The Footwear Industry | IMPACT Omnichannel Index

DOES OMNICHANNEL LEAD TO GOOD FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE?

This year, Danske Bank has provided a financial analysis of the Omnichannel Index’s industries to get a deeper understanding of each industry’s terms.

Presented in collaboration with

Solid financial performance

Omnichannel is a must

Footwear is one of the products that most Danes prefer to buy online, according to According to Danish E-commerce Association (FDIH), and giant pure players like Zalando have a strong position in the market.

Therefore, it is urgent for the industry to invest in stronger omnichannel efforts, since there is a gap between the customers’ omnichannel maturity and the industry’s maturity.

With relative stable revenue growth and low EBIT-margins the industry is in a position where it must consider new ways to increase profitability.

Many companies focus on areas such as omnichannel and new store/brand concepts in an effort to increase the customer experiences when shopping.

Jesper Langborg JensenHead of Business Advisory and insights at Danske Bank

45

Average score of the footwear industry

vs.

53

Average score of the best performing industry

The results across nations

Awareness

DK: 56
SE: 48
NO: 44

Evaluation

DK: 56
SE: 56
NO: 46

purchase

DK: 57
SE: 42
NO: 41

Service

DK: 33
SE: 30
NO: 40

Loyalty

DK: 31
SE: 37
NO: 44

footwear vs. fashion

The footwear industry has many of same terms as the fashion industry, but there is significant difference between the best omnichannel fashion retailers and the best footwear retailers.

Omnichannel is a license to operate in the fashion industry. Without omnichannel they do not have a chance against pure players. This is not the case in the footwear industry, but it should be.

Kasper HolstCEO of IMPACT

So how come the footwear industry does not prioritise omnichannel as much as the fashion industry?

Since both industries struggle with decreasing EBIT-margins and their customers are some of the most mature, it seems like the footwear industry does not take advantage of the benefits from omnichannel.

*Spending data is based on transactions made with cards or MobilePay in stores in Denmark or abroad by around 1m Danske Bank Danish private customers with active accounts. The data is not traceable to individuals. Consumption does not include cash spending or account transfers. Charts are not corrected for price changes.

Missing basic omnichannel

Shoes is a product the customers must try on - and instead of dealing with huge return rates, companies can encourage customers to pick up the shoes in-store. If the shoes do not fit, it is easy to return or change the size, just like it is easy to upsell in-store.

61% of shoppers who bought items online and picked up in-store, made an additional purchase, according to The International Council of Shopping Centres.

Still, only 50% of the shoe players advertise for their Click & Collect service on the product page.

In general, the product pages are a good place to improve for this industry. Customer reviews offer customers a better basis for making their decision, since the review is likely to be about the size and fitting. This is a service most of the pure players offer, but this research found just 25% of retailers and brands in this industry doing the same.

Get advice on how to win your industry

Annual accounts analysed on 434 retail companies across the Nordics with turner above EUR 5m. The result can thus be a little skewed towards larger companies.