connected data and technology, we can provide consumers with greater access to the very best of NIKE with more speed, convenience and connection to our brand and to support than ever before. And as we look forward, there is even more opportunity to connect consumers with NIKE across digital platforms that integrate sport, innovation, culture and commerce.
For example, we recently opened a new space in our New York digital studio to produce the weekly sneakers live streams that are driving industry-leading engagement metrics. Weekly content includes launch previews in our Sneakers Live heating up show and a new Jordan franchise presented through the lens of female Jordan fans called Jaywalking.”
John J. Donahoe, CEO
“We expect that these initiatives will enhance the customer experience and drive top line growth at both Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack by increasing delivery speed and expanding the selection for in-store shopping as well as same-day and next-day pickup, while also driving efficiencies in labor and fulfillment. We expect to see benefits from these actions beginning in the first half of fiscal 2022.
Turning to third quarter performance. We continued to see improvement in our Nordstrom stores, strong digital growth and benefits provided by the interconnected capabilities of our market strategy. Nordstrom banner sales returned to 2019 levels in the third quarter. In the southern portion of the U.S., where 44% of our stores are located, Nordstrom comparable store sales grew 8% over the third quarter of 2019.”
Erik B. Nordstrom, CEO
“Our stores serve as an integral complement to our website and apps in creating a holistic and seamless omnichannel customer experience. We describe ourselves as customer-focused but channel-agnostic. A customer journey that starts in a store can end with a purchase online and vice versa, and more than 70% of our customers interact with our website or mobile app before placing an order. We've also seen the adoption of digital tools like our virtual try-on increasing significantly for customers purchasing both online and in-store.”
David Abraham Gilboa, Co-CEO
Specialty Stores
Best Buy and Lowe’s are vivid examples of how demand has grown along with the company’s investments in their omnichannel strategies. Not only did they profit from their new strategies, but they also positioned their brands as market leaders.
“We have made the right investment decisions to position us as a leader in omnichannel retailing. While we are proud of our progress, there are even more opportunities ahead of us, and it is more important than ever to build on our position of strength and truly become a customer-obsessed company. This means we put the customer at the heart of all we do by anticipating their needs, listening, learning and applying those insights to create long-term relationships and seamless experiences. That led us to launch Best Buy Total Tech last month.”
Corie Sue Barry, CEO
“We are certain that technology will continue to play a more dominant role in consumers' lives. Given our omnichannel capabilities, the ones we have today and the ones we are building for the future, we are fully confident that we will capitalize on a much larger, more broadly defined consumer electronics category and be able to better serve a customer who will be using and upgrading much of that CE more frequently.”
Corie Sue Barry, CEO
“This quarter, we completed the conversion of our second geographic area, the Ohio Valley region, to the market-based delivery model for big and bulky product, building on the success we gained in Florida. As a reminder, in the market-based delivery model for big and bulky products flowing from our supply chain directly to consumers' homes, bypassing the stores all together. This replaces the legacy store delivery model, which is highly inefficient and relies on each store to function as its own distribution node for these products.
Now shifting to Lowes.com. We delivered sales growth of 25% in the quarter and 158% on a 2-year basis. Following the launch of Lowe's virtual kitchen design and visual search in Q2, we enhanced our omnichannel customer experience with the introduction of our paint visualizer on Lowes.com in the third quarter. We are continually working to remove friction from the buying process and to fully integrate the online and in-store shopping experience.”
William P. Boltz, Executive VicePresident
“We expanded our portfolio of drive-throughs, introduced new store formats to meet our customers where they are and turbocharged growth in our digital customer relationships in the U.S. and China.”
Kevin R. Johnson, CEO
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