Abstract:

The environment in which retailers operate is changing rapidly in the late twentieth century. This is evidenced in the higher levels of turbulence, major political changes and new demands being made by consumers. The traditional approaches to retail strategy are no longer adequate. New approaches have to be implemented which combine low cost with high service and locally adapted retail offers into a single strategy. Some of the major companies in European retailing are addressing the ways to implement these new strategies. Implementation procedures include new ways of using retail brands, wider use of alliances, more extensive internationalisation of activity and the more creative use of information. Impediments to the introduction of the new approaches to strategy include the need to change the corporate culture of many retailers, the extensive restructuring of the retail sector across Europe and the mixed role that public policy takes in encouraging and impeding change.