ABSTRACT
The transformation in shopping and shopping behaviour over the last decade has been phenomenal. The growth in online shopping, the recessionary mind-set of consumers, and the rise of digital and social media has all led to a much more fragmented approach to shopping in terms of what, where, when, how and why people buy. Nowadays, shopping is not merely a local activity. In search of the exact product of their choice or for the lowest price, customers use the whole world as their shopping area. The online possibilities have broadened the horizon for retail in such a way that in the Western world they have partly substituted the brick-and-mortar stores. The percentage of empty spaces in shopping streets is still growing. However, a look at the global picture shows us that for the developing markets in the world, there is a window of opportunity for investment in physical retail, be it China and India or South America and Africa. And the big global retailers are taking that opportunity already. Together with closing stores, an even bigger number of physical stores are opening nationwide.
