Fashion and consumer products retail is undergoing a revolution, and companies are compelled to transform if they are to thrive. Omnichannel demand and see-now buy-now realities are reshaping how retailers bring new products to market and engage with their consumers.

In fact, speed to market has become the top market pressure for retailers, according to the latest edition of Deloitte’s Private Label Sourcing Survey. Additionally, a recent joint study conducted by Apparel Magazine and Gartner found tightly controlling product costs in the supply chain and improving customer relationships to be among the most important business initiatives for retail and apparel executives in 2017. 

Applying the right technology solutions can help retailers address these changing dynamics and compete more effectively in today’s global marketplace. “Placing big bets on technology in 2017 increases a company’s chances of being a future winner,” reported The Business of Fashion (BoF) and McKinsey & Co. in the report “10 Trends That Will Define the Fashion Agenda in 2017.”

“Technology investments will have two rationales. First, the clear market trends — cycle acceleration, omnichannel, localization and sustainability — pull in different directions: they cannot all be delivered simultaneously without a technological enhancement across the whole value chain. Second, technology will also be seen as the solution to addressing sourcing and supply-chain challenges in an effort to improve margins. Together, these pressures will likely make automation, robotics and the digital supply chain become more prevalent in the fashion industry.”

Here we explore three steps to remain relevant and prosper through this retail revolution.

• Step #1: Increasing Speed to Market

• Step #2: Managing Complex, Socially Responsible Supply Chains

• Step #3: Offering Customized Customer Engagement

To access the complete Buyer's Guide, click HERE.