Connex, previously the Professional Retail Store Maintenance Association – the authority on retailers, multi-site healthcare facilities, entertainment facilities, banks and suppliers – provides a breakdown of the major trends projected to drive the retail FM industry in 2020.
The most powerful trends converging on the industry include:
Changing demographics and labour
Attracting and building a diverse workforce with widely varied perspectives and skillsets is crucial.
“Skilled labour and blue-collar jobs are going unfilled, making the role of facilities manager more difficult as they feel the consequences of a shrinking labour pool,” said Cara Finnegan, an author in the report.
Changing demographics also impact the labour supply for skilled trades.
Entertainment facilities
Adapting to this market trend, multi-site entertainment venues are expanding at a rapid rate. They provide customers with the opportunity to create memories, as opposed to simply exchanging money for goods.
Financial services industry
In recent years, digital technology has heavily impacted banking and other financial service industries.
Despite a number of large regional and national banks closing branches one fast-growing segment of money service businesses, or MSBs, is the check-cashing service. These retail operations provide an array of services for a fee, including check cashing, bill payment, prepaid debit cards, credit cards, money orders, currency exchange, payday loans and more.
FMs for check-cashing services, in addition to supervising regular property maintenance, may be asked to oversee certain equipment, such as cash-counting machines, ATMs and lockboxes to address security concerns.
Energy resilience
To avert power loss, businesses are investing in technology that promises energy resilience and sustainability – the ability to keep the lights on or recover quickly, while maximizing renewable energy. Among these technologies, microgrids can keep the power on the longest and boost sustainability.
New technology
New tech, like 5G, AI, apps, enhanced Internet-of-Things devices, networks, cloud computing, microgrids, falling tech prices and more are and will continue to impact FM.
Technology can be used to communicate faster and better, reduce costs, validate performance and measure success or failure.
Small Stores, Big Concepts
A growing number of retail giants, including Target, Nordstrom and IKEA, are launching small-concept stores to appeal to new markets. Connex predicts these new formats may create unique challenges for FMs.
To read the full Connex 2020 Trends Report to report visit http://connexus.connexfm.com/.
