Officials in the local retail sector have identified 16 measures and means to develop the capacity of the sector locally, support its expansion and growth plans, and increase its ability to compete with the growing e-shopping sites locally and globally.

They explained to Emirates Today that the most important of these measures is the opening of strong and innovative e-shopping gateways to achieve local retailing, abandoning large profit margins, increasing attractive offers and discounts, linking them to loyalty programs, as well as launching new products and services continuously, and reducing the operating costs of the sector. Local retail. They also suggested making the shopping experience more enjoyable, maintaining direct relationships with consumers, training staff to ensure the highest level of service, choosing the right places to open branches, and providing parking.

Innovative portals

Majid Hamad Rahma Al Shamsi, Chairman of the Consumer Cooperative Union, called on local retailers to open strong and innovative e-shopping gateways that can compete with global e-shopping sites in line with the current changes in the shopping movement. the world.

He asked retailers to work to reduce operational costs, including reducing available retail space if needed, which leads to lower costs of electricity and water consumption, so that the outlets can improve their competitiveness, and offers and price reductions.

Al-Shamsi stressed the need to focus the outlets and retail stores on goods where they have a great competitive advantage, and can not e-shopping sites can not compete, such as the trade of fresh food, electronics, and electrical goods that need to be examined and tried by consumers before buying.

Al Shamsi pointed out that it is important for retail outlets to review their plans periodically, to follow up the successive variables witnessed in the market, and to develop plans to face them through the introduction of new ideas, and resort to the implementation of innovative solutions to support their competitiveness, and support the development of the capabilities of the sector locally, and support its expansion plans.

He explained that shopping is a pleasure in itself for a large number of consumers, so the outlets must change the consumer experience every period, and improve this experience, so that the shopping process becomes more fun for consumers. He also stressed the importance of discussing the challenge posed by e-commerce sites for traditional outlets through the chambers of commerce in the UAE.

Profit margins

For his part, demanded retail expert, Ibrahim Al-Bahr, retailers, especially outlets and shops, to abandon the high profit margins achieved by some of these outlets now, to retain old customers and attract new dealers who went to e-commerce, pointing out that shopping online is easier The speed and prices of some commodities are lower because they are not burdened by the high operational cost of traditional outlets.

He called on the commercial sector to increase offers and discounts attractive to consumers, coupled with loyalty cards that achieve many discounts and benefits for customers, which increases their link to the outlets, which in turn leads to the development of the sector's capabilities locally, and increase its ability to compete e-commerce.

Al-Bahar stressed the importance of focusing retail outlets in the local retail sector on providing services that e-commerce cannot provide efficiently traditional outlets, such as after-sales services, facilitating replacement and retrieval operations, and devising new methods of marketing and advertising, including electronic means and social media.

Consumer Relations

Retail outlets and chief executive officer of Bawick e-shopping, Rajiv Lee, said that outlets and shops should maintain lasting and direct relationships with consumers and retrain their employees to ensure that they are provided with the highest level of service. That employees are always available to provide what consumers need.

"Traditional outlets should improve the shopping experience by providing attractive offers, improving product display on the shelves, and finding enough lanes to move and buy freely, with good lighting and clean shelves."

He advised shop owners to choose the right places for outlets, so that they can be easily seen and accessible, while providing parking, and attention to display attractive products in the front facades.

Polls

Retail expert Davy Nagpal called outlets and stores to conduct consumer surveys to periodically measure consumer satisfaction, know their views on their products and services, and learn about their future trends in purchases and how to improve their satisfaction and loyalty.

He also called for expanding the establishment of e-shopping platforms to retain the ancients of consumers, while attracting new consumers, especially young people.

Nagbal advised the outlets to introduce new products and services that compete with e-commerce, with the development of their products permanently, stressing the importance of deciding to reduce profit margins, and improve the methods of display and advertising.

The reality must be adapted

E-commerce has become a reality that needs to be adapted to meet its requirements, which requires the outlets and shops to find strong electronic platforms for buying and selling its online, and the detection of applications for purchase via mobile phones.

He stressed that the outlets should use their shops to promote and marketing their electronic platforms, and to clarify to dealers and shoppers through some symbols and intensive advertising that there are electronic trading platforms belonging to them, which offers options for shoppers.

He said that some shops that closed their branches in the global market, have created an alternative through e-commerce and did not stop the provision of its activities in full.

Proposed measures to develop the retail sector

- Open powerful and innovative online shopping portals.

- Abandoning large profit margins.

- Increase attractive offers and discounts and link them to loyalty programs.

- Reduce the operating costs of the local retail sector.

- Introducing new products and services continuously.

- Focus on after sales services.

- Maintain direct relationships with consumers.

- Training staff to ensure the highest level of service.

- Review the retail sector of its plans periodically.

- Make your shopping experience more enjoyable.

- Using new methods in marketing and advertising.

- Improved display of goods on shelves and facades.

- Choose suitable places to open branches.

- Conducting surveys to improve consumer satisfaction.

- Discuss the challenges of e-commerce in chambers of commerce.

- Focus on goods where sales outlets have preferential advantages.

«Economy»: the future of trade in the world «electronic»

Dr. Hashem Al Nuaimi, Director of Consumer Protection Department at the Ministry of Economy, stressed that the development of e-commerce in the country is very important, because it is the future of trade in the whole world, including the UAE.

He said that the world is in constant development, pointing out that e-commerce in the country has witnessed a great development during the recent period.

Al-Naimi explained that competition between traditional and electronic businesses is in the interest of consumers in the first place, providing them with different options to suit their needs and living conditions. Al Nuaimi called on local traders to develop an innovative vision to enter the field of e-commerce, e-applications on mobile phones, as well as the development of their work significantly and the transition to e-commerce gradually in the coming period.

• Facilitate replacement, retrieval, and innovation of new marketing methods.