Happy Holidays from Greenman! As we celebrate this festive season,
OPEN 2022 Event: More than an Alternative
We are experiencing a grocery evolution, not a revolution, where adapting and evolving to changing trends and technologies will bring growth and new opportunities.
Over 200 financial services, real estate, and technology professionals gathered on April 28th in the Guinness Storehouse to hear a panel moderated by David Owens, CEO of Everyangle, discuss the changing world of retail and grocery-anchored real estate. They discussed what the future of retail looks like, what kind of spaces and infrastructure will be required in the new world to what sustainability implications these changes will have and how customers will respond.
We polled the audience on the day about what they believe will be the future retail environment of grocery real estate. The results highlighted that 42% of the audience believe personalisation and tailored products and experiences would be key. However, when asked how they felt about their personal data being used in targeting, 62% said they would prefer to have more control over their data.
Read some of the highlights from our panellists
“The store will become a showroom. If you look at the drivers in the market today, you have start-ups on the one hand that are focusing on convenience, accessibility, and speed of delivery. On the other hand, you have the incumbents concentrating more on efficiency and pricing. In a short period of time, you will probably see the two of these come together, opening up more opportunities.”
–Cathal Corcoran, formerly of Gorillas and now launching his own grocery delivery company GoTiger in Berlin
“I see so many opportunities. This is what I see from the retail side: I believe that both the metaverse and physical stores will co-exist, but customers will have access to much more contextual information, enabling the retailers to learn more about their customers.”
–Shora Shirzad, Founder and CEO of Mapstar, a map–based XR metaverse design company
“Retail has evolved, from catalogues; to department stores; to the development of e-commerce with different ways of shopping, different ways of engaging. And throughout history, especially highlighted during the pandemic, grocery retail has been one of the most resilient sectors, answering a basic need whilst adapting to changing environments.”
–Richard Harpur, Head of Retail Marketing for EMEA at Fitbit
“It’s not about revolution, it’s about evolution; we need to understand what’s happening in the sector. It is really important that we start to understand how retail technology and disrupters are changing the retail environment and how that will affect our fund’s properties, grocers and tenants. We’re here to learn, and hopefully, you have all learned a little bit today.”
– John Wilkinson, Chief Executive Officer at Greenman
