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Small Business Strategy Inquiry 2025 - ACT and Bira call for members to share their voice

20 Jun 2025

The House of Commons Business and Trade Committee has asked the ACT, and its parent company Bira, to help them reach out to small business retailers across the country, for their quick input on... Read more…

Beyond the discount: Restoring integrity to the cycle supply chain

18 Jun 2025

The Association of Cycle Traders believes the time has come for greater accountability throughout our supply chain, writes ACT Director Jonathan Harrison in an article published for BikeBiz.
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Bira welcomes Wales' business rates proposals but calls for key improvements

11 Jun 2025

Bira has welcomed the Welsh Government's consultation on business rate reforms for retail shops, whilst calling for significant improvements to ensure the proposals truly support high street... Read more…

New awards launch to champion Britain's independent high street heroes

9 Jun 2025

Retailers on Britain's high streets are being encouraged to put themselves forward for the first-ever Love Your High Street Awards, designed to celebrate the small businesses that bring... Read more…

"Tectonic shift" in employment law threatens independent retailer viability, warns Bira podcast

6 Jun 2025

Independent retailers are facing a "generational" transformation of employment law that could fundamentally change how small businesses operate, according to the final episode of Bira's first... Read more…

Retailers hope warm weather and bank holidays will boost high street sales

16 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has said that members are hopeful the warm weather, Easter weekend and upcoming bank holidays will provide a much-needed boost to high street sales.
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Economic growth surges to 0.7%, but "April reality check" looms for high street retailers

15 May 2025

UK economy delivers strongest quarterly performance in a year despite forecasts of business downturn.
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Communities come together for Local Bike Shop Day 2025 celebrations

13 May 2025

Local Bike Shop Day 2025 brought a wave of... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira welcomes Bank of England's latest interest rate cut

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has welcomed the Bank of England's decision to reduce interest rates from 4.5% to 4.25%, calling it a "much-needed boost" for the retail sector, including for cycling... Read more…

ACT parent company Bira responds to Beales' "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" as iconic store makes final protest

8 May 2025

ACT parent company Bira has responded to the news that the 144-year-old Beales department store is staging a "Rachel Reeves Closing Down Sale" in its final weeks of trading, with giant yellow... Read more…

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Customer experience placed at the height of importance by brands post-lockdown

Posted on in Business News, Cycles News

escalatorsThere is no question that the lockdown will change the way that consumers shop in the long-term. Research suggests that customers now place a higher value on customer service than they did before COVID-19, but that they still may feel uncomfortable physically visiting many shops for a long-time as of yet.

While we have seen a great shift towards online shopping over the last few months, it is now time to start really encouraging customers to walk through our high-street doors once again.

According to Retail Times, the extent of the restrictions surrounding COVID-19 mean that it is not just front-line retail workers that need to focus on the customer experience. Businesses across all sectors are being forced to look for new ways to engage and support their clients and customers in the absence of normal activity.

This new emphasis placed on customer service means that brands will need to adapt accordingly. As experts at the KPMG Nunwood Excellence Centre put it: "We are entering an ‘integrity economy', one where the ethics of an organisation are as important as its products and services." 

KPMG's international think tank undertook research to identify the top 50 brands that are currently bossing customer experience since the COVID-19 lockdown. 23 of the top 50 brands in its Customer Experience Excellence ranking for 2020 are retailers.

TV shopping channel QVC led the way, finishing second in the ranking behind internet bank First Direct, which retained their top spot from 2018.

John Lewis & Partners rose up the list to fourth, one place ahead of Lush, while Lakeland and Marks & Spencer also made the top 10.

The KPMG Nunwood Excellence Centre suggests there are now six key pillars to driving the customer experience: integrity; resolution and innovation; expectations; time and effort; personalisation; and empathy. The Centre goes on to define each pillar and provide 'Golden Rules' that any business aiming for outstanding customer relationships must go by.

This new post-lockdown era will mean many businesses having to rethink their business models and adapt to shoppers current wants and needs. Read more about the KPMG's six key pillars and how you can learn from 2020's top Customer Experience brands to recover from a pandemic and come back stronger than ever.

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