Two weeks ago, our German office spoke about how creative retailers became to find ways sell during the lockdown on our gap intelligence GmbH LinkedIn. Among those things were the use of modern technologies such as the telephone, Facebook, WhatsApp, Facetime and more, which were leaned on more heavily reach out to customers at home while stores were closed.
As the result of some successful first measures, retail is taking steps to boot up again. And while there are massive discussions about the rules and conditions under which retailers may or may not open again, some of them continue to find creative ways to adapt their individual circumstances to the rules rather than the other way around.
“We are not open as a retail shop, but as a craft business for service repairs with a connected warehouse.”
“We are open again with a smaller store size.”
These are only two of many examples of how retailers are trying to circumnavigate the latest rules for re-opening stores in Germany. When these creative solutions fall within the rules, merchants will find faster success in their reopening efforts.
However, we also want to address the consequences for when this “creativity” violates the stated stipulations to reopen. Right now, stores are reopening and then closed immediately by the regulatory office Merchants should consider the facts and follow the current mandates as that will likely lead to further leniency in the coming weeks. We recommend compliance with all stated rules, and particularly in these hard times, we also welcome every effort that brings us back to some sense of normalcy.
It is exactly this spirit that helps us to manage the exceptional conditions we are living in now. We need clear guidelines that are reasonable for both retailers and customers. Merchants’ creative solutions may have the ability to provide some further ideas and solutions to the rule makers as we continue to navigate how to safely reopen and get back to providing products and services to customers.
gap intelligence has served manufacturers and sellers by providing world-class services monitoring, reporting, and analyzing the 4Ps: prices, promotions, placements, and products for more than 17 years. We recently announced our international expansion. Check out our insights on our gap intelligence GmbH LinkedIn and email us at info@gapintelligence.com to learn more.
