omnichannel

French Maisons du Monde has announced some ambitious plans: by 2024, the furniture and decoration chain intends to double its turnover, reaching two billion euros.

A car dealer in the middle of the city? In a Parisian shopping centre, even? This unusual idea comes from Nissan, which has opened the first Nissan City Hub in the Vélizy 2 shopping centre in Paris. The hub is centred on e-commerce and electric cars.

Belgo-Dutch retail group Ahold Delhaize is raising its online ambitions: the goal is now a turnover of seven billion euros by 2021, rather than the current target of five billion. The retailer will be heavily investing in stores and technology, while cutting costs at the same time.

Amazon has launched yet another new physical store concept in New York. Amazon 4-star's is a curated non-food store, where the online retailer sells only the highest-rated products.

Zara’s remodeled flagship store in Stratford (London) welcomes customers with holograms, robot arms and iPad-powered employees. The store wants to unite the best of both the online and offline shopping world.

Retailers expect eCommerce to contribute positively, but unlike their customers, they are not willing to switch to new technologies as fast. The Netherlands are pioneers, but Belgium lags behind according to HR service provider SD Worx’ European survey.