Introduction: The Future of Consumption

It is often said that we live in a consumer society. This does not just mean that we buy things regularly but also that consumption is an integral part of our daily lives. We have learned to think of ourselves as consumers, rather than citizens, in a variety of situations. Against this backdrop, retail organisations hold a strategically important position, not least because of the space they occupy between producers and consumers. Retailers have a key role in steering consumption and mediating choice. They have the power to shape conversations about socially important issues, such as sustainability, and can nudge consumers to make better choices. It is clear that retail and consumption are intertwined in complex ways, both symbiotic and antagonistic. Despite this, they have often been studied in different ways by separate groups of researchers rather than being seen as integrated. In this book, we seek to rectify this by exploring the ways in which three different consumption trends will transform the retail industry. This book is distinctive because of the way it links future consumption trends with pragmatic actions that retailers can take to prepare in the present. It is essential reading for retail managers who want to know how future consumption trends will affect the industry, as well as students and researchers of retail and consumption who wish to better understand how these interdependent fields are linked.