The Shopper Discounts and Rewards blog explores the top retail trends for the new year

The year ahead holds many exciting things for the world of retail and shopping. To celebrate the start of 2014 we bring you a few of the top trends that we’ll be seeing in retail this year.

1. mobile powered consumers

We are now inseparable from our mobile technology – whether this means smartphones, tablets, phablets or e-readers. We can use mobile devices to browse, explore, order and pay for a vast range of products and services. We also use our mobile devices to share and recommend, and look to other recommendations via social media to inform our own decisions. This reliance on mobile when it comes to shopping is sure to continue and increase this year, as more and more advanced mobile technology becomes available for consumer use. Near Field Communication, geolocation and augmented reality are three of the areas that are sure to thrive and gain momentum.

2. alternative brand currencies

The recent phenomenon of the online currency Bitcoin is a good example of a shift in the online market towards alternative currencies. As our online shopping behaviour evolves, more and more companies will start to offer their products and services in exchange for things other than money. For example, a retailer will offer rewards such as free or discounted goods to customers in exchange for participation in a campaign, or sharing on social media.

3. online food shopping

According to ShopperVista, around a fifth of UK households buy groceries online every month. Of these, a third use online as their main channel for buying food and groceries, with two thirds using it a secondary channel. We predict that this will steadily increase in 2014, as more and more of us see the convenience of buying food online instead of making weekly trips to the supermarket.

4. click-and-collect

This has become a very popular trend for many retailers and will continue to gain momentum as more and more brands decide to introduce the service. A combination of physical and digital commerce, click-and-collect allows us to buy and pay for our products online and then pick them up in a shop that is convenient for us. It eliminates the problem of arranging delivery time to the house for people who are out and about a lot. While many high street shops have taken onto this concept, this year will see more luxury brands introducing it too.

So it looks like this year will bring some exciting things for retail. Do you have any other predictions?

Source: 

John Lewis Oxford Street on Google Street View | 99p Stores Receive £25m Backing