Trade Data Reveals ‘Shaky’ Retail Recovery

Two steps forward, one step back. That was the rhythm of retail’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in the second quarter, according to new research from my company, Tradeshift. Data from our global business-to-business network of supply chain payments, marketplaces and apps shows retail activity cratered at the beginning of April, dropping 68 percent. The industry seemed to recover in the first week of June, when activity surged by a whopping 58 percent — only to plummet 29 percent again by the end of the month. What’s behind this uneven recovery? Regional reopenings may cause sudden jolts to retail activity — for example, many European countries began reopening in mid-May, explaining the early-June uptick in transactions. But underlying weaknesses in the industry remain, and are likely to keep progress piecemeal for a long time. Fortunately, you can take steps now to counteract these influences and accelerate your recovery from the pandemic. What’s slowing down retail’s comeback? For most businesses, the “new normal” is still highly unpredictable. In some areas where stores reopened, new outbreaks of the virus have triggered localized lockdowns that shut those same retail stores again. And just because shops are open doesn’t mean that customers feel safe returning to them —

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

from WWDWWD https://ift.tt/30cVQKY