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Retail and hospitality companies are venturing beyond their core competencies and traditional sales channels to acquire new customers, increase share and grow their overall revenues. Consider these examples:

• To offset shrinking in-store sales, some fast-casual restaurant chains like Panera are offering home delivery of fresh grocery items.

• Large format retailers like Kroger and Target are building small formats to emphasize convenience and appeal to urban shoppers.

• Retail foodservice, often referred to as “Grocerant,” has long been a focal point for the U.S. grocery industry. Wegmans has taken it one step further by creating dine-in restaurants branded as Market Café.

• Some urban Walgreens stores serve prepared foodservice items, including sushi.

• Led by chain operators 7-Eleven, Sheetz and Wawa, the U.S. convenience store industry offset declining tobacco sales by growing its foodservice business over 30% in the past decade.

• Often called “Next-Generation Retailing,” some luxury hotels are adding small retail spaces in order to generate new revenue and build deeper engagement with their guests.

COVID-19 increased the frenetic pace of channel blurring and forced many companies to view it as a necessity rather than a strategic choice. The Retail & Hospitality Hub was exclusively created to stay at the forefront of this transformation and showcase the best practices, thought-leadership and innovation that enable the entire industry to better serve its customers and grow.