The holiday season is the most important time for retailers, but this year’s industry complications are predicted to dampen the holiday spirit. In fact, Deloitte predicted that this year’s retail sales between November and January will only increase by 4 to 6% from 2022. This number is in stark contrast to the 15% jump in retail sales over the same time frame between 2020 and 2021. This modest increase in estimated holiday sales is largely due to prices for consumer goods. With consumers paying more for everyday items, they are likely to bargain hunt for their holiday gifts – making sales days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday more important than ever.
Meanwhile, retailers rely on the holiday sales boost to achieve important year-end KPIs. To secure these key sales without damaging margins, retailers must be particularly strategic with their promotions this holiday season. The strategy must include dynamic vendor agreements and scenario testing to prepare for any outcome. With just a few months before Black Friday, let’s discuss what retailers and their partners can do now to ensure holiday success.
Discuss Promotions with Potential Vendors
It’s no secret that customers expect big discounts on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. But for retailers that are already tight on margins, promotions can be difficult to orchestrate. That’s why promotions should be incorporated into vendor agreements from day one. Partnerships that allow for pricing adjustments open great opportunities for retailers to intrigue new customers and earn loyalty from returning shoppers – two things that benefit the bottom line for the retailer and the partner. Managing conditions like promotions doesn’t stop at the negotiation phase. With an automated agreement lifecycle tool like gicom’s, retailers can ensure all contract components are monitored, reporting any deviations from original margin calculations.
Prepare for the Best and the Worst
Retailers have learned to expect the unexpected over the last two years and this holiday season may be no different. Therefore, it’s important that retailers and their partners are prepared for any scenario. This holiday season, retailers should test scenarios that include personalized promotions as well as extraneous factors like displaced inventory, shipping delays and rising input prices. For example, if an item’s delivery date is postponed due to supply chain disruptions, retailers should be prepared to offer promotions to avoid losing demand. With gicom’s agreement negotiation workbench, retailers can stay one step ahead of any disruption. The workbench provides a complete overview of historical agreements and figures, allowing negotiators to test scenarios and run simulations.
Learn and Grow Every Year
Even with exceptional preparation and simulation testing, retailers will learn important lessons during each holiday season. For instance, sometimes a slim discount on a popular item can be more beneficial to the bottom line than a large discount on slow-selling items. These lessons should be meticulously analyzed to improve future agreements and operations. For example, with gicom’s analysis tool, all business transactions are broken down into revenue, expense, and cost components, automatically determining corresponding margins. With this data, retailers improve transparency and open new opportunities. For example, retailers can rely on gicom to compare suppliers, customers, and assortments, determining the best strategies for the following holiday season.
Get Ready for the Holiday Season with gicom
As shoppers bargain hunt this holiday season, the retailers with the best deals and best product availability will find the greatest success. To learn how your business can take the top spot this holiday season, reach out to us today.