Table of Contents

1. Introduction.................................................................................................................2
2. Aim and Objective......................................................................................................3
3. Background:................................................................................................................4
4. Literature review........................................................................................................5
5. Research Philosophy/Paradigm, Strategy & Methodology....................................5
6. Research Schedule /Timetable...................................................................................5
7. Ethical Consideration.................................................................................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................5
References........................................................................................................................5
1. Introduction

Title : “ IOT is transforming future by smart retailing : an analysis of UK digital retailing

post pandemic 2020”

Any company or individual active in selling things directly to customers is considered to be

part of retailing. Following Germany and France, the United Kingdom is Europe's fastest
growing economy. The total value of UK retail sales in 2020 is £403 billion. Despite the
pandemic, retail sales in the UK reached roughly 55.56 billion British pounds by the end
of 2021. Marketplace is highly competitive these days so retailers have to introduce new
strategies that can revolutionize the shopping experience. IOT devices can capture data
through videos, smart shelves and beacons to analyse customer activity and generate
insights to increase the effectiveness of retailing. In 2020, the retail sector's economic
output was £97.0 billion, accounting for 5.0 percent of the UK's overall economic output
and a 2.5 percent decrease from the previous year. By the end of year 2020, the sector's
economic output had restored to pre-pandemic levels. In the first quarter of 2021, output
declined once more, this time by 2.8 percent compared to the first quarter of 2019. The
epidemic, on the other hand, has had a wide range of effects in different sorts of retail
outlets. Since 2013, the volume of retail sales had been increasing year over year prior to
the coronavirus epidemic. This came after a period of stagnant sales growth during great
recession, which lasted from 2008 to 2013. As business evolves in tandem with
advancements in information technology, the retail industry follows suit. Smart retailing
makes the road to greater e-commerce easier to navigate by enhancing efficiency, inventory
accuracy, cost and time savings, and smart marketing that improves the consumer
experience. Retailers can benefit from IoT centric systems for improving the performance
of their businesses. RFID tags are well known for improving supply chain efficiency. IoT
proves beneficial when it comes to identifying the information that is available about a
product. Businesses that use IoT can help retailers monitor products at all levels of their
operations. We can use IoT to make VFC payments, maintain product availability, control
home replenishment, track supply chain inventory, use RFID for product traceability , and
implement sensor-based local advertising and security solutions.
As it is rightly said necessity is mother of invention and 2020 pandemic has led to many
retail innovations. Incredible IoT ideas are changing the way of shopping, creating better
buying experience for the customers. Post pandemic retail landscape has been changed in
UK, Retail dynamics have been reshape drastically in last 2 years considering consumer
needs and preferences in mind. During this time E-commerce have been revolutionized and
those businesses who made transition to digital platforms not only managed to survive the
pandemic but also found strategies for generating more revenues. The value of internet sales
as a percentage of overall retail sales in the United Kingdom (UK) was 28.1 percent in
September 2021. This was a marginal increase from the end of the year , when online retail
sales made up 27.7% of total retail sales. IoT has its fare share of benefits and limitations
which are required to be analyzed thoroughly to create better strategies.

2. Aim and Objective

Research Question:

The verbalized problem statement stands as: “Does smart retailing is able to generate more
profits and how it can create a better future? ”

Aim :

The aim of the study is to review the digital retailing statistics of UK post pandemic and
predict the future opportunities and improvement in retail using IoT.

Research Objectives:

The objective of this research is to

1. Analyze the profitability of digital retailing using IoT.
2. Review statistics of smart retailing in UK post pandemic.
3. Critically asses recent developments and inspect limitations.
4. Make future predictions for UK digital retailing.
5. Generate conclusions and give recommendations for improvements.

3. Background:

IoT has changed various facets of the retail sector. These transformations are well-liked by
costumers and therefore cannot be overlooked by retailers. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a
network of sensors that link objects to connect, collect, and analyse data. IoT application
systems gather data from their physical environment and deliver it to cloud-based software
platforms for interpretation. In order to get an advantage over their competitors, offline
retailers are discovering new methods to unlock the potential of IoT in eCommerce. They've
changed the way people shop by providing better access to wide range of products. IoT
allows making smarter decisions and conduct more effective marketing campaigns across
all of their sites. Customer support is also more targeted and effective. The innovation has
aided retailers in creating a more transparent and integrated distribution network.Retailers
are constantly seeking for new methods to improve their consumers' experiences and boost
sales. For this reason, integrating IoT technology into stores helped businesses turn more
people into loyal customers. Smart technologies are being used by retailers to improve
customer shopping experiences and maintain a competitive edge. Generation Z appears to
be the greatest future challenge for marketers and, as a result, for commerce, because
millennials appear to respond differently as customers and are much more open to
innovation. Businesses have become more conscious of the relevance of IT adoption and
how its use is a way to attain improved productivity . These organizations are investing
more and more in these technologies to attain business goals. Major retailers have made
significant investments in implementing self-service technology including such self-cash
desks, informational customer engagement, dynamic touch screens, and smartphone
applications that are enabled by Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) tags. Many key
technology advancements have transformed retailing since 1974, when the first retail goods
was sold via a scanner at a Marsh supermarket in Troy, Ohio, USA. Businesses and
consumers benefit from the use of emerging innovations in retail because they can
enhance behaviour and judgement, achieve better intelligence gathering and transfer, and
provide possibilities for the expansion of innovative products and also connections between
customer and organization using modern technology. Connectivity, networking,
and  enhanced intelligence,  are all ways in which the Internet of Things actually contributes
(Kambies et al., 2016). According to studies, internet competitors are altering the cost base
and revenue of in-store business. Given these constraints, retailers are shifting to IT and
new operating models to develop multidimensional approaches that adapt to their online
and  in-store   consumers needs. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a large category of smart
devices that includes sensor networks and electronic devices that is  transmitted
electronically via the internet. According to Gartner (2015) predictions, the Internet of
Things (IoT) is one of the top strategic technological innovations that should have
transformed retail potential by 2020.

4. Literature review

With the recent growth of the retail business sector, the focus has shifted to internet of
things digitization in the retail industry. Because of advancements in Cloud computing, the
retail landscape is rapidly changing. The Internet of Things (IoT) alludes to the internet,
cellphones, and other programmes that are transforming the retail sector.When compared to
other industries, the retail industry is one of the greatest in terms of direct connection with
prospective consumers. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a revolutionary essential driver for
reaching out to specific clients. Through improved micro segmentation, this invention
enables businesses to better understand individual demand patterns. IoT is an
interconnected component that connects the real and virtual worlds in order to combine
tangible components and data via growing internet equipment. As per a Cisco survey, the
number of internet users will exceed 200 billion by 2020, with around 26 smart items  per
individual. Rajan Varadarajan (2010) examined how dynamic technologies and social
Media have revolutionised the retail sector and how businesses compete in the global
market. Similarly, developing interactive technologies are predicted to profoundly
transform the retailing ecosystem by their effect on commercial strategy and organizational
management. He proposed Investments in conventional interactive media, on the other
hand, may be regarded as a cost of operations for a shop rather than a possible source of
long-term strategic edge. Sebastián Bruque and Jes Hernández (2002) sought to determine
some knowledge on the effect of the online platforms on strategic advantage in a Western
European market. According to the authors Lu et al. (2008), when the Internet was used for
communication and to give the business with a chance to compete, it would have a
substantial effect on international marketing. Company factors, as well as market
diversification plan, have a major significant influence on economics. Brick and mortar
stores have been a common mode of retail commerce for ages. New types of trade emerged
as a result of emerging technologies. As the Internet's ubiquity grew, so did the opportunity
to sell and purchase items digitally through online stores and digital data transmission. E-
commerce, facilitated through  personal computers connected to the Internet; m-commerce,
enabled by smart phones connected to the Internet; and IoT-commerce, facilitated by
Internet-connected IoT devices are three significant phases of commerce have emerged as a
result of mass adoption of new technology. As our focus is on IoT commerce thus IoT
devices include sensing and responding abilities, which allow them to collect and integrate
data as well as ultimately make decisions. As a result, the IoT gadget has enough
intelligence to act and make decisions without the need for human intervention. Retail
commerce involving non-traditional smart connected physical equipment such as voice
assistants, smart washing machines, and smart thermostats is known as IoT-commerce.
With the help of voice assistants, one might purchase in seconds via voice recognition ,
resulting in an reduced  amount of time and energy. Online retailing, digital advertising, and
even developments in interactive virtual retail shopping all experienced tremendous growth
in 2020 and 2021. E-commerce shopping networks like Instacart have become the new
standard for millions of buyers throughout the world as a result of the pandemic. Due of the
restricted in-person active interaction by Covid-19, shops have forced to drastically cut
face-to-face client service and shift their focus to more inventive retail techniques. More
and more businesses are embracing chatbots and personal assistants to meet clients where
they are. Prior to the pandemic, the retail business, as well as the banking and medical
industries, were already adopting this technology. By 2023, chatbots are expected to save
these sectors more than $11 billion.
According to stats of UK retail sales dropped when the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in
March 2020, as lockdown regulations forced non-essential stores to shut. By June 2020,
sales volumes had rebounded to pre-pandemic levels though a rather speedy recovery
compared with other industries like hotels and entertainment. Non-store sales soared
significantly at the start of the pandemic and have stayed high that is 53 percent higher in
April 2021 than they were before the outbreak. 82 percent of  non stores category is internet
shops, with the remaining consisting of street stalls, cataloging retail, pop-up stores, and so
forth. Since April 2020, online sales had exceeded 28 percent of total sales, compared with
20 percent prior to the Covid-19. Online businesses reached a new high in February 2021,
accounting for 36% of total retail purchases. Internet sales declined as a percentage of total
retail sales in April 2021, but stayed high at 29 percent of total retail trade despite the
opening of non-essential facilities. Internet shopping  have risen from roughly 5% of total
retail sales in 2008 to around 20% in 2019. Since the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak
in March 2020, internet purchases have surged by more than 28 percent.In the United
Kingdom, online retailing is more well-known than in the rest of Europe. In the United
Kingdom, 90% of the population will have completed at least one purchase online in 2020.
More than 80% of individuals in Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Germany,
and Iceland made online purchases in 2020. While this has occurred to some extent, internet
retailing has not proven to be a total replacement for traditional shopping. Successful retail
businesses, on the other hand, have created interactive operations to supplement their
substantial form. Customers can browse items in-store and subsequently buy them online,
or they can pick up goods purchased online in physical stores. In Europe, the use of IoT,
AR, and VR is becoming a major benchmark against which retailers evaluate themselves in
attempt to acquire advantage, paving the path for enhanced customer experience demands.
Retailers in key European countries are acutely aware of the need for a thorough digital
transformation in their industry. Retail technologies is used in both virtual and in-store
shopping experience in the UK. In terms of the online retail purchase, the percentage of
businesses who geolocated their clients on smart phones grown dramatically in the last
three years. Throughout Europe,i n the future, the number of functional IoT connections in
the retail industry is likely to expand. In 2016, there were 1.53 million connections, and by
2025, it is predicted that there would be 3.09 million connections. Since retail is such an
important component of the economy, improving its technology to make it more efficient
seems like a logical next step. All these studies show that IoT is revolutionizing the retail
industry worldwide especially in Europe. Extensive studies are required to see how
customers more specifically in UK respond to this new technology. Demographics can also
influence the user acceptance of smart retailing. Trends of IoT technologies can further be
analyzed to make future predictions. It is important to know how do customers feel about
the new technology-driven phenomenon of IoT-commerce, and how has the pandemic
affected their views?

5. Research Strategy & Methodology

The purpose of our study is to analyze the trends of smart retailing in UK post pandemic.
We are evaluating that how pandemic have increased the acceptance and usage of smart
retailing among masses. There are certain limitations of IoT how these impact the
customers and what are the strategies that can be used to optimize smart retailing for better
future. This will be a longitudinal study directed to investigate the profitability of digital
retailing using IoT post pandemic. The research will give the overview based essential
information about IoT development in UK and its acceptance among the customers. The
method of data collection will be using mixed method both online available data and
questionnaires will be used for this study. The planned quantitative method for this research
is to employ questionnaires. Questionnaires are a statistically analyzed inductive research
method. An inductive method has the advantage of establishing research through
probability, allowing for empirical information to be easily analyzed and evaluated. One
advantage of employing questionnaires is that they allow for large scale study, which can
result in a better understanding of a bigger population.
Questionnaires are regarded to be a more cost-effective and efficient form of doing
research, allowing for larger-scale studies to be conducted. In addition, questionnaires
provide measurable responses that may be easily examined using statistical analysis. The
obtained results will be compared to previously available data as described in the literature
review. Participants will be able to complete questionnaires online. Wright (2005) contends
that because online questionnaires are readily available, respondents can complete them
whenever they are available, enabling more people to participate in the study. The data will
be analyzed using SPSS. SPSS is a statistical software package that allows researchers to
examine and comprehend quantitative data, such as online surveys. SPSS enables a better
statistical understanding of data, which may then be correlated to other study aspects.
Tables and graphs will be used to display the data acquired using the SPSS statistical tool.

6. Research Schedule /Timetable

Task March April May June July Aug. Sep. Oct.

Introduction

Literature review

Designing research
methodology/tools

Data collection

Data analysis

Results
compilations/ report
 write up

7. Ethical Consideration

Since the research will use questionnaires to obtain data, the number of ethical constraints
will be decreased (Panter & Sterba, 2011). However, Cho and LaRose (1999) contend that
there may still be ethical concerns with online surveys, particularly regarding participant
privacy. As a result, by securely preserving all data behind encrypted records, this research
will ensure participant confidentiality.The research will be done on a volunteer basis. The
participants will be informed about this. Each participant will be given a consent form to fill
out before to the trial. The study's goal and potential risks to participants will be presented
to encourage genuine consent.The goal is to recognize the worth and rights of all those
involved in this research study, whether directly or indirectly. Being aware of their history
and any other circumstances that may affect your capacity to connect with them is very
important. Any misrepresentation or exaggeration about the research's goals and objectives
will be avoided. Any and all affiliations, funding sources, and any conflicts of interest
will be disclosed. All communication relating to the research will be conducted in an open
and honest manner.

Conclusion

References