With the summer flying by, it’s time to look ahead to what retail trends will take the lead in fall 2024. The previous year proved difficult for retailers, with low consumer confidence and increasing cost of living tightening shoppers’ purse strings. But it seems that tough times are starting to wane.
Goldman Sachs reports in its 2024 economic forecast that inflation is easing and consumer confidence is, slowly but surely, on the rise. Retailers and advertisers have every reason to look forward to fall 2024 with cautious optimism.
With the fall almost upon us, there are several crucial retail trends that advertisers should keep an eye on for their upcoming campaigns.
Top 6 retail trends
While there are many retail trends making waves, these are the six most important trends to follow for autumn 2024.
The environment plays a key role
The importance of of sustainable retail isn’t new to advertisers, but in 2024 this trend is proving that environmental responsibility is cementing itself as an important issue for shoppers. A recent survey from McKinsey & Co. reports that two-thirds of respondents consider sustainability when choosing where to shop. This number was higher for millennial respondents, where three-quarters said they considered sustainability when making purchase decisions.
When it comes to sustainability, consumers also have what some marketers are calling “green fatigue.” Customers are tired of empty pledges and are looking for companies to take meaningful action. A report from Mintel found that 60% of respondents believed that green claims made by companies were entirely made up.
Companies looking to leverage their environmental sustainability for marketing purposes need to back up their claims if they wish to have any concrete impact on their customers’ purchase decisions.
Social commerce continues to grow
Social commerce will grow in fall 2024. Social commerce is when e-commerce is facilitated by social media. This is a unique experience where awareness, decision-making, and purchasing all happen on the same platform – shopping and entertainment all in one.
According to the Influencer Marketing Hub, 98% of customers plan to use social commerce to make a purchase at least once in 2024. This is an increase from 68% of respondents in 2023.
Fast delivery drives purchases
Same-day delivery continues its meteoric climb in popularity and speedy shipping will be incredibly important in late 2024. For many customers, same-day delivery is no longer just nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. In a recent survey, almost 70% of customers said delivery time was an important factor when making online purchases and almost 25% said they look for next-day shipping options.
According to a McKinsey report, same-day delivery is most important to younger demographics. It found that 20% of Gen Z expected same-day delivery and that 60% of them were willing to pay extra for it.
Resale and second-hand shopping see a boom
Resale is on the rise. A combination of financial strain and sustainability concerns are contributing to the boom in second-hand shopping. According to Recurate (a platform specializing in helping brands establish in-house resale), the second-hand market is growing 11x faster than traditional retail shopping.
Other studies support this claim, with nearly 75% of shoppers claiming to shop resale. The global resale market is estimated to grow to $350 billion by 2027. A whopping $70 billion of that value is from the US alone.
In 2023, the top resale categories were clothing and shoes, with popular clothing resale brands like ThredUP increasing its revenue by 8%. This growth is going to continue in 2024, and it’s not too late for retailers to jump on board.
Brick-and-mortar locations make a comeback
Retailers shouldn’t rule out brick-and-mortar stores just yet. Recent forecasts show that in-person shopping isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. In fact, brick-and-mortar locations are on the rise.
Past predictions showed in-person shopping slowing down, with some studies suggesting that up to 23,500 brick-and-mortar retail locations in the US would close by 2026. Newer information suggests these predictions weren’t entirely accurate.
A recent survey suggests that shoppers want brick-and-mortar stores, with 61% of Gen Z respondents saying they are more likely to buy in-person than online. Another study from The Pew Research Center reported that 57% of adult shoppers have a preference for making purchases from brick-and-mortar locations.
In 2022 there were also more store openings than closing of physical locations – a first since 2026. Brick-and-mortar was, and is, making a comeback with revenue at malls growing 11% in 2022 and continuing its climb since. While ecommerce continues to be of great importance, it’s important that retailers don’t quit on their physical stores.
Balancing personalized experiences with privacy
As we move into the latter part of 2024, it’s more important than ever that retailers and advertisers balance personalization with privacy needs. In recent studies, 90% of retailers report that personalization is a must-have in the retail market. A report from McKinsey shows that individual personalization can cut customer acquisition costs in half and increase revenue by as much as 15%.
So how are retailers creating these tailored experiences? A survey from BCG found that almost 70% of CMOs were looking at using AI for personalization. Concurrently, consumers are becoming increasingly concerned with their data privacy. More and more, consumers are worried about what data is being collected and how it’s being used to feed AI solutions.
In a recent study from Google, 79% of consumers reported being concerned about data privacy. Additionally, a report from IBM listed retail as the fifth-most targeted industry for cybercrime.
This means that over-personalization and the misuse of data can backfire. Some customers report that hyper-personalization has gone too far. 46% of respondents in one survey said they thought it was “creepy” when shown promotions or ads for a site they visited within the past two minutes. Brands looking to take advantage of personalization for more efficient customer acquisition need to strike a balance with privacy to be successful.
The fall is almost upon us, and retail is looking to have a strong season. From sustainability to privacy, customers are increasingly socially conscious. While the retail sector has every reason to approach this autumn with optimism, by paying close attention to social and retail trends they can greatly increase their chances of success.
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