Executive Summary

• This week, we published a major, 50-page report titled The Silver Wave: Understanding the Aging Consumer, which looks at the substantial demographic changes that countries, sectors and companies will face in the years ahead. In the report, we note that the group that includes those aged 65 and over will grow from 8% of the world’s population in 201, to 10% in 2025 to 13% in 2035.
• According to an article in the Harvard Business Review, retailers must remember the shopping experience is not over when online customers click the “buy” button. Shoppers expect a seamless experience, and there is an “experience gap” as they wait for their product to arrive. That is a key time for retailers to provide a positive experience and deepen their relationship with customers.
• French retail giant Carrefour and BNP Paribas are testing new technology that will combine payment functions with the retailer’s loyalty and couponing services in one application. By using only a PIN, customers can make payments at physical stores and online, irrespective of the bank they use, and still obtain their loyalty benefits from Carrefour.
• The debut of the expanded Panama Canal locks in June will more than double the isthmus’s capacity for carrying cargo and will allow the canal to accommodate much larger tankers. The growth of the Panama Canal has triggered ports in the US, Caribbean and South America to expand in order to accommodate the greater influx of ships and compete for share of the traffic boom.