design:retail - October 2016 - 62

062 the industry. A little more than half of survey respondents (53.2 percent) feel that design, store planning and visual components are "Much more important" to the retail design industry compared to five years ago. Readers believe that importance will increase in the near future, with 52.6 percent of respondents saying the average retail designer's job importance will rise over the next five years. Respondents also continue to believe that the retail design industry overall will be stronger in five years. The majority of respondents (64.2 percent) said they think the retail design industry will be "Somewhat stronger" in five years (compared to 52.53 percent who said so last year), with 5.3 percent estimating the industry to be "Much stronger" in that time. To back that up, design personnel increased this year, with 40.7 percent of those surveyed reporting that their companies increased design staff headcounts (about the same number as last year and up from 28.8 in 2014). For 2017, about half of companies (55.5 percent) expect no change in personnel or staffing levels, while 41.5 percent expect to increase head counts even further. CAPTURING THE NEW CONSUMER The ongoing challenge of capturing the attention (and wallet) of the ever-evolving new consumer continues to inspire experimentation and innovation for retailers. About 45 percent of respondents Do you feel your company has done enough to prepare for/adjust to the new consumer mindset? * We are addressing a lot of needs, but need more time to address more unmet needs. * The online business is still immature and company is approaching from all angles to prepare and keep updated. * We work on it daily! * No, we still have a lot of work ahead of us to meet the needs the future holds. * Mostly yes, but the newer younger and more culturally diversified buyers create continual challenges and want the instant gratification. * I do not think any company will ever crack the code-time, money and people. The digital world is changing faster than ever before; companies will need to evolve at a faster rate and prioritize what is doable. The issue is there is no one end goal either, so companies cannot put all their eggs in one basket. They must have many projects going, fail fast (hopefully cheap) and move on to the next thing. * Never enough. * No, we are just scratching the surface. We have significant opportunity to adjust to the new consumer mindset- particularly in extending our relationship with the consumer in how she uses her smartphone. * I think we have; however, I think that we can always do more and always need to stay on top of consumer insight. OCTOBER 2016 DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM GLOBALSHOP.ORG * The consumer has the majority of retailers going in too many directions. This makes our job more difficult trying to interpret the information provided by our clients. * No, more to do here. Letting the customer lead the way (and putting our own preferences aside). * Yes-we're pushing toward the forefront of experience and engagement. * Always learning, but learning is easier to change than attitudes and habits. * It depends. What is the "new consumer mindset?" If we are referring to Millennials, our company has a great understanding of the Millennial consumer mindset, which we can strongly convey to our retail clients. However, as we start to shift to the "Gen Z consumer mindset," we will inevitably have to shift backwards, sideways, upside-down...because this generation of consumers will be all over the place. * "Enough" does not exist anymore. Change is constant and that is the new normal. We don't even know what the new consumer mindset is, so we must keep adapting, just as the consumer is. * There is no right answer. The "target" is ever-changing and moving. We feel we are moving toward the right targets with the appropriate objectivity. * Absolutely. It's an exciting time to be in the retail design industry. http://www.DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM http://www.GLOBALSHOP.ORG

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of design:retail - October 2016