think retail think

an informa business

Our Promise 04

Welcome to Verdict 05

Our Values 06

Think Retail, Think Verdict 08

Electricals & Entertainment 10

DIY & Home 12

Clothing & Footwear 14

Health & Beauty 16

Food & Grocery 18

Fuel 20

Automotive 22

Our Company Coverage 24

Our Channel Analysis 26

Our Trend Analysis 28

News & Views 30

Interactive Data 32

Three-step Navigation 34

contents

04

our PromiseVerdict understands first-hand the challenges facing companies in the retail arena, during difficult economic times as well as high growth climates.

Our research proposition builds on a 30-year body of knowledge, so we’re uniquely placed to guide you successfully through lean times and guarantee that you exploit the economic upturn to the fullest as it arrives.

We promise retailers, manufacturers, suppliers, property companies, city analysts and professional services companies the business intelligence and insights to operate at maximum efficiency right now and to prepare brilliantly for the challenges that lie just around the corner.

And we’ll help you choose the best package for you and your business, whether that’s a selection of individual reports or a subscription to Verdict’s exciting new service.

05

For Verdict, these are transformational times; we’ve moved onto a new platform designed specifically to deliver our content to clients in the fastest, most efficient and intuitive way. Now Verdict not only delivers the most authoritative insight around the dynamic world of retail, it is also mobile, rich and instant.

This platform has taken us 18 months to develop and our clients have been at the heart of it at every stage with their wish lists and work processes driving the project forward. We have a service for desktop, tablet and mobile that provides fast access to specific research, showcases our latest findings, as well as data visualisation software that brings our data to life in flexible and vividly detailed ways.

Our analysis content is continuously updated so that you have the very latest developments and trends from Verdict at your fingertips. There is also a dedicated area for industry news and Verdict Views so that you’ll be informed of the factors that affect your businesses as they happen.

We are confident you will be as enthusiastic as we are about the service. We are excited by the interactivity, visualisation techniques, being able to provide information updates constantly and the instant connectivity with our clients. This is the way we have always wanted to deliver your content, but we won’t stop here, we will always be looking at how we can enhance your experience of Verdict further.

Welcome to Verdict

Maureen Hinton

Research Director

06

our Values We’re every bit as passionate about the business of retail as you are. We believe in a rigorous approach to data and analysis so that you can rely 100% on what we have to say.

We’re constantly working on our service mindset so that you can be confident of getting exactly what you need, when you need it.

We know our business intelligence must be actionable, giving you useable, practical information to guide your actions today and your planning for tomorrow.

Sometimes, you’ll have questions about our opinions and insights. That’s fine. We’re committed to ensuring you have access to our analysts to get those answered swiftly.

And lastly, we know that you’re making critical business decisions based on our data, so we believe in being accountable for its quality and its value.

OuR ExPERTISEWe only employ the best researchers, analysts, account managers and client services staff. They are all passionate consumers, obsessed with the next product, trend or great marketing idea. They’re also business specialists and always go the extra mile to study how markets are changing and competitors are performing, so that we can build the best possible market analysis for you. This blend of personal interest and business acumen is reflected in the strength of our analysis and customer service. As all of us involved in retail know, it sometimes feels as though we work seven days a week, but we enjoy it!

Verdict’s analysts make around 100 media appearances every year. They’re frequently invited to appear on stations such as the BBC, Sky News and Bloomberg and, when not busy producing business critical information for you, they provide media commentary on retail industry events.

... passionate consumers obsessed with the next product, trend or great marketing idea

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Verdict analyses a variety of product sectors, including food & grocery, fuel and automotive. We meticulously build up the size and segmentation of these sectors by talking to industry, analysing the sales performance of companies and assessing consumer data. We use a robust model to test all our assumptions and calculations. We don’t rely on small samples of panel data and we don’t just regurgitate information that’s publicly available.

Our short and long term forecasts combine macro-economic, sector and company data with a qualitative understanding of our sectors. This mix delivers reliable, well-judged predictions. Leading brands tell us that our forecasting insight is a “must have” business tool and its value is strengthened by our fresh ability to alert you every time we make a significant forecast alteration.

There has never been such a diverse range of different places and ways to shop, with online growing its share month by month. Whether they’re buying clothing or cars, customers distribute spend between sector specialists and multi-sector retailers in an ever-changing pattern. Verdict’s channel analysis sets out the value of these multiple options by type of product sector, as well as investigating the distribution strategies being used internationally.

One company’s competitive position compared to another is a key determinant of its success or failure. Whether you’re assessing a competitor, a potential partner or we’ve simply spotted another company doing something to catch your imagination, Verdict will help you find out more about them. Our company briefings are a core tool for unique data and opinion on major uK and selected international retailers and brands, as well as smaller companies with a strong record of innovation and growth.

Knowing your customers and what they want from you is the very first step in making the changes needed to compete more effectively for a bigger share of their spend. Through surveys and continual sector tracking, we uncover key consumer trends and the critical requirements of consumers when it comes to purchases of everything from a carton of orange juice to a camera to car accessories. We speak to thousands of consumers every year about where they shop and why they shop there.

From environmental concerns to social networking and new technologies – other trends continually force you to evolve and to adjust your strategy across all elements of the retail mix. Our trend analysis guides you through which market changes you need to act on and which you can safely ignore, so that you can form solid plans and a sound investment case for your innovations.

Business case formulation & share analysis

competitor & partner profiling

financial planning & forecasting

catching the right customers

DistriBution & location Decisions

DeVising strategic retail concepts

HoW can We HelP you?

08

Verdict answers fundamental business questions; our online service is structured around making sure that you know exactly where to find the data, analysis and market updates that you need, when you need it both in the office and on the move.

THINK yOu KNOW yOuR SECTOR?When developing the data for our sector analyses, rigour, timeliness and consistency are key to shaping your business. We also ensure the accompanying insight is thorough, actionable and on point.

Which retail categories and sectors will grow and why? Which are declining and is the trend reversible? How do you maximise your opportunities and reduce your risks? Which purchasing channels should you be investing in? Verdict covers over twenty five product sectors. It’s enough to ensure we have a comprehensive view of total retail spend but not so much that we lose sight of intricacies of each sector.

For each of the twenty five sectors in our service, you’ll find these key modules covering your essential information needs:

tHink retail tHink Verdict

outlook

market size

market forecast

channel shares

market shares

sector trends

interactive Data Dashboards

electricals & entertainment

Diy & home

clothing & footwear

health & Beauty

food & grocery

fuel

automotive

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tHink you knoW your comPetitors and Partners? Our Company Briefings combine proprietary performance indicators, impartial observations about company performance and our analysts’ informed predictions on what they are going to do next.

We focus on specialists and multi-sector players across the sectors we cover. Would you like to uncover the reasons for the high performance of successful players and apply the knowledge to your strategy? Would you like to enhance your relationship with a company by showing you know their business inside out?

Each company briefing is split into concise modules allowing you to dive into what you need:

■ Outlook ■ Company Overview■ Recent Key Events

tHink you knoW tHe best marketing and distribution oPPortunities? In line with the changing purchasing behaviours of consumers our Channel Analysis requires ongoing evaluation. Do you know which channels are growing fastest for which sector? Which store formats are thriving

and why? How can you grow spend per head by unearthing the delivery options that consumers prefer for the purchases they make? Our channel analysis covers store formats, locations, online and mobile purchasing as well as delivery methods helping you to develop unrivalled distribution strategies.

That’s why we segment it into three core areas:

■ Online & Remote Shopping■ Store Locations■ Store Formats

tHink you knoW WHat trends matter? Our Trend Analysis is the most flexible area of our service, ensuring we respond to the next big thing. What are the key trends driving your sector and how can you use those to craft your strategy and tactics? What are your competitors doing in response to new opportunities? How do you need to position your brand with consumers?

Do you understand what drives their loyalty nowadays? Work with us to shape our coverage ensuring you get maximum return from your service. Right now, you can browse through our trends analysis under the following areas:

■ Distribution Strategies■ Services■ Technology & Payments■ Marketing

■ Financial Performance■ Operating Performance

■ Consumers■ Economy & Environment■ Product Development

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VERDICT SECTORS: ELECTRICALS & ENTERTAINMENT

The Electricals & Entertainment sector has seen a major chunk of sales migrate to the internet, and with players going into administration and

closing stores, this is set to continue. Electricals retailers are being hurt by consumers easily comparing the prices of branded products online, often instore on their smartphones.

Smartphones have cannibalised sales of cameras and audio players, while the way people use smartphones to connect to speakers at home has driven demand for more portable, less expensive audio equipment.

TV sales have suffered a major slump after years of strong growth as consumers replaced CRT TVs with flat panels. Now that cycle is complete, retailers are finding it difficult to get consumers to replace their TV sets early with features such as 3D and “Smart” internet connected TVs failing to catch public imagination.

Verdict delivers data and analysis on this market as a whole and on its main components: white, brown and grey goods as well as the entertainment market, broken down into its key parts.

Which electricals players will be the strongest performing over the next five years, how will demand change and how will volumes impact growth?

Which product categories will underperform or outperform the overall electricals market over the next few years, and how does this compare to previous years? How are service innovations differentiating retailers?

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INSIgHTWhere should you start looking for fresh market opportunities? Who should you target and why? Tablets are the bright spot in this market, having grown phenomenally over the last year with different price points. gaming is due a resurgence, now that the console cycle has begun again with the launch of the Wii u and the forthcoming releases of the new xbox and PS4 machines. What’s the next big thing? What is the latest strategy of the grocers when it comes to selling electricals and entertainment products?

Electricals inflation, volume and value (%) 2002–2017e

2002 20172007 2013

■ Formulate your market share objectives and

benchmark performance against the sector

average growth rate.

■ uncover operational details behind strategies

in social media, streaming services, click and

collect and private label.

■ Make sure your marketing strategy is up to date

by keeping on top of competitor activity and

inspirational ideas for attracting customers.

■ Discover where customers like to shop for

electricals and entertainment products and why.

HOW WE HELP yOu

Verdict’s research indicates

that while price and range

remain the key priorities for uk

shoppers, experiential factors are

increasing in importance. John

lewis, which views its customer

service as one of its key selling points,

is one of the few retailers reporting

increased electricals sales.

Patrick O’Brien

Inflation

Volume

Total Increase (%)

12

VERDICT SECTORS: DIy & HOME

given the economic fluctuations impacting home buying and consumers’ habits at home evolving under the influence of new

technologies, do-it-yourself & home retail sectors are undergoing substantial structural change. Every retailer has to rethink the way it operates in order to remain relevant to its customers. More than ever, retailers need a diagnostic approach in order to thrive. Those who underestimate and fail to understand their consumers are pushing themselves closer to the precipice.

Despite being a highly fragmented market, with few dominant players, the homewares sector can be difficult for retailers to break into, given the intense price competition from non-specialist players. With lower levels of consumer spending, many consumers have been drawn towards grocers and value players due to their desire to save money on essential homewares purchases, putting up an intense competitive barrier for new and unknown entrants.

Equipped with a robust understanding of housing market economics and data spanning thirty years, Verdict’s analysts examine how these movements subtly impact demand for homewares, furniture, floorcoverings, gardening and DIy products in different ways. We can also tell you how consumer trends are changing attitudes towards the home and the activities that take place within it.

Where can you find the main trends in sector expenditure, specialist sales, online independents and use of retail space?

What about an assessment of strategic issues and recommended responses?

What should you be doing about channel diversification, private label development and capitalising on the green trend?

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INSIgHTWhile the remainder of retail has struggled out-of-town over the past five years, homewares is one sector where retailers have thrived in the uK, and been able to take advantage of the opportunities that this location has to offer. Range remains one of the most important loyalty drivers for homewares shoppers, twice as important as

convenience, proving that shoppers are keen to travel to benefit from increased product choice. Flash sale sites, such as Achica, Brand Alley and Secretsales are becoming more of a platform for new and unknown homewares brands to gain exposure to consumers.

■ Ensure that market shares are calculated using the more reliable market value figures that exist.

■ uncover how consumers use and perceive their home, and what this means for product demand.

■ Benchmark the performance of the sector’s top performers and identify new emerging companies and brands.

■ Develop instore service ideas and marketing propositions that respond to consumers’ loyalty drivers.

HOW WE HELP yOu

Verdict provides insight into the following sectors:

■ Homewares■ DIy & Home Improvement■ gardening■ Furniture■ Floorcoverings

Category share of subsector 2003–2017e Other furniture

Living and Dining

Home office

Kitchen

Bathroom

Upholstery

Beds and Bedroom

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VERDICT SECTORS: CLOTHINg & FOOTWEAR

Verdict guides your strategy across fashion markets including value clothing, footwear and luxury retailing with our Clothing & Footwear

analysis. Discounting is rife in most sectors and will be difficult to escape for the foreseeable future, while luxury is fascinatingly robust and expanding. Verdict helps you to tackle the challenges and opportunities your business faces over the next five years.

Verdict forecasts that womenswear players particularly will continue to be under intense margin pressure as inflation remains, volume sales fall, and retailers are forced to discount to clear stocks. The average operating margin

of the top womenswear players continues to fall year on year, highlighting the pressures retailers are facing.

Inflation across the whole sector, driven by the increased cost of cotton and high fuel prices increasing shipping costs, will drive expenditure growth as most increase retail prices to limit the hit on margin. However, higher prices and restricted disposable income have made consumers far more considered with their clothing expenditure leading them to think twice about the number of items they buy. This weak demand means most retailers continue to resort to discounting to drive footfall and spend.

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■ Identify where customers shop for their clothing and footwear products and why.

■ Evaluate the success of every sales channel including specialist retailers, department stores and supermarkets.

■ uncover the rate at which consumers are switching to online shopping and learn more about their purchasing and returns journey.

■ grow spend per head by unearthing the added value services that matter to consumers when buying these products.

■ Assess your own retail strategies by identifying the most innovative and successful practices of your competitors, including the partners they use.

HOW WE HELP yOu

What impact will the economy have on retail and how should you build this into your sales forecasts?

How will inflation affect growth in clothing and footwear sales volumes? How much longer will inflationary pressures continue?

Which fashion sectors will perform best over the next two or three years? Which sectors should your business focus on?

While labour and production

costs may still be more

expensive in the uk, freight and

import charges are eliminated and

it allows for shorter lead times and

provides retailers with greater flexibility

in repeat runs and short orders –

especially retail brands that need

to translate styles from the catwalk

to the shopfloor quickly.

Honor Westnedge

Verdict covers the following clothing & footwear related sectors:

■ Childrenswear■ Luxury■ Lingerie■ Accessories■ Jewellery

■ Footwear■ Sportswear■ Menswear■ Womenswear

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VERDICT SECTORS: HEALTH & BEAuTy

Health & Beauty is traditionally one of the most resilient retail sectors and holds endless opportunities both at the value and luxury

ends of the spectrum. Verdict identifies the size of these opportunities, the activities of the most exciting players and advises on how you can make the most of the sector’s prospects.

Overall, we expect consumer expenditure to remain subdued and volumes will be dampened by low consumer confidence. However, innovation, high demand for anti-ageing products and the necessity element of the market will give volumes a modest boost.

Large specialists in health & beauty are struggling as grocers and general merchandisers gain market share. grocers particularly are continuing to grow share as consumers find it increasingly convenient to pick up everyday health & beauty products while doing their weekly shop.

Though consumer confidence will remain low in the near to medium term, the essential nature of many items will guarantee a steady growth rate for the sector. And of course beauty products provide a relatively inexpensive way of consumers treating themselves while disposable incomes remain squeezed.

What impact will the economy have on over-the-counter health sales and how should you build this into your sales forecasts? How will inflation affect growth in beauty sales volumes?

Which product categories will perform the best over the short to medium term?

Which should your business focus on?

Health and Beauty inflation, volume and value (%) 2002–2017e

2002 20172007 2013

Inflation

Volume

Total Increase (%)

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Our Health & Beauty analysis spans these sectors:

■ Health & Beauty ■ Opticians■ Pharmacy

INSIgHTAs the proportion of those in the 50+ age bracket rises, these customers become a core purchasing group and retailers must ensure their needs are understood and met. As average lifespan continues to increase this age bracket widens and retailers must recognise there are sub-segments within the group. This difference is heightened by consumers wanting to look younger for longer, with women in their 50s dressing and expecting

to look far younger than their mothers’ generation did, and being willing to invest heavily in doing so. We expect this trend to continue as more emphasis is put on anti-ageing products and services.

■ Measure future demand and quantify major channels of spend by retailer type, purchasing channel and location.

■ Identify the sector’s top retail performers, the emerging success stories, and uncover what they are doing right.

■ Stay on top of shopper insights, changing behaviour and loyalty drivers.

■ uncover product development, range and service ideas to refresh your business.

HOW WE HELP yOu

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VERDICT SECTORS:FOOD & gROCERy

Inflation is set to continue to dictate the landscape

of the food & grocery sector for the next few

years as cost price pressures continue. Verdict

provides insightful solutions for retailers working hard to stay

competitive while protecting margins.

upwards cost pressures for commodities and oil are the main

inflation drivers. While supermarkets are able to absorb some

price increases, inflation is inevitable. Shoppers are continuing

to feel squeezed, and volume growth is expected to remain

worryingly low.

Verdict believes that with the right strategy and tactics,

expenditure growth in the food & grocery sector is achievable,

a strong performance considering that total retail expenditure

will continue to stagnate or extremely limited growth at best.

However, the majority of the growth in Verdict’s food & grocery

sector forecasts comes from stubbornly high inflation. We

appreciate the challenges of food & grocery retailers and

also have an acute understanding of their activities in

non-food sectors putting us in a unique position to assess

their businesses.

What threat do discounters and the value end pose to the big four in an inflationary climate?

What should you do to thrive in the resulting market?

Do loyalty schemes actually generate any loyalty?

Does price matching matter?

Should you invest in click and collect for food?

19

INSIgHTglobal food prices look set to continue to rise year on year.

Increases in grain prices are having a knock-on effect on

wheat, meat and dairy, while rising fuel prices will also

continue to exert upward pressure on supply chain and

logistics costs.

While it is still unclear if the online channel is a profitable

one or not, it is certainly unavoidable. The rapid sales growth

of specialists in this area is testament to the continued

customer demand for the benefits of online grocery

shopping. Convenience stores from the big players and

symbol groups are proving extremely popular with shoppers

as they look to make smaller, more frequent shops, cut down

on waste and keep to a budget.

■ uncover and effectively target emerging trends and consumer preferences and behaviour.

■ Identify the retailers and brands you need to partner with to drive your business forward.

■ Build the financial and strategic case for reshaping your business strategy.

■ understand what underpins your competitors’ performance and learn from their successes and their mistakes.

HOW WE HELP yOu

Fishmongers

Grocers’ small stores

Grocers’ superstores

Other food specialists

Greengrocers

Butchers

Bakers

Off licence and tabacconists

Change in Food and Grocery channel expenditure (%) 2011–2017

28.1

19.817.6

4.8 3.8 2.7 - 0.1 - 21.7

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VERDICT SECTORS:FuEL

Fuel retailing at service stations commands a large and captive audience, making it of interest to different retailers, manufacturers and

service providers. We understand motorist demand for fuel as well as commercial fuel consumption, and all the opportunities for added value services that this brings to players in this sector across Europe. This includes car washing, convenience retailing and more innovative services such as collection points for online purchases.

Certain supermarkets across Europe have tackled the business of fuel retail with aplomb creating attractive promotions and a slightly more customer centric approach. For the oil companies that haven’t invested

in improving their proposition through product innovation, convenience and food service offerings, they continue to ponder whether it’s best to leave these established retailers to distribute their product on their behalf.

There’s also a segment of motorists that want a basic fuel retail offering with no accompanying services. We help identify the market for this simple, no frills approach to selling the commodity.

What is the size of the fuel retailing market by volume and value and how does this translate into footfall at the service station retail channel?

What proportion of this demand is from businesses and what proportion are using commercial fuel cards?

What range of cards and membership schemes should you offer to encourage loyalty from private motorists and different types of business customers?

How can you improve my fuel retailing proposition?

Which customers are happy to pay more for premium fuels and who cares about using alternative fuels?

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INSIgHTIn the uK, Tesco has the highest market share of fuel sales on the public network. French supermarkets have a huge network of service stations too, with Intermarche boasting the second highest number of service station sites throughout France. Our analysis outlines demand across motorway service areas, unmanned stations and supermarket-owned sites. We also explore the market for business fuel cards, assessing the volume and value of this payment channel, and assess further ways to bolster channel sales with car wash services, convenience stores and other supplementary services.

■ Benchmark your company against your peers by comparing network ownership, fuel throughput, shop coverage, car wash coverage and unmanned networks.

■ Formulate market share objectives for your company and assess performance using our value data for fuel sales, fuel card sales and car wash sales.

■ Strengthen your proposition and marketing messages by assessing the attitudes that underpin motorists’ behaviours and preferences towards their fuel, convenience and car wash purchasing.

HOW WE HELP yOu

the proportion of alternative fuel

vehicle registrations in the leading four

european economies has doubled since

2009, now standing at 1.8% supermarkets

may want to consider entering into

partnerships or joint ventures with fuel

companies that are focussing on alternative

fuels to expand their fuel offering in this area

and safeguard their strong market position.

Robert Speight

22

VERDICT SECTORS:AuTOMOTIVE

The European car market is currently in a state of flux, with many challenges affecting the performance of all players within the industry.

Most manufacturers are experiencing their lowest sales figures in recent memory and, due to severe economic constraints, there is no easy way out of the problem as motorists are not as affluent as they once were. Over-capacity, strict Eu regulations on emissions and an austere consumer base have all combined to create the most difficult selling environment in over a decade. Our understanding of vehicle sales across Europe means that we are ideally placed to offer insight, forecasts and solutions to the key players in the market. We understand the factors that affect the automotive industry, from economic drivers to consumer attitudes, and we use these indicators, supplemented with dialogue from major industry executives, to create hard-hitting, original insight.

That’s not to say that falling vehicle sales are the only story within the automotive industry; as a result of low sales, many countries have a car parc that is aging, which presents opportunities for the aftermarket. Our insight into components within the aftermarket is second to none, and is designed to help both component manufacturers and retailers to understand individual country replacement rates and levels of demand, in order to increase their market shares.

Car componentry is developing in leaps and bounds and there have been, and will continue to be, exciting technological breakthroughs in the industry. These breakthroughs have a direct impact on both the aftermarket and new vehicle sales. We help our clients stay abreast of these developments and ensure that all potential implications are covered.

Is your sector going to grow, stagnate or contract over the next half dozen years?

How can you exploit the emerging DIY car maintenance trend?

If growth accelerates, where will it emerge first and how can your business make the most of it?

Our Automotive stream deals with six separate product subsectors:

■ Tyres■ Service Parts■ Wear & Tear Parts■ Mechanical Parts■ Crash Repair Parts■ Consumables & Accessories

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INSIgHTOur consumer research helps you to understand the changing facets of motorists’ behaviour in different regions in terms of their driving habits, vehicle servicing routines, aftermarket products and channel preferences. We also uncover emerging trends around DIy, online shopping for aftermarket products and motorists’ preferences for eco-friendly technologies. Not only does this inform your channel forecasts, it helps us to inform you of new product development and marketing opportunities.

■ Achieve growth by understanding forecast sales of components, either in value or volume, across nine key retail channels.

■ uncover new distribution opportunities for your products by identifying which types of retailer are most successful and why.

■ Identify the average revenue generated due to labour charges by component and channel, enabling you to benchmark competitors’ profitability.

■ uncover motorist attitudes towards vehicle maintenance and purchasing channels.

HOW WE HELP yOu

20162008

953 972 967 985 1006 1019 1024 1020 1014

754758762759751736724733721721

232 238 243 249 255 259 262 262 260

2010 2012 2014

Lithuania automotive market value over time 2008–2016e

Component (€m)

Labour (€m)

Total market (€m)

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our comPany coVerageAt Verdict we compile company data that aren’t in the public domain and we focus on getting it right. After all, it’s what all our market valuations and forecasts are founded on. There are lots of annual report aggregators out there but we ensure that we blend this secondary data with our primary research and market knowledge to provide a unique and impartial view of company performance.

Benchmarking retail performance Retail is highly competitive, but non-competing players also find new and exciting ways to collaborate for their mutual benefit. Whether this is for competitor benchmarking purposes or because manufacturers and retailers are seeking new partners, there is a growing need to use our company analysis to assess retailers’ performance and learn about their activities.

Detailed performance analysis and prospects for key players We assess the outlook for each company through performance metrics including sales growth, sales densities (where relevant), market share and profitability, while strategic recommendations are provided to manage emerging threats, enhance cost efficiency and exploit growth opportunities.

Tracking market shares It’s thanks to our company data that we calculate the true value of sectors, and

this is how we provide competitor market shares that are used by our clients time and time again. Primary research with the companies we are profiling is an important part of this process.

Inspiration from innovation Once we have our performance indicators in place, nothing is more exciting to our analysts than unearthing the strategies of the companies they follow, especially if we think that what they are doing is going to make a difference to their performance and can teach us all something new.

And there are plenty to choose from We provide briefings for over 300 companies, with more being added every day. Our analysis is divided into clear modules, including operating performance, recent key events and what they mean for the company, as well as insight into their customers.

High street, discounter or luxury market?

BRAND PROPOSITION

Bottom end, mid-range or high-end price tags?

PRICE POSITIONINg

Do they have stores? How many? Web presence?

STORES & DISTRIBuTION

Who loves this company?

TARgET MARKET

Who’s watching their every move?

COMPETITORS

Modern? Retro? Quirky? Sleek? Homely?

STORE FORMAT & AMBIENCE

Specialist or generalist?

PRODuCT SECTORS

Any own label activity happening?

SuB BRANDS

Home delivery? Store cards? Credit facilities? gift cards? Learning experiences?

SERVICES

Here’s WHat We knoW

26

our cHannel analysisNever have there been such a diverse number of places and ways to shop. Deciding which channels to invest in is one of the never-ending challenges facing manufacturers and retailers. Equipped with our data and insights we’ll help you to make the right distribution decisions.

We can buy tyres from Asda, cosmetics from H&M and our lunch from Boots. Consumers distribute their spending between specialists and multi-sector retailers, making very little distinction between them. Verdict provides full visibility on the different types of retailers capturing share of consumer spend in a particular product sector, as well as analysing the sales performance of specific retail formats such as department stores, convenience stores and supermarkets across multiple product sectors.

Retailers continue to explore new and varied locations, from major shopping destinations such as malls or outlet villages, to impulse shopping locations such as airports and other travel hubs. Verdict explores opportunities in these channels, as well as examining spending patterns between town centres, out-of-town and neighbourhood locations.

Consumers’ purchasing journeys are long and varied, with multiple channels being used for researching, browsing, purchasing and order fulfilment. And of course this varies depending on the products they are buying. Verdict gives you insight into how consumers are distributing their focus and their spend between different channels, and how this is forecast to change, ensuring you are ready to react to the latest developments.

HOW WE HELP yOu

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■ What’s the best balance between online focus and bricks and mortar for your particular business?

■ How fast is mobile going to hit your market?

■ Is it time you got out of the high street altogether?

■ How much should you invest in a new flagship store? And where should you site it?

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our trend analysisThe retail environment never stands still, with economic trends, globalisation and new technologies changing how retailers operate and interact with their customers to ensure their business is profitable. Impacted by developments in demographics, the economy, technology and globalisation, retail is always uncertain. This, combined with innovations from within the industry, also means it is extremely fast moving. We highlight these issues and industry trends helping you to shape the best responsive strategies for your business.

lesser known social media platforms

are important in specific countries

and regions. Have you heard of Hyves,

Nasza-klasa, VKontakte, Mixi, Orkut, Skyrock,

Tuenti, and Hi5?

Matt Rubin

29

The line between supply chain and distribution channel is growing ever more blurred as product manufacturers go direct to consumers via online as well as selling through established retailers in all their formats. Verdict has strong views on the evolution of Pick up & Drop Off services and other emerging options as well as traditional routes.

By offering enhanced services and events in their stores retailers can enhance sales by instilling customers with confidence, engendering lifelong loyalty in their retail brand and differentiating themselves from retail competitors, especially those online. DIy and electrical retailers have made the most innovative steps, offering children’s home improvement workshops, and summer camps and operating as a destination for school trips. grocers could target neglected consumer segments such as foreign language consumers, by improving awareness of multi-lingual staff.

By the start of 2014, approaching half of all retailers will offer contactless payment technologies in-store and more than a third will have invested in new mobile and e-commerce technology. Focusing on the mobile wallet from a pure payments perspective massively undervalues the impact mobiles can have. If a consumer is tapping a phone for payment and simultaneously providing loyalty details and redeeming a money-off voucher, while using it to access additional in-store services, customers and retailers alike are benefiting.

It’s (nearly) all about social media right now. Verdict has a wealth of great examples of best practice and innovative social media projects that have helped to build better product ranges, address customer complaints, reduce numbers of returned purchases and generate good PR. There’s more to getting the most out of social media than giving your tiger bread a new name. We have case studies that will fire your imagination and drive profitability for your company.

Verdict Consumer Insights are based around primary consumer research and provide a highly detailed, data-rich overview of your customers. We know what Asda’s customers love about its offer, as well as what they don’t. What motivates Tesco clothing shoppers and why do they prefer Tesco to Primark? Where do women prefer to go to have their car repaired? What are the key motivators? Verdict can tell you all these things and a lot more besides.

There are plenty of other places you could find a comprehensive analysis of the uK economy over the next five years, including gDP, interest rates, inflation, disposable income, the housing market and consumer confidence. But no one else can give you the same insight into their combined impact on retail demand and retail expenditure across all the major retail sectors and tell you how the major players are placed to deal with the changing landscape.

DistriBution strategies

marketing

serVices

consumers

technology & payments

economy & enVironment

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neWs & VieWs

Our new service provides concise coverage of the events and research findings that truly matter for your projects and your business, with views and analysis powered by our expert analysts. Our team doesn’t simply provide reactions to industry events, we assess the potential impact of breaking news stories and the implications they have for products, markets and the competitive landscape.

Verdict News & Views delivers business-critical information to improve decision-making with timely and relevant insight throughout the day. We don’t just report on the important stories you see in the mainstream and trade press, we spot the news emerging from our own proprietary data and research and deliver that to your inbox daily as well.

Verdict clients are on top of all the major happenings in retail and understand them better through Verdict’s unique insight.

News in Brief Our carefully curated version of the day’s breaking news in our sectors, delivered direct to your desktop or mobile, with the added bonus of comment from Verdict analysts, shedding extra light on the subject. Perfectly timed to go with your first coffee of the day and concentrating on the developments you’ll want to read about.

Verdict ViewsOpinion, insight and analysis of the implications of major events within hours or major new Verdict research findings you’ll want to hear about right away. Verdict analysts explore events in the context of our proprietary data and forecasts.

Trading UpdatesOur trading updates reach your inbox almost as soon as a company announces its results. We deliver detailed financial information and add perspective and insight into what the numbers mean, courtesy of a Verdict analyst.

news & Views

highlights the main

retail news stories for the day

in one email – get clued up

in a matter of minutes.

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... we spot the news emerging from our own proprietary data and research and deliver that to your inbox daily

timely & releVant insigHt tHrougHout tHe day

... trading updates for over 100 retailers on the day results are released – no need to wait for a roundup of the next day’s press coverage

... we keep it simple with very brief news summaries and major stories followed up in our analysis throughout the day

... we only highlight the news events that are relevant for the sector and are related to the issues we help you with, leaving the rest for the regular trade press

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interactiVe data

agile data and analysis always aligned to the latest market developments.

As the industry landscape shifts and evolves, it’s important to know you are basing your decisions on accurate data that reflects the very latest trends and issues.

We’ve revolutionised the structure of our data, analysis and insights and introduced a greater frequency of data updates to respond to market events and developments as they unfold. A wealth of interactive data dashboards are linked to our databases. Following a company administration, new entrants or store closures we’ll update these dashboards with predictions on the impacts to market shares, or if we change our forecast sales for a sector you track, we’ll alert you.

Through a combination of planned and event-driven amendments, you can be confident that our research is based on the most timely and relevant market information.

It’s not just numbers any more. Data analysis is all about asking questions. We’ve developed inspiring, easy-to-use data visualisation dashboards that help you achieve great insights using our data. Together, our numbers, our insight and your questions can make a real impact on your business planning.

Why all the effort? Because the right visual representation of data sparks just the right insights. A story unfolds as people navigate from one visual summary to another.

We know that thinking with data can be hard. Our goal is to help people answer questions as fast as they can think of them.

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Spontaneous updates based on key market events. As we update our data, our visualisation dashboard changes with it in real time. Instead of waiting for quarterly updates published in boring static tables and graphs, you can access live and dynamic data, updated as often as we get our hands on new information. And you can watch our picture of the market changing and evolving in real time.

Sometimes you’ll want to export data to use in a report or a presentation. That’s fine. you can still do that at any time. And if you need to update the presentation in six months’ time, just repeat the process for something a little more up to date.

The glorious graphic potential of data visualisation software allows us, and you, to create customisable data presentations geared to the perspective of your particular business. It’s important to remember though that this isn’t just about making the numbers look great – although they do – it’s about presenting information in a way that can be swiftly understood, that suggests new questions and yields fresh insights.

liVe & Dynamic exportaBle Visual

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tHree-steP naVigation

CHOOSE yOuR VIEW OF THE MARKET

Our analysis is split into four streams that allow you to immediately identify the market sector or the market view that best suits your current need.

Whether you want to access a particular company, see sector growth, explore a channel or study a trend, the choice you make here will allow you to quickly funnel your subsequent research through your preferred view.

SELECT AREAOnce you’ve picked out your entry point, you can select the sector, company, channel or trend that particularly interests you, allowing you to instantly scan the breadth of subject areas relevant to your research. you can home in swiftly on your area of interest.

HIgHEST-RELEVANCy RESEARCH

up front, you can see the most recent research, news and data Verdict has published. And you can tweak what you see using our new “show me” filter. This breaks down the subject area into smaller segments of distinct focus.

But what makes this area so powerful are the lengths we’ve gone to in making sure that listings here are both meaningful and relevant. Our content has been re-engineered so that clients won’t simply be able to access chapter-sized content segments from the sidebar but research fragments that have been mapped from inside and across chapters so that niche areas of interest can be pinpointed instantly.

Be first to know

Our new alerting service makes sure that key breaking data and analysis wings its way directly to your inbox the minute our analysts compile and publish it – as long as that’s what you want. The workbench of our analysts is connected to your service site.

ask an analyst

We’ve made it easier to contact our team and pose your own questions. Need to know how to exploit a new trend? Curious about a competitor’s expansion strategy? Just ask.

customise stuff

On our new site, you have choices. you can choose which alerts to receive from us. Choose what to see in our streams of content. Build a collection of clippings and turn them into your own customised report.

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olD faVourites

Although we feel our new navigation and layout provides the clearest and quickest path to insights, some clients will want more time to adjust or may simply prefer viewing research in a familiar way. For these clients, we have created the Report Library, which contains all of our content in its original report-based format. This includes all the analysis we’ve published over recent years and allows clients to download the same PDF, Datapack and Slidepack deliverables. So, for those who prefer a more traditional view, this will feel just like home.

The way we’ve reengineered our content has transformed the speed and relevance with which we can find what you’re looking for.

you won’t simply be directed to a long list of large reports each containing a few paragraphs of related information. Instead we deliver directly accessible sections of maximum relevance from across every module, giving you a fluid view across our entire research portfolio, breaking down the barriers to accessibility and ensuring that the most relevant insights are only seconds away.

Being able to find smaller, more focused research segments will transform the accuracy of search results but our investment in powerful search technology takes this even further. Our new capabilities include intelligent keyword weighting to judge the importance of those references depending on their location within a document.

search

Verdict Ltd, a trading division of Informa uK Ltd. Registered Office: Mortimer House, 37–41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, uK. Registered in England and Wales No 1072954.

Online at www.verdictretail.com

Email info@verdictretail.com

Call our Customer Services team on +44 20 7551 9537

contact us