"Retail executives have learned again that core markets like the United States and Europe are not the powerful engines of growth they would like," said Hana Ben-Shabat, A.T. Kearney partner. "Reliance on developing countries for future growth is no longer a 'nice-to-have,' but a necessity. Establishing operations in a portfolio of countries both small and large offers the best path to global success for retailers."
This was the quote in a recent A.T. Kearney's 9th Annual Global Retail Development Index (GDRI). Go here for the press release.
The top 10 countries in the 2010 GRDI are a diverse mix of large and small markets: China, Kuwait, India, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Chile, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Peru and Russia.
So here's my question: what is the easiest way for retailers to expand into these markets. And here's your answer: "an international e-commerce solution."
I wrote about international e-commerce solutions in an earlier blog post, and I truly believe these solutions to be the answer for retailers assessing the attractiveness of new emerging markets. What better way to judge a new market than e-commerce? You don't have to set up brick-and-mortar stores and, with a little marketing push, you can see how your brand performs. It's the most cost-effective way to expand internationally.
The other fascinating finding from the study was that China returned to the top of this year for the first time since 2002. According to the study, "Chinese consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable with Western-style retail formats."
If this is the case, then the harvest is plentiful. The U.S. will never run out of people to sell to.
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