My latest regular column for The Globe & Mail published over the weekend in their Saturday edition. It was inspired by two significant, yet polar opposite, events that occurred just recently in Canada’s retail industry. The impending closure of a Canadian institution, Sears, contrasted with the almost-manic expansion of the online retailer, Amazon.
In What it takes to thrive in a shifting retail industry, I’ve compared Sears to Amazon, emphasizing that traditional retail is being replaced by options that promote less interaction with people and more interaction with systems. This past weekend was Grey Cup weekend in Canada (Canadian football, for my non-Canadian readers). So I’ve used the evolution of the quarterback as a metaphor for the shift in the retail industry.
Would love to hear what you think!
As always, I would love to hear your perspectives. What do you think is the future of retail as we see it today? What are the skills needed to adapt and thrive in the changing retail landscape? You can either add your comments directly at The Globe’s site, or post your response here on the blog.
Sometimes, The Globe puts my columns behind their paywall. If that happens and you are unable to access the article directly through the link above, we will shortly be archiving a pdf version on the website at this link.
P.S. I’d like to gratefully acknowledge the kind assistance of Jeff Sharpe, a leader in one of my client organizations, who gave me invaluable assistance in getting the football metaphor right. Those of you who know me well are fully aware that my in-depth knowledge of sports is limited 🙂 , so I am very appreciative of Jeff’s help.