New Report Finds Apparel Retailers Saying "Out With Seasonal, In With Cross-Channel Offerings"

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

The report helps retailers reconcile the tech with the tactile by highlighting shopping trends.

Apparel & Accessories retailers are facing a changing landscape, according to a new report from Criteo, which found that there is a shifting shopper behavior that is driving retailers to abandon seasonal offerings in favor of more cross-channel availability.

"The apparel and accessories category is witnessing a massive transformation," said Jonathan Opdyke, President, Brand Solutions, Criteo. "Millennial shoppers purchase the majority of their clothing and accessories online and retail storefronts are shifting to showrooming, in which shoppers can experience in real life and then purchase online. Apparel brands and retailers must embrace the new 'always-on' retail paradigm, where seasonality plays less of a role and in-store and online technology innovation enhances the shopper experience."

Essentially, the report found that retailers need to abandon the old way of rotating seasonal offerings in favor of a more flexible and efficient cross-channel fulfillment process that responds to current shopper behaviors and desires.

The report found that retailers need to:

• Embrace in-store and online tech innovation that enhance the shopping experience.
• Leverage sponsored product listings to drive awareness and sales.
• Explore your retail lifestyle, telling lifestyle stories in which shoppers can 'see themselves' as they go through the purchase process.
• Use paid search to help increase organic rankings.
• Personalization is king, so personalize everything.
• e-Commerce marketing requires an always-on strategy.
• Promote Try before you buy initiatives by cultivating sampling programs that get products into the hands of customers.
• Ditch print in favor of digital.