A little over a week ago I traveled to Australia to speak at the Retail World 2013 Conference in Melbourne. The title of my talk was Retail at Hyperspeed and it was a look into how the “Internet of Everything” is permanently altering how retailers and consumers interact.
Back in the dark ages of last century (aka: the 1990′s) I was a research analyst, and later an executive, for consumer research and data collection firm Claritas (now part of the Nielsen Company family). During my tenure there I documented how things like barcode scanners, e-commerce, loyalty programs and point of sales analysis were bringing more changes to retail in the span of a few years than had occurred in the previous half century. I advised clients to incorporate these technologies into their own operations sooner rather than later or suffer the consequences.
Looking back today that period of retail evolution seems like molasses in January compared to what we’re witnessing now. With smartphones, broadband, tablets, embedded sensors, and all the other stuff bathing the world in Internet connectivity, we are watching the retail industry fell giants and create new ones in weeks and months instead of years. The smart ones who adopt technology and adapt to the realities of this hyper-market have a bright future. Those who fail to do so can probably expect a quick end.
Below is my presentation from Retail World. I hope you enjoy it.
