COVID-19, The Ideal Opportunity to Move into the Omni-Channel Retailing

Since the emergence the Internet, the retail sector is experiencing one of its most disruptive stages. Both academics and business practitioners have been betting for years on the importance of Omni- Channel Retailing (OCR). However, for many retailers OCR was a missing subject and they did not count on the great turning point that has occurred, the COVID-19. The coronavirus pandemic has boosted online retail sales, which are estimated to have grown by 209%. Those retailers that did not have the online channel will have suffered significant losses in their income statements. The COVID- 19, while a great challenge for retailers, is also a great opportunity. Customers have drawn a new normal in their decision-making, where the Internet and the smartphone play a major role, without physical stores losing their leading position. With these considerations in mind, the researcher insists on the importance of the fashion industry in this turbulent period and proposes a series of guidelines for retailers to emerge stronger from this situation and adapt without major problems to the new normality. It is up to the top management of retailers to restructure their business model with the current omni-shopper in mind, and how to implement that business model without making the sales force feel threatened.

Keywords: Omni-Channel Retailing (OCR); Retail; Apparel sector; COVID-19