In this edition of The Innovation Conversation - with Tom Furphy and Kevin Coupe, talking coast-to-coast via Skype - the focus is on growing and significant consumer concerns about Amazon's impact on retail and the environment, and how competitors can use retail marketing to compete with Amazon's juggernaut.
The discussion turns on a new survey from Convey, reported by DC Velocity, saying that "one in four Americans (24%) have negative feelings about Amazon's impact on the retail industry, but 21% of those shoppers said they still buy at least 50% of all their goods on Amazon." At the same time, "27% of respondents said they feel very or somewhat negative about Amazon's impact on the environment, yet more than one in four of those respondents said they still buy at least 50% of all their goods on Amazon."
Furphy and Coupe talk about how these disconnects offer competitors opportunities to differentiate themselves - in their stores, via their supply chains, and with their people. It isn't easy … but it likely is critical to survival.
Content Guy's Note: The goal of "The Innovation Conversation" is to explore some facet of the fast-changing, technology-driven retail landscape and how it affects businesses and consumers. It is, we think, fertile territory ... and one that Tom Furphy - a former Amazon executive, the originator of Amazon Fresh, and currently CEO and Managing Director of Consumer Equity Partners (CEP), a venture capital and venture development firm in Seattle, WA, that works with many top retailers and manufacturers - is uniquely positioned to address. Me, I just like hanging and talking with people smarter than I am.
