Booming online shopping changing the way retail works

Online shopping, which has seen an unprecedented boom this Christmas, is changing the way the industry works and developing a new breed of retail staff, according to new Skillsmart Retail research.

Its study, published this week, found that although online buying is far from replacing high street shopping, it is now a real market driver and is helping to shape the way the industry develops.

It also found that online, which has seen up to 750,000 spent in a single minute in the UK this month, is now combining with traditional models of shopping to propose a new set of challenges to the sectorís existing staff and creating a host of new roles in areas such as web marketing and IT.

Ian Wheeler, Research Manager at Skillsmart Retail, and author of the report, said: ìOnline retailing is far from taking over from the high street, but it is now actively changing and enriching roles of many working in the sector.

ìOnline and offline shopping are converging meaning new challenges for retail workers and increasing the complexity of many jobs in the industry.î

The report, entitled Skillsmart Retail Analysis: Online retailing potential developments and its impact on people and skills, concentrated largely on secondary sources and commentary from retailers themselves.

It charts how online retailing has moved from a minority hobbyist pursuit, to one which is now a mainstream route for retailers - trusted by the majority of major high street brands and consumers alike.

Its development has seen high street retailers develop a range of new skills including marketing, design, copywriting and online visual merchandising to perfect their online environments They have also had to transfer their expertise online including sales, merchandising, advice and customer retention skills.

Mr Wheeler said: ìRoles at all levels are seeing a change. This includes in-store sales assistants. Not only will they need to have knowledge of whatís in their own store and store based systems, theyíll also have to understand online offers as well.

ìIt will also present significant challenges for senior managers who need to understand how this relatively new medium operates and helps to achieve sales growth, market share and enhance brand awareness.î

ìNew vacancies are also being created requiring a new set of skills. A trawl of the jobs vacant also indicates a range of new occupations are also emerging, including ëonline store managerí, ëinternet operations managerí and ëmulti-channel trading managerí to name but a few.î

The full report as well as a whole range of information on retail skills is available at the Skillsmart Retail website at: