20 key points for the regeneration of retail

In the last year, I have participated in two different co-creation sessions with 2 different local governments to talk about retail, small, and family businesses, mainly to give a response to the crisis that is experiencing this sector of activity in every city.

The variables of the retail crisis are many and varied. Some of them are obvious, such as the rise of e-commerce and the slow transition to digitalization by most businesses, the lack of updating of supply and demand needs because of changes in consumer habits and behavior, and shop closures due to a lack of continuity by younger generations, among other structural issues.

Others are less obvious, like the lack of actualization from public administration, schools, and universities in bringing the skills and capacities we need in an interconnected world, a meaning crisis, lifestyle changes, relationship and power dynamics, biased interests, and culture.

Local retail not only provides essential goods and services. It fosters economic stability by creating local employment opportunities and anchoring community wealth. It is the foundation of social cohesion, promoting and preserving the unique identity and diversity of citizens and place.

Photo by Anna Sullivan on Unsplash

Nobody wants to see empty premises with their lights off that brighten up the city, but we need a change of model adapted to the trends of the current reality, aligning human and nature’s needs.

Here is a list of the most critical points that I brought to the conversation:

1. Look at the topic from a holistic point of view, not as something isolated without connections. Seek the interconnections and interdependencies with other sectors, departments, knowledge, and disciplines and work with them, in collaboration, to make a long-lasting positive impact. In that case, the relationship between retail, entrepreneurship, academia, and tourism is undeniable.
2. Think from a territorial strategic vision. Don’t focus only on one city, usually the capital. Think about how the entire territory can be connected in a beneficial relationship. Create a unique value proposition. Make corridors between the rural areas and the city in a virtuous loop of supply and demand.
3. Work from the potential of the place and its inhabitants. The potential exists before it is expressed. What makes the place unique is its history, traditions, and gastronomy. All these elements tell a story, a history of the place. Leverage identity to create new things, products, services, and organizations.
4. Focus on the ecosystem, the entities involved, what they are trying to do, and what elements inside a support system they need to do it.
5. Apply a platform mindset. Once you know who they are and their role in the ecosystem, create the proper channels to communicate with them to generate and exchange value.
6. Design a portfolio of solutions and invest in different parts of the systems. Determine where the leverage points are. For more references on how to intervene in a system, see Systems Aikido or Systems Gardening.
7. Create a specific work team for the mission.
8. Built from the perspective that it is the best thing that could happen to everyone, both human and non-human stakeholders.
9. Let go of the old and the things that are not working anymore.
10. Design for 7 generations to come.
11. From cradle to cradle. Create a circular system for the most efficient use of resources. Seek a zero-waste product design.
12. You are building a new healthy system, try to design a soft transition for all.
13. Design a portfolio of services to help the entities express their maximum potential and facilitate their lives.
14. Be inclusive.
15. Take the focus off of money. Put the focus on bringing the conditions conducive to life to co-evolve together, and wealth will come.
16. Considering the previous point, think about the best indicators beyond financial growth.
17. Be patient. Connect. You are not alone. Create your support network.
18. An ecosystem has a tangible (products, services, money, etc.) side and an intangible (culture, beliefs, relationship dynamics, etc.) side, taking into account both to understand the whole.
19. Try to avoid fitting entrepreneurs with commercial premises. Instead, try to fit different types of premises with their distinct needs.
20. Make a community management model for common goods use and let them open for citizen proposals and activities.

This is the first step in building a more resilient system that benefits everyone, maybe it is a bit overwhelming, but don’t worry, you don’t need to do it alone. Many people are out there who can help you build the internal capabilities to think systemically.

Ask me for help if you need to design strategies for regeneration at different levels.

And if you want to understand regeneration better take a look at this selection of books.