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Amid an economic downturn, businesses are dialing back on spending. While it’s smart to shed non-essential tools and initiatives, cutting the systems that power efficient, data-driven decision-making can do more harm than good.
There are nice-to-haves, and there are need-to-haves. The tool that helps you make cost-saving, customer-centric, trend-forward decisions? That’s not the place to cut corners.
A retail intelligence solution helps ensure profitability during tougher economic times. It empowers your teams to make smarter pricing decisions that protect margins, build assortments aligned with real-time demand, and manage your site and promotions to avoid costly overstocks.
With costs rising, customer loyalty declining, and trend cycles accelerating, retailers need to prioritize precision and clarity. That starts with investing in the right intelligence.
Retailers’ reality has shifted, posing new challenges that require modern solutions. General tools might’ve worked before, but now, retailers’ success depends on precise, retail-specific intelligence that can help them adapt as fast as the market changes.
Brand affinity is no longer a safety net. Today’s shoppers are quick to move on if a better option appears — and it often does. McKinsey states that, globally, only 30% of consumers feel loyal to a fashion brand, and 46% have switched retailers in the past 12 months, often citing price and relevance as the main drivers.
To retain customers, retailers need to be more in tune with what consumers want now, and what will influence them next.
Retail intelligence connects your customer data with real-time market insights, so you can identify when preferences are shifting, why it’s happening, and how to respond with the right products, prices, and messaging to win retention and meet your customers where they are.
At a time when the economy is uncertain at best and on the brink of a potential recession at worst, there is little wiggle room when it comes to margin.
Rising costs demand better margin control and assortment efficiency.
According to Kearny, fashion retailers globally report average cost increases of 19–25% due to a mix of tariffs, labor, and raw material price hikes — especially in cross-border sourcing.
In a high-cost environment, protecting margin isn’t optional. Retailers need to cut inefficiencies, make smarter buys, and reduce costly missteps.
Retail intelligence helps optimize assortments and pricing strategies by aligning internal performance data with market trends and competitor moves, allowing you to do more with less, and protect profit where it matters most.
In today’s TikTok-driven society, there can be dozens of micro-trends popping up every single day. But, only a small fraction of these trends transform into meaningful market shifts with commercial viability.
Zalando reported that over 50% of trend-driven SKUs in 2024 had a sell-through rate below 60%, reflecting the cost of betting on fast trends without precision.
Reacting to trends without market context and retail-specific data leads to excess inventory and margin loss. That’s why retail intelligence like EDITED is valuable — it helps separate noise from what’s actually gaining traction.
Excess stock doesn’t just take up space, it also eats into your bottom line.
In today’s environment, overbuying is one of the most expensive mistakes a retailer can make.
Holding excess inventory costs 20–30% of its value annually due to warehousing, obsolescence, and markdowns, according to Harvard Business Review. It’s a global issue impacting retailers across EMEA, APAC, and North America alike.
With the right retail intelligence tool, you can forecast more accurately by aligning internal sales trends with market-level signals, helping you buy smarter, reduce overstock risk, and protect margin across the lifecycle of your products. And, understand how to optimize site merchandising to drive visibility and sell-through on overlooked inventory.
With thin margins and rising costs, pricing precision is critical to your bottom line and customer retention.
PwC highlights that 80% of consumers say price is the top factor when deciding where to shop. And, McKinsey reports that just a 1–2% improvement in pricing can boost operating profits by 8–10%.
The right price is one that’s competitive, sustainable for your business, and compelling for your customer.
Retail intelligence helps you set and adjust prices with confidence by combining market-wide pricing visibility, competitor promotions, and your own performance data. It ensures every pricing decision supports your bottom line while still meeting customer expectations, even as conditions change.
Retail has changed, and will continue to.
Without retail intelligence to connect your internal data with real-time market insights, you fall behind competitors, lacking the clarity and confidence to act quickly, reduce waste, and grow smarter.
The most successful retailers won’t be the ones who play it safe; they’ll be the ones who invest in making better decisions, faster – even in volatile times.
Now is the time to invest in retail intelligence. Book your demo here.
