Technology accelerating growth in Nigeria’s retail sector – Expert

The Head of Innovation, Growth and Business Transformation at FoodCo, Funmi Aiyepeku, has described the brick-and-mortar retail segment as a critical pillar that will help sustain the Nigerian consumer goods market and drive significant growth in the economy.

She also said digitisation which was once seen as the biggest threat to physical stores, especially at the advent of the pandemic, has become one of the biggest allies accelerating growth in the sector.

According to a statement on Wednesday, the model will continue to be relevant given the quality assurance, credibility and opportunities for unique customer engagement it offers.

The brick-and-mortar retail segment refers to physical retail stores where consumers can shop in person, as opposed to online shopping or e-commerce.

This segment includes various types of retail outlets, such as department stores, speciality stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores.

She said, “An ancillary attribute of brick-and-mortar retail which many people overlook is its potential to stimulate macro-economic activities across the industry. This is as it feeds into several other sectors such as Real Estate, Construction and ICT.

“There is also the potential to create jobs at scale. For example, in just one FoodCo brand store, we have store managers, cashiers, sales assistants, ICT support, cleaners, security and inventory officers, among others.

“When you multiply this by the total number of brand stores and include corporate roles in Management, legal, and Human Resources, it stacks up to a significant investment in hiring and managing talent.:

Acknowledging the growing influence of e-commerce in retail, Aiyepeku stressed that digitisation has become a transformative tool that is also enabling brick-and-mortar retailers to drive scale, improve their processes and service delivery as well and open up new frontiers for growth.

She stated, “It is interesting that digitisation which was once seen as the biggest threat to physical stores, especially at the advent of the pandemic, has become one of the biggest allies accelerating growth in the sector. The deployment of technology in brick-and-mortar operations has given rise to the concept of ‘Phygital’, a hybrid model that allows customers to tap into the digital and offline experience to create a more robust and immersive shopping experience.

“This is particularly important given the emergence of a customer class that seeks a digital-enhanced interface with brands. So, a customer can begin their shopping by first going online to confirm what is available or compare prices, then come in-store for quality assurance and pick-up.”