Tango Reveals Consumer Expectations are High — Can Brands Keep Up?

DALLAS, May 17, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Tango, the leader in store lifecycle management, today released results from its second annual consumer survey, which affirms that the physical store remains an important fixture for American consumers. The survey set out to understand how shopping habits and behaviors have changed after two years living through a global pandemic, which accelerated the shift toward consumer demand for a seamless in-store to ecommerce shopping experience. While consumers are satisfied with the changes stores and restaurants have made over the last two years to accommodate for this shifting demand, they believe there is still room to make the shopping and dining experience better.

“For retailers to thrive in today’s environment, they need to have a firm grasp of consumers’ shifting needs, wants and desires which have resulted in the acceleration of omnichannel requirements,” said Pranav Tyagi, Tango President and CEO. “Brands had to respond to a myriad of new challenges in the last year and technology has proven to be an important tool to gather and identify customer insights for decision-making around these changes. The positive response from our consumer survey should encourage retailers and restaurants to continue to innovate their customer operations and store locations to deliver a seamless experience and address the current needs of shoppers in-person and online.”

Tango’s second annual retail benchmark survey was conducted between April 28 and May 2, 2022, and drew 2,018 completed responses from US adults ages 18 and older across the country. The findings provide valuable insights into how consumers have adjusted to the changing retail and restaurant environment and point to continued innovation becoming an expectation in the retail experience.

Consumers are more satisfied with retail shopping experiences than they were last year, but there is room for improvement through innovation:

• More Innovation, Please. Over four in five (83%) say stores still need to become more innovative in how they utilize their retail space for in-store shopping, order fulfillment and pick-up.
• Shoppers Want It All. 89% of consumers want to continue having options to shop in store and online with either in-store pick-up or delivery.
• The Seamless Shopping Experience is Here to Stay. Two years into the pandemic, a seamless online-to-store experience continues to grow in importance for most Americans (88%).
• More Changes, More Satisfied Customers. Americans are more likely to be satisfied with their options for an online-to-store experience than they were one year ago.
  • 94% of shoppers are satisfied with the options they have for in-store shopping, pick-up, and delivery from stores and/or chain restaurants compared to 87% a year ago.
  • 94% of shoppers enjoy having the ability to buy online and have options for picking up purchases or having them delivered compared to 86% a year ago.
  • 91% of shoppers like the ways stores have integrated their online presence with the in-store experience (e.g., providing designated parking spaces for curbside pick-up) compared to 86% last year.
  • 92% of shoppers report stores have made it easier or faster to pick-up or receive online orders instead of waiting days for delivery from larger fulfillment centers, as opposed to only 84% a year ago.

Essential stores adapted to fit consumer preferences slightly better than specialty stores:

• Shoppers Appreciate Convenience. Over nine in ten U.S. adults say big box retailers and supermarkets/food stores have adapted well to the changes of the past two years (94%, 93%), as opposed to specialty retailers and restaurants (88%).

It’s not just about COVID anymore; consumers consider inflation and environment when shopping:

• Inflationary Challenges. Two-thirds of Americans (68%) say where they shop has changed over the past few months due to inflation and/or higher gas prices. Those with a household income of $75,000 or more are more likely than those with lower household incomes to say where they shop has changed over the past few months due to inflation and/or higher gas prices (73% vs. 63-66%).
• Reduce, Reuse, Rethink Where You Shop. Three in five (62%) say environmental concerns now influence whether they shop in-store or online. Men are more likely than women to say environmental concerns impact whether they shop in-store or online (65% vs. 59%), and those with a household income of $75,000 or more are more likely than those with lower incomes to say environmental concerns influence this choice (71% vs. 51-57%).

Join Tango at the ICSC 2022 Conference in Las Vegas from May 22-24, 2022, at booth 7729 to meet with leaders in their store lifecycle management practice and learn more about what retailers and restaurants can do during this time of continual change to stay ahead of the curve and keep their customers satisfied.

About Tango:
With hundreds of customers across more than 140 countries, Tango is the leader in store lifecycle management and integrated workplace management system software, delivering a single solution spanning real estate, design & construction, lease administration & accounting, facilities, desk booking, and space management.

Media Contact:
Aliya Wishner for Tango
[email protected]
562-477-8812