INNOVATION IN RETAIL

EC2024 Volume 21

Victor Martínez-de-Albéniz, Volume Co-editor

Felipe Caro, Volume Co-editor

Pierre Poignant, Volume Co-editor

Nicholas G. Hall, Editor

Published August 20, 2024

The global retail industry is projected to have a global value of about USD 31 trillion by 2025 , and is a major contributor to jobs and economic activity, with an estimated impact of 26% of employment and 19% of GDP in the United States . It is an extremely vibrant sector which has been leading business in terms of operational innovations. Since the early adoption of Operations Research techniques , the way we shop has been completely transformed, with more variety (millions of choices), more freshness (fast product development), more convenience (deliveries at home, ability to rent or return, store experiences), more product information (reviews, social shopping), and reduced costs. This increased value for consumers has been generated by operational innovations, triggered by technological developments and new forms of organizing the business, and fueled by the extreme competitiveness of the retail industry. In this INFORMS Analytics Collection, we seek to provide resources that can help us understand better the recent developments of the retail industry.