Business By Appointment?

Is your business able to pivot to a business by appointment model?

Consumers Distributing was a $1-billion business in 1988 with over 200 locations serving customers by taking their catalogue orders at a small front reception area and pulling the stock from the back warehouse. Very little was invested in fixtures, displays, staffing, checkouts and the open shopping square-footage that their K-mart competitors were spending.

But the “shopping experience” won out over the order process and Consumers went the way of the dinosaurs. They may have unknowingly been the pioneers of online shopping, as many shoppers now choose the convenience of ordering from their sofas and waiting for delivery to their doorsteps. Unfortunately, some items remain impractical for delivery due to perishability, fragility, size, cost, etc.; and some shoppers still prefer the offline experience of browsing and having the chance to handle the product before making a buying decision.

The Physical Distancing Effect

As the COVID-19 situation affects our social mindset, consumers still want to enjoy the shopping experience, but they also want to feel comfortable and protected through some measures of physical distancing.

Will we see major retail chains move towards a by-appointment model? It isn’t hard to imagine the Uber-style app interface applied to your grocery shopping routine. You would book your place in the queue through the app and receive real-time updates on when your entry to the store is granted. It may not be to the minute, but you could be in the parking lot waiting for the green light rather than standing outside in a (potentially long) line-up. This would help stores maintain a safe number of shoppers throughout the day without inconveniencing their customers.

The app can even ask to confirm your location 15 minutes prior to your appointment to ensure you are not taking up a space in the queue that you won’t be able to use. They could bump you back in the line or offer to trade the space with someone shortly behind you to keep the process running effectively.

Adapted Curbside Shopping

Thinking back to the Consumers Distributing model, it may also work for retailers whose shoppers can do all their product research online or through the app and just make an appointment to pick-up the goods from a customer service counter. If customers are hesitant to be in an open shopping environment for physical distancing reasons, why carry the massive overhead cost of a shopping floor? Perhaps we will see the resurrection of the order desk model when merged with the shopping app experience.

Ultimately, we are heading into a new marketscape as we emerge from the COVID-19 social distancing mandate. It is unlikely that consumers will go back to the old way of shopping, at least in the near future. Business will have to find innovative ways to restore comfort for consumers and build a new positive shopping experience. The technology has already been developed and adopted – it’s just a matter of finding the balance for a new normal that works for everyone.

Food For Thought

Is your business able to pivot to a business by appointment model? What new opportunities, efficiencies and successes can you discover by curbing walk-in clients?

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