Retail Formats in Transition

As our economy struggles to get back in shape, what shape might new stores take? Will small store formats, such as Tesco's Fresh & Easy grocery stores, OfficeDepot's Mini Marts and Best Buy Mobile stores, take hold? Or will big box discounters continue to gain more ground? These are some of the essential questions explored in the RetailWire.com/Dechert-Hampe report, "Retail Formats in Transition", the results of the first in a new series of forward-looking studies entitled RETAIL:NEXT.

Not surprisingly, given the recession, economic trends will be a big influence on which retail store formats will prosper and which will fade over the next few years, according to retail professionals responding to a late 2008 RetailWire.com/Dechert-Hampe survey. However, tight budgets will not be the only factor, and perhaps not even the most important influence on the types of stores retailers build. In fact, according to the study findings, consumer hankerings for convenience, attentive customer service and pleasant shopping environments may trump economic imperatives in driving where consumers choose to shop and, thereby, the design of retail spaces to come.

See this Executive Study to see responses to questions regarding which formats will prosper and which will fade in coming years; importance of consumer trends on retail formats; respondents' evaluation of the most retail concepts, and more.

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