5 In-Store Retail Trends That Won’t Make It To 2025

According to the National Retail Federation, in-store shopping still accounts for 80% of all shopping. Thanks to new discoveries in the tech world, going to a physical store is becoming more efficient (and even a little more fun). 

As technology continues to upgrade, it will affect in-store shopping. That also means letting go of some older, more traditional shopping trends and saying hello to greater experiences. With this in mind, let’s examine what trends will struggle to survive 2025 and why.

1. Standard Brick And Mortar

Technology has boomed over the years, so it was only a matter of time for in-store shopping to start getting “smart.” Smart retail stores, or brick-and-mortar stores using technology to improve the shopping experience, are on the rise. In fact, the global smart retail market is expected to incline to $62.2 billion by 2025. 

Smart stores use various technologies, including AI, robots, tap-to-pay tech for contactless checkout, and 7D interactive and immersive experiences. 

This will make the in-store shopping experience much smoother, and shoppers won’t have to struggle with waiting in long checkout lines or getting lost in the aisles trying to find what they need. 

(Image Source: Current)

2. Competition With Online Shopping

Over the years, there has been a large segregation between online and in-store shopping. As online retail giants threaten brick-and-mortar stores, many have filed for bankruptcy or closed their doors and stuck to online sales.

However, omnichannel retailing—shopping from multiple places such as online, in-store, or a mobile app—will work together more in 2025. 

Customers will be able to browse products online or on the app and pick them up in-store. They can also make returns and exchanges through the app, online, or in person. This will remove initial battles between standard brick-and-mortar businesses and online giants and bring the shopping experience together for 2025. 

3. Cash

Consumers have been carrying less and less cash when shopping. With all the loose bills and change, cash is easier to lose and harder to fit in your wallet. It is also known for carrying lots of germs. In a post-COVID, contactless world, the convenience of digital payments has become much more beneficial. 

Digital payments, or contactless payments, facilitate fast-paced and seamless transactions with the added benefit of security. Your smartphone can connect your credit or debit cards, allowing you to purchase anything at the counter quickly and easily. 

Better still, modern-day retail point of sale systems are programmed to accept contactless payments from various card and device types. This speeds up the checkout process and improves the customer experience. 

(Image Source: tech.co)

4. Dressing Rooms 

When you’re walking around a clothing store, and you see an item you like, your first thought is to try it on to find out if you like how you look in it. But sometimes, the dressing room line can be absurd. 

You’re waiting in a long line of other shoppers with piles of clothes in their hands, and there’s no telling how long that’ll take. Only to discover you don’t like the outfit. 

In 2025, shoppers will be able to enjoy in-store shopping without having to visit the dressing room. Thanks to augmented reality (AR) – an interactive experience that projects a computer-generated image straight onto your physical body– you’ll be able to try on clothes without having to step foot into a dressing room. 

These virtual dressing rooms are starting to pop up more and more and can help you picture the outfit before you buy it. 

5. Lack of Quality 

Mass production technology allows stores to create the same item rapidly. It typically helps to meet the demand for popularity. Sometimes, with over-creation comes a lack of quality in the products we consume, but in 2025, that’s going to change.

Thanks to new supply chain innovations, AI-powered inventory tracking, and an industry push for retailer sustainability, new technology can help businesses record all the steps of a product creation journey from start to finish and ensure that overproduction of fast-fashion, low-quality pieces no longer occurs. 

In addition, retailers are becoming more transparent, which helps to ensure ethical sourcing and better quality of products sold in-store.

2025 and Beyond

While 2025 is likely to end some of the largest traditional retail trends, saying goodbye to traditional forms of payment and brick-and-mortar vs. online store rivalry opens new doors for an omnichannel future and a smoother shopping experience.

The question is, where could the retail world go next? As we welcome new technologies to the industry every day, the only way is up for a digitalised shopping experience like no other. 

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