According to a report, Minding the Retail Gap: Hong Kong’s talent challenges and future strategies, a shortage of staff and a high turnover rate of employees are considered the major hurdles facing Hong Kong retailers.
Anson Bailey, head of consumer and retail for Hong Kong at KPMG China shares, “The next generation of talent in Hong Kong needs to be nurtured, and we need to upskill at all levels. If traditional businesses stand still, they are finished.”
Challenges linked to manpower issues, were second only to high rent (79%) as the biggest hurdle retailers faced.
The study conducted jointly by by KPMG and the Hong Kong Retail Management Association (HKRMA) surveyed 281 retailers with operations in Hong Kong.
The report finds that the new era of retail is enabled by the latest technologies. It is essential not only to the customer experience, but also to Millennials setting their sights on careers in the industry.
A total of 72% of respondents said the most difficult positions to fill were front line customer service staff and retail salespersons
Those surveyed said that reinforcing staff training would be their top strategy in the next two years (64%). That was closely followed by providing higher staff incentives (57%), adopting technology-enabled services and/or automation (53%), and hiring more mature or older employees (52%).
“The retail industry is a pillar of Hong Kong’s economy, and its workforce is vital to its continued success. Retaining those who work in retail, and making the industry more attractive to prospective employees, are high priorities,” concluded Alice Yip, head of consumer and industrial markets for Hong Kong at KPMG China.