Commerce and new technologies

Abstract

The commercial distribution sector has experienced in recent decades a strong transformation, especially because of two factors. On the one hand, large companies have developed dynamic growth strategies that have led to major changes within the sector, and on the other hand, the change in social demands provoked, to a greater extent, by the economic crisis in Spain and also worldwide. For all of this, the retail trade is looking for new ways of developing competitive advantages, for which the incorporation of innovations can contribute in a very positive way. At present it is very important that businesses innovate for their continuity and for the success of their business. Therefore, the objective of this work is to analyze the innovation that is taking place in the retail sector, illustrating this innovation with examples of real companies. An attempt will be made to assess whether such innovations have contributed to improved corporate performance and whether this has been a key element in addressing the crisis and reviving consumption. Another key objective is to know in depth the ICTs, their rapid evolution, their characteristics, functions and applications by the retailers. Learning how these retailers have adapted to these new technologies and how they have affected consumer demand. In terms of methodology, this final work is based on both academic and nonacademic sources. Journalistic reports, reports from companies dedicated to monitoring progress in this field, reports from government institutions and final papers from Spanish universities have been used in the academic sources. On the other hand, it emphasizes the respect to the information obtained from non-academic sources, specialized web pages, expert blogs and reports related to the research topic. This work has been structured into three main sections: In the first place the trade will be analyzed, how it is defined and what has been its evolution from its appearance. It will distinguish between a more general evolution based on data from Europe and between a more specific evolution with data from Spain. We will also see how different commercial formats have appeared. Secondly we will see, in a less extensive form than in the first section, the different definitions that are given to new technologies and various data of the evolution of the same. In the third section we will link the two analyzed terms: trade and new technologies. We will see what technologies have been appearing over the years and the applications that retailers give them for their business. Business cases and real statistics will be discussed. Finally, as a complement to the three previous sections, we will collect the most relevant conclusions that emerge from the work done.