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Why retailers must reward loyalty to stay profitable

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Survey of 1500 shoppers reveals why ‘loyalty’ is going to be the differentiator for retailers amid the cost of living crisis.

  • 4 in 5 are part of at least one customer reward scheme
  • 38% actively seek them out and 46% will join up when asked
  • 70% are willing to sign up just to receive discounts
  • BUT, 19% have never been asked to join whilst shopping in a store

As retailers struggle to stay profitable, whilst protecting customers from price hikes, the survey carried out by consumer intelligence experts at Manchester-based Purple found it doesn’t have to be a trade-off between the two.

Two thirds of the respondents said their loyalty to a retailer increases when they’re rewarded for visiting, however, the survey shows that retailers are missing out on an important opportunity to reward loyalty in-store, at a time when it matters the most.

Smart in-store WiFi can be easily utilised by retailers to encourage sign-ups to loyalty schemes and 66% of respondents have joined a free WiFi network when shopping. But the survey found just 16% join every time they shop, and here lies the opportunity.

What’s more, 41% of those surveyed believe that receiving text messages and emails while in store – with information and offers for specific products – helps to improve the customer experience.

Almost half claim promotions or a personalised experience influenced their most recent purchase and 83% are happy to share personal data in exchange for tailored offers.

Gavin Wheeldon, Chief Executive of Purple, commented: “The current economic climate is increasing the pressure on businesses and retailers should be looking to harness the full capabilities of their existing technology to compete with the competition.

“Whilst there isn’t ‘one size fits all’ solution, in-store WiFi technology can help retailers to facilitate real-time dialogue with the customer.”

Purple’s smart WiFi technology can collect real-time data using a captive portal for shoppers to log into the WiFi, using their email address or social media profile.

Furthermore, retailers can trigger communication with their customers directly through the Purple Platform, using a built-in marketing automation tool – or an existing CRM system.

Wheeldon continues: “When a retailer knows their customer is actively shopping in their store, they can access valuable data in an instant to leverage the personalisation consumers desire and enhance the overall shopping experience.”

How To Reinvent Yourself in Response to Digital

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Today’s leaders are progressively using technology to build strategies for high performance, improve operational efficiency, achieve fast fulfilment, and expand their reach into global markets. Businesses that invest in digital transformation by changing their strategy enjoy a competitive advantage by maximising efficiency via innovations. Nevertheless, technology and data don’t work like a magic wand to solve all issues, meaning that you must have the necessary capabilities, skills, and customer-centric approaches to deliver value. Small enterprises might feel that going digital is far too expensive or intimidating, yet the willingness to embrace digital transformation can be a lifesaver in the difficult times that lie ahead. 

Many organisations find digital execution to be complicated, that is, they’re making very little progress in their efforts to turn existing products and services into digital variants. Initiatives can fail for a great many reasons, including but not limited to lack of transformation goals, no change in management’s strategy, and poor adoption of new technologies. The good news is that some businesses have managed to adapt themselves to the technology-driven world, unlocking opportunities and meeting challenges. To embrace the power of technology in your own business, the following steps are crucial to achieving success. 

Have A Coordinated Approach to How to Use Digital Technologies 

Nearly every enterprise in the UK is planning digital transformation initiatives, marked by cultural challenges and the struggle to integrate legacy IT and organisational silos. Employees are moving between different offices but require access to data to complete their tasks proficiently, so creating a seamless transition through digital transformation is of the essence. Every enterprise should have a digital strategy, in other words, a plan for maximising the business benefits of digitalisation. Although it might sound simple enough, a digital strategy requires expertise and experience to be thoroughly implemented. It’s that one thing that’s hard to get right but is critical to success. 

While it’s possible to change the specific tactics you have your mind set on, you must demonstrate a clear commitment to the end goal – digital transformation. For example, if your aim is to enable remote workers to be effective and efficient, data on specific locations is crucial when undergoing risk analysis for new strategies. Understanding how a particular location, say, New York, performs is essential in terms of delivering digitally. In this respect, a digital strategy New York will work well for your brand, as you can make your business operate across multiple locations, reducing inefficiency through digital tools. 

Increase Your Agility and Empower Your Enterprise’s Digital Future

In the face of global challenges, there’s more pressure than ever for businesses to transform and drive better product quality, productivity, speed, customer engagement, and, last but not least, employee retention. Becoming an agile organisation allows you to deliver higher returns to shareholders and adapt to changes in market demands. Agile working isn’t only possible but also a necessary consideration for the long term. An agile enterprise comprises cross-functional and self-managing teams capable of attaining maximum productivity while using fewer resources, meaning everybody works to the best ability. The manager supports the team from the outside, i.e., from the boundary of the team itself. 

Master Digital Platforms to Create New Business Value

The best performers take advantage of digital platforms to create more successful ways of winning business. Many argue that digital platforms have become an absolute necessity in business, so it’s no longer a strategy for newcomers in the digital world. A digital business platform can be defined as a customisable collection of state-of-the-art digital technologies that integrate with the legacy infrastructure. Enterprises can learn from the likes of Amazon or Google how to expedite the process of business model innovation. Digital platforms generate value by uniting and connecting key actors, facilitating interactions and transactions in a multi-sided model. 

At one point or another, service providers leave, and when this happens, the in-house teams must be prepared to take the reins, so the right knowledge has to be transferred. You can leverage many new technologies, such as cloud-native application architecture, event-driven architecture, and so forth. The vast majority of platforms are built in the cloud to minimise costs and go live more quickly, which wouldn’t be possible to achieve in-house. If you’ve not dealt with the cloud before, this is where your biggest hurdle will lie. The wide array of application systems and technology capabilities that flow in and out of the digital business technology platform require effective and secure integration. 

Use Mergers and Acquisitions to Build New Digital Capabilities 

If the lack of digital talent is one of the challenges that your organisation faces, use mergers and acquisitions to fuel digital transformation. There’s a unique opportunity to capture an upskilled workforce before the competition. Just think about it. Wouldn’t it be better to reap the rewards of a strategic partnership and become part of the digital ecosystem? The consequent gains can accelerate innovation, protect technology know-how, and nurture a solid IT workforce. Due diligence is paramount in the merger and acquisition process, so make sure to demarcate the main sources of value and risk. Think about how the skills, capabilities, and technology in question would fit into the combined organisation. 

Final Thoughts 

Regardless of what vision you might have for the future, it must include digital transformation. We’re getting closer and closer to the point where we’re able to create intelligent enterprises that consistently apply advanced technologies and best practices within agile processes. It’s imperative to re-think your existing processes by adopting new best practices and, of course, establish a true digital core so that you can deal with the increased pressure and demands. To be successful, you must adopt an agile mindset, championed and driven from the top down. During transformation, you have the chance to communicate your vision, align leadership, and build an operating model to obtain your desired results. 

All in all, reinventing yourself digitally takes resilience and consistency, so you’ll just have to be patient. Through investment, you can lay the foundation for long-term stamina to future crises. 

69% of small business owners in the North West unprepared for lender demands

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A new survey by Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance of 1000 small business owners/managers across the UK suggests that many are unprepared for lenders’ increasing demands for security in return for business loans.

When asked what it means to be a personal guarantor for a business loan, across the board, only 33% of business owners answered correctly.  The findings have been revealed as new research shows that small business owners are turning to personal loans to fund their business.

17% of respondents to the survey had no idea what a personal guarantee is, 19% were partially right in that it is a promise to the lender to pay off the loan but felt it would simply affect their credit rating if they failed to do so.  17% thought it is just when you allow the lender to assess your personal assets as part of the risk assessment and 14% thought it when you need to sign for the loan in your name rather than the business name.

Looking across the U.K., small businesses in the East Midlands and East Anglia were least likely to know what it means to be a personal guarantor – in fact none of the respondents in the East Midlands knew the correct answer -while those businesses in London and the South East were most likely to know.

In the North West specifically, more small business owners chose the correct answer over any other option provided, but still, only 31% know what it means to be a personal guarantor.  23% thought that if they failed to pay off the loan it would just affect their credit rating. Just 1 in 10 (11%) had no real idea.

More encouragingly, the younger the business, the more clued-up respondents appeared to be over personal guarantees. Drilling down to business age, of those who have been in operation for up to 3 years, 39% knew what it meant to be a personal guarantor and just 10% had no idea.

Todd Davison, MD of Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance said: “There is a £22bn funding gap for SMEs in the UK but one of the big hurdles to funding is the personal guarantee. As lenders have become more risk averse, the demand for PGs has increased. More awareness needs to be built around the risks and more importantly, how to mitigate those risks such as through Personal Guarantee Insurance, so that more small businesses have the confidence to access the funding they need to sustain or grow their business.

“We have seen the number of personal guarantee backed finance deals rise 123% on Q3 2021, so the funding is there for many firms but signing a personal guarantee is a big step, particularly in the midst of so much uncertainty.  We would urge directors and owners to prepare for the fact that they will be asked for security if there are not enough assets in the business, know what they are getting into and what they can do to reduce the risks – then there will be no nasty surprises.”

Siemens engineering apprentices reach UK finals of WorldSkills competition

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A pair of Siemens engineering apprentices have reached the UK finals of an international skills competition.

 

Ben Love, 19, and Lucy Yelland, 20, will be going up against other teams from across the UK in the mechatronics division of the 2022 WorldSkills UK competition.

 

The pair are in the second year of a degree apprenticeship with Manchester-based Siemens Digital Industries and currently studying at Tameside College.

 

The final at Barking & Dagenham College from November 14-18 is the culmination of a seven-month process including regional heats and intensive training.

 

Winners go on to represent Team UK at the skills competition in Lyon, France, in 2024.

Ben, from Salford, and has been interested in engineering and technology from an early age.

 

“My dad runs an electrical engineering business, so I grew up tinkering with electrical components and various hardware and software that he brought home from work,” he said.

 

“It became a hobby and when I was 14, I used Siemens’ kit to build a home automation system which controlled my bedroom blinds, lamp, and even set up an alarm system with a laser through beam sensor.

 

Ben studied at Bridgewater High School in Warrington before taking on a BTEC Level 3 extended diploma in electrical and electronic engineering at Wigan and Leigh College where he built a Bluetooth speaker and even launched his own additive manufacturing business, selling parts to customers all over the world.

 

After two work experience placements at Siemens Ben knew where he wanted to start his career.

“Having been exposed to Siemens technology from an early age, there was only one company I wanted to work for,” he said. “It has been a dream come true. There are so many opportunities. I just want to experience as many different parts of the business as I can and see where it takes me.”

 

“I’m excited that we have reached the WorldSkills UK final and just aim to do my best, enjoy myself and see how it goes.”

 

Lucy, from Stoke, Staffordshire, also discovered her interest in engineering through her dad.

“I liked fixing things, whether that was my bike or some broken household appliance,” she said. “I was very hands-on, and you could often find me messing about in the garage with dad.

 

The Clayton Hall Academy student did GCSE engineering before A-Levels in key STEM subjects including mathematics and physics, as well as undertaking work experience placements in engineering.

 

“Studying GCSE engineering there were only a few girls in a room full of boys,” Lucy said. “While daunting, it never put me off. A career in engineering was something I was determined to pursue. I now see it as my responsibility to show other girls that engineering is something they can do.

 

“My time with Siemens has been brilliant, so far. I’m learning on the job, balancing learning with work experience, and getting to understand the company and the opportunities available.”

MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT – BUT WHAT IF IT DOESN’T LAST?

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by Stacey Collins, Clarke Willmott

 

Channel 4 and E4 are currently screening the seventh season of Married at First Sight (MAFS), in which couples meet for the first time when walking down the aisle, their future having been determined by a group of relationship experts. 

 

For many couples the show signalled the start of a durable relationship – but what happens if the honeymoon period last only a few days, weeks, or months, and the parties then decide to divorce? 

 

The ceremonies conducted in the UK version of MAFS are not technically legally binding but in the real world, once a valid marriage has taken place either party can only apply to the courts for a divorce after 12 months.  

 

The new “no fault” divorce legislation, which came into effect in April 2022, is designed to remove the “blame culture” that operated within the previous divorce proceedings although some argue that the new legislation diminishes the sanctity of marriage by making divorce simpler.   

 

This view may be validated by recent Law Society statistics showing that in April 2022 12,978 new divorce applications had been made, compared to 6,764 in April 2021.  

 

An alternative view on the increase in divorce applications is that increasingly, people want to take a less confrontational approach to separation. If a couples appearing on MAFS decides that the relationship experts have got it wrong and that they wish to separate, they can now do so either by means of a single or joint application.  

 

In the case of the former, the only ground they need to rely upon is that the marriage has broken down and there is no need provide proof. A joint application is designed to make the separation process much more amicable and is the preferable option, particularly if the couple will continue to need to communicate in the best interests of any children they may have. 

 

The new process does allow for a longer “cooling off” period. Once the application has been issued then you are unable to apply for the first stage of the divorce, known as the conditional order, until a period of 20 weeks has elapsed. After the conditional order has been granted then you can apply for the final order after six weeks and one day.  

 

Therefore while it can be argued that the new process makes it easier to divorce and thereby threatens the sanctity of marriage, there is the counter view that, if a marriage has sadly broken down, then surely it is better to find a more amicable way to separate and concentrate on ensuring that a couple can continue to work together as parents.  

 

The previous system relied on one party proving an allegation against the other, which is an adversarial start to separating. If a marriage is sadly no longer working for both partners, facilitating an easier and more amicable separation must be the better option. 

 

Does that mean that shows such as Married at First Sight should be encouraged? That is perhaps a question for another day.  

 

Clarke Willmott is a national law firm with offices in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, London, Manchester, Southampton and Taunton. 

 

For more information visit www.clarkewillmott.com 

 

Stacey Collins is a trainee legal executive in the family team at Clarke Willmott. 

 

SACHA LORD JOINS THE LABOUR PARTY

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Sacha Lord, the Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester, has become a member of The Labour Party, it has been announced today.

The Adviser to Mayor Andy Burnham and co-founder of the Parklife Festival and The Warehouse Project music events, has been welcomed to the party by Labour Leader, Keir Starmer, who he met last week to discuss culture and the night time economy.

Lucy Powell, MP for Manchester Central and Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, has also welcomed Lord to the party, commenting,

“I’m really pleased Sacha has taken the step to join Labour. He’s got enormous experience in business and has been an incredibly strong voice for hospitality and the night time economy, both during Covid and the cost-of-living crisis. He will be a huge asset to our Party.

She continued, “As the Tories crash the economy, many people are taking another look at Labour, and it’s great to have Sacha in the Party.”

Growing up in Greater Manchester, Lord was appointed the city-region’s first ever Night Time Economy Advisor by Mayor Andy Burnham in 2018, providing a voice for workers, operators and the industry as a whole.

In this role, he has announced a raft of recommendations to improve safety, transport and cultural diversity in the region, including the introduction of later opening hours for greater accessibility and the development of night-time transport links to better serve communities on the outskirts of the region.

Lord, who has categorically ruled out standing as an MP, said,

“This is a move I have been wanting to make for a long time, and the current political circumstances have hastened this ambition. I have seen the positive difference that Andy has made during my time working with the Mayor’s office, and I want to support him in giving Greater Manchester and the North West a louder voice.

“Young people and young families today must be given the same opportunities I was given throughout the early stages of my career under the previous Labour Government. Not only was entrepreneurialism encouraged, but there were policies in place to help people get their first steps on the property ladder or discover new career paths, both geographically and across industry sectors.

“Over the past 12 years, I’ve watched the Conservatives take away these opportunities, by quashing ambition, limiting entrepreneurship, and implementing policies that restrain our cultural progress and our ability to work with our international counterparts.

“We need a change in Government and for me, the only Party to deliver opportunity is the Labour Party. I fully support the Labour Party in their ambitions to lead the country and I look forward to working even more closely with the Party going forward.”

Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity appeals for organisations to sign-up as corporate supporters for its annual ‘1,000 Beds for Christmas’ campaign

Karen Jones
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Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity will soon launch its Christmas campaign – 1,000 Beds for Christmas. The campaign will help fund at least 1,000 nights of accommodation and wraparound support for people rough sleeping in Greater Manchester, as part of the Charity’s flagship ‘A Bed Every Night’ (ABEN) scheme. Corporate supporters are being invited to join the campaign and work alongside the Charity to raise as many funds as possible, helping to prevent homelessness this winter. 

The Corporate opportunities available this year include becoming an ABEN Supporter, an ABEN Umbrella Supporter, an ABEN Matched Funder, or simply signing up to ‘Give What You Can’. 

The available packages are: 

  • ABEN Supporter: Generously providing a one-off donation of £3,000, funding 100 beds, plus wraparound support. 

  • ABEN Umbrella Supporter: Generously providing a one-off donation of £9,000, funding 300 beds, plus wraparound support. 

  • ABEN Matched Funder: Generously providing matched funds, up to a maximum donation total of £40,000. For every bed funded by the public, the ABEN Matched Funder will fund up to 1,333 additional beds (including full wraparound support), matching the funds donated by the public via the official campaign JustGiving page. 

Each of the above opportunities comes with a full package of brand, PR and engagement opportunities, to make sure that both the charity and the supporting business get the most out of the partnership. The ABEN Matched Funder package can be tailored to the supporting organisation’s unique needs. Full details on each package are available in the Corporate Support pack which can be requested by emailing [email protected].  

For organisations looking to get involved, but unable to commit to one of the full support packages, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is delighted to also offer a Give What You Can scheme. The Charity welcomes donations of any size: £1,500 will fund 50 beds, £1000 will fund 30 beds and £500 will fund 15 beds. Some businesses may also want to consider organising their own fundraiser, making a donation in lieu of Christmas Cards or even hosting a World Cup sweepstake. Anyone who is interested can download the Charity’s fundraising ideas pack here. 

Full details of the 1,000 Beds for Christmas campaign, including details of how the public can get involved and the donations link, will be released in November.

Organisations wishing to support 1,000 Beds for Christmas should contact Tom Allanson today at [email protected].  

Transforming Lithium Extraction in the UK in partnership with Cornish Lithium & Innovate UK

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Manchester based Watercycle Technologies Ltd, a pioneering critical minerals and water filtration specialist, is delighted to announce that it has been granted a £500,000 Innovate UK Smart Grant, in partnership with Cornish Lithium Ltd, to test its ground-breaking direct lithium extraction (‘DLE’) process in Cornwall.

Watercycle’s patented filtration process can selectively extract lithium from sub-surface waters, such as those found in the Southwest of the UK. Given lithium’s essential role in battery technologies, the ability to obtain it from waters cost effectively and establish a domestic supply of the mineral is vital for the UK’s Net-Zero strategy.

Under the terms of the agreement, Watercycle will deliver a containerised filtration system to extract lithium from Cornish Lithium’s project in Cornwall at a pilot scale. The project, which includes an environmental impact assessment, is anticipated to complete in October 2023.

Watercycle CEO Dr Seb Leaper said, “Having already proven that our proprietary filtration membranes and systems work in lab conditions, we are excited to be working with Cornish Lithium to demonstrate their scalability and accelerate the creation of a resilient, domestic lithium supply chain in the UK.  This agreement marks the next step in our development strategy as we look at the commercialisation of our technology, which is capable of treating a wide range of water types and can deliver dramatic reductions in costs, carbon emissions and water consumption compared with current processes.”

Watercycle co-founder and CTO Dr Ahmed Abdelkarim added, “It is great to be working with like-minded partners, Cornish Lithium and Innovate UK, which, like us, are focused on making a positive impact on the global transition through advancing innovative technologies. Lithium is a critical element with EV demand set to grow 418% from 468 GWh this year to 2.4 TWh by 2030 and we are delighted to be part of that chain, offering a British solution to the challenge of primary lithium production, which is the first link within the wider EV supply chain.”

Lead Geochemist Dr Rebecca Paisley at Cornish Lithium said, “Cornish Lithium is keen to support projects from UK-based universities, and the companies commercialising them, which we believe have the potential to be both game changing and contribute to the UK’s Net Zero strategy. Working with Watercycle in the development of a pilot system aligns strongly with our Research and Innovation strategy, as well as our continued efforts to trial multiple DLE technologies at pilot scale in Cornwall to establish the most effective and responsible process flow sheet. We have a good relationship with the Watercycle team and look forward to progressing the project over the next 12 months.”

Sustainability is ‘All in’ the agenda at this year’s Travel Counsellors Conference

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This month leading independent travel company, Travel Counsellors will host its first global conference since the pandemic. The Travel Counsellors Global Annual Conference, taking place from Friday 11 until Sunday 13 November at the ACC Liverpool, will see over 1,600 delegates in attendance including Travel Counsellors, partners, support team colleagues and over 300 suppliers. It will also be the first time in three years that the community will come together in person at the annual conference, following its regional events in November last year.

Each year the company gets together to celebrate, motivate, share and inspire at its flagship event and this year it promises to be significant, to mark its theme ‘all in’.  This theme reflects the power and commitment of the community to one another and their customers, delivering the very best travel experiences and being empowered to build successful businesses and careers as part of the company, working together with a ‘one team’ mentally to make that happen.

The company has also committed to making this the first sustainable conference, asking all attendees to be ‘all in to make a positive difference’ by committing to the three-part pledge. This is based on avoiding single use plastics; making the event carbon neutral; and having zero waste to landfill at the event. The company will not provide any single use plastics, using Vegware and eGreen for smart packaging and tableware. All waste produced will be directed away from landfill – either reused, recycled, composted or sent to energy recovery, and its carbon footprint will be measured throughout the conference with Travel Counsellors pledging to offset its output to global sustainable projects that support these areas of focus.

Jim Eastwood, Global Sales Director, at Travel Counsellors, comments: “We are excited to all be getting together again after a three-year hiatus and we look forward to giving all our Travel Counsellors, colleagues, partners and suppliers a very warm welcome. We have a record number of attendees this year including 850 Travel Counsellors who all reflect our ‘all in’ ethos and 300 suppliers and other delegates that we work closely with. “Our personal travel experts don’t just ‘book’ travel, they get to know and build relationships with their customers so they create experiences, not just itineraries. In an industry that was on its knees, travel is back and we are more ready than ever to redefine what personal means in travel.

“Moreover, we believe that responsible travel is a force for good with the opportunity to help care for and preserve the planet for future generations. Now that travel is back, it’s our duty to make sure that we operate in a responsible way – and that includes at our annual global conference. Our pledge supports this and is just one of the ways we are focusing our sustainable efforts as a business, working with our community to educate and provide our customers with more sustainable travel choices.”

During the weekend over 1,600 delegates will enjoy evening events and daytime conference sessions, hearing updates from the company’s support team and inspiring insights from external experts and guest speakers, as well as a Travel Market event to showcase product and updates from supplier partners. One of the key highlights of the weekend is a Saturday evening gala dinner, where Travel Counsellors recognises those from within the community for their contribution and outstanding achievements.

For further information about Travel Counsellors, please visit: www.travelcounsellors.com

Scandi-style art showcase launches in Cheshire

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A Swedish-born artist is bringing her ‘Scandi showcase’ to Cheshire, giving locals the chance to buy some affordable art.

Mia Horton, owner of Hey Scandi, creates abstract paintings, mainly using acrylic paint and often does commissions to enhance colour schemes in residential or commercial properties.

Now she is launching a bold collection of paintings which will be displayed this month in Together, a lifestyle store situated in the heart of Sale’s Stanley Square.

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Mia said: “Scandinavian style consists of clean lines, minimalism and a lack of clutter, which can be very visually appealing, so I’m very excited to invite people to the launch of my showcase.

“Affordable art can help you develop your collection, even when your finances are restricted. Not having loads of money shouldn’t prevent you from buying art. There are plenty of affordable art pieces out there to suit every budget.

“Together is a lovely store to visit with a fab Scandi vibe celebrating mindful brands, so hopefully my paintings will fit right in and make the space come even more alive!

“Find pieces to freshen up your collection – or help you start a new one – to make your home or workplace more interesting and versatile than ever.”

Those keen to grab some early Christmas gifts can visit the art showcase from 5pm-8pm THIS Friday, November 4 with any remaining paintings displayed in the shop until the end of the festive season.

Stanley Square is currently undergoing major regeneration to bring bustling independent businesses back to Sale.  The end goal is that the town will have a modern version of a classic British high street – with a butcher, a baker, a greengrocer, a cinema and a huge food hall – without dependence on big name tenants.

Director of Altered Space – the square’s landlord – Michael Brown, said he’d hoped the square will be a place people can work, shop, live and socialise in without the need to travel.

Find out more about the art showcase by visiting @together_mcr, @heyscandi or

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