Last Monday and Tuesday, PayPal attended
Retail Business Technology Expo (RBTE) 2017 at London Olympia (May 8-9) in the UK. RBTE is Europe’s fastest growing trade event for the retail and hospitality industries. People who attend are looking for tools, solutions, innovations and advice on how they could best run their business.
With more than 17,000 visitors being the estimated footfall this year it was interesting to see what businesses had on offer to inspire, encourage innovation and spark new ideas to retailers this year.
To me, four things stood out from both attending some of the sessions as well as my discussions at the event –
1)The convenience gap between what consumers want and what retailers provide continues. There was a focus at the event around consumers demanding more and the value of retailers meeting those expectations. Customers are demanding faster, more flexible and integrated experiences. Research shows customers want experience and convenience over price and loyalty – it was encouraging to see RBTE highlighting this theme. At PayPal, our customers know we are technology and operating system agnostic. Unlike our competitors, the PayPal platform enables us to give merchants and consumers flexibility in how they manage, move and spend their money – whether it's through a mobile device using NFC, in-store or buying something in the moment from your social feed.
2)Multi (Omni) channel retail is a reality. There is increasing recognition that consumer shopping habits are changing which is having a fundamental impact on retail. The blurring of the lines of online and high street retail means that retail technology providers need to catch up so helping retailers solve their consumer’s pain points.
3)The need to focus on mobile remains a fundamental challenge for many businesses. This is particularly noticeable when consumers are increasingly looking to purchase online through mobile applications or websites.
In research PayPal carried out last year, we found that over two in five small businesses admit they have never reviewed how they take payment from customers, while only 17% have a website designed for access on a smartphone or tablet. Just 4% have a smartphone app that takes payments, despite mobile shopping growing at nearly four times the rate of overall online spending in the UK. In contrast, a fifth of consumers say they most frequently buy goods or services online using their smartphone. PayPal launched
The Mobile Mandate Reportwith Google and OC&C in February 2017, this report highlights that over 50% of ecommerce retail now takes place on a mobile device in the UK.
4)As our fifth year at this well-attended industry event, it was brilliant to see such a focus on the digitalisation of money. At PayPal, we are making the management and movement of money simpler, more secure and we do that by collaborating not only with financial institutions but also with wireless carriers, technology companies, networks, OEMs and retailers.
We are looking forward to next year’s RBTE already and continuing to show how PayPal is harnessing technology to make money work better for both consumers and retailers.