Jumpmind research: many retailers are struggling with pace of technology change
54% of North American retailers can’t keep up with the pace of technology change, while 49% say they struggle to quantify return on their in-store tech investments and 37% feel conflicted about whether new tech will be beneficial or distracting.
That’s according to research conducted by Retail Systems Research (RSR) and sponsored by Jumpmind.
112 respondents were surveyed for this (retail executives and store managers) with a geographic presence in: United States 98%, Canada 21%, UK 10%, Europe 5%, Latin America 4%, Middle East and Africa 1%, and Asia/Pacific 1%.
Despite the growth of digital commerce, many retailers still look to stores as their primary growth strategy, as approximately 80% of all retail sales still take place in-store. Yet many admit their in-store technology lags in delivering what today’s customers expect. 34% say they cannot keep up with consumer adoption of new technologies and 31% admit existing systems simply aren’t up to the challenge of serving today’s customers and employees.
The research shows a gap between top performing retailers and their tech modernisation plans and retailers that are average and below average performers. When the study analysed “Retail Winners” - those retailers with year-over-year sales growth rates above 7% - versus average and under performers, these showed greater ambition and momentum with their retail tech modernisation plans.
73% of winners planned to deploy a single app to control employee access to all required functionality vs. 59% of average and under performer.
66% of winners planned to implement in-store real-time cross channel customer and order information vs. 51% of average and under performers.
66% of winners planned to deploy mobile devices to serve as PoS vs. 58% of average and under performers.
63% of winners planned to put in place in-store fulfillment solutions vs. 55% of average and under performers.
“Our research shows 27% of retailers have Point of Sale systems that are five years or older. In contrast, most consumers renew cell phones every two to three years and 12% renew them every year. It’s no wonder that over half of retailers surveyed feel trying to keep up with consumer adoption of technology seems like an impossible task,” says Steve Rowen, Managing Partner at RSR.
“The need for digital enablement in the store is real and urgent. Consumers want a shopping experience that is more information rich so that they can help themselves; retailers want to create new efficiencies to counteract the new costs associated with omnichannel selling, and employees just want to keep up with hyper-informed shoppers.”
“Retailers must gain the confidence needed to move from hesitation to innovation in their in-store technology deployments,” says Lauren Cevallos, Head of Strategy and Customer Success at Jumpmind. “Ultimately, confidence itself becomes a competitive strategy. Those who have it will transform their stores into hubs of digital-physical engagement; those who don’t risk being left behind.”
Cevallos suggests the following steps retailers can take to build confidence in store technology modernisation:
Acknowledge the pace of change - accept that you can’t chase every trend. Focus instead on technologies that solve measurable business problems.
Anchor investments in defined challenges - tie decisions to gaps in visibility, productivity, or customer experience.
Start small, prove ROI, then expand - incremental adoption builds confidence and reduces risk.
Leverage mobile as an early win - fast deployments with visible impact can catalyze broader transformation.
Hold partners accountable for clarity - require references, ROI cases, and proof points from vendors.
“This disciplined approach shifts the narrative from, ‘What if we choose wrong?’ to ‘How do we prove value and scale what works?’ says Cevallos.
2025 RTIH INNOVATION AWARDS
Physical retail was a key focus area at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards.
We received a record number of entries and many fantastic examples of the continued resilience and dynamism of the retail space during hugely challenging times.
For a full rundown of all of the shortlisted entries, click here.
Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC in Central London on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”
“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”
He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”
Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.
Continue reading…