Cross-store inventory look-up most vital multi-channel function, study says

Specialty retailers say providing the ability to check for product availability across multiple stores is the most important function of multi-channel retailing, according to a survey of 100 merchants by research and consulting firm LakeWest Group LLC.

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The survey, part of LakeWest’s 5th Annual POS Benchmarking Survey, noted that 63% of respondents currently provide cross-store inventory look-up and that 9% plan to implement it within two years.

Following are the nine multi-channel functions cited in the LakeWest survey (in descending order starting with the function top-ranked for importance), percent of respondents that have already implemented the function, and percent of respondents who plan to implement it within two years:
• Cross-store inventory look-up, 63%, 9%;
• Use of stored value cards across channels, 52%, 31%;
• Processing of online returns, 55%, 21%;
• Special orders placed on web and in stores; 42%, 33%;
• Consistent promotions across all channels, 58%, 8%;
• Providing shipping options for special orders, 45%, 12%;
• Consistent pricing across all channels, 55%, 14%;
• In-store pick-up of online orders, 19%, 24%;
• Placing orders online in the store, 39%, 32%.