As 2024 draws to a close, we added up the numbers to bring you a round-up of Retail Systems’ most popular stories of the year.

The top story was a feature article examining the trend for online retailers to maintain an offline presence. While the pandemic forced customers to shop online, many are now looking for new experiences such as pop-up shops and the ability to order stock to stores. Retailers, such as British e-commerce clothing brand Blakely, are rising to the challenge and providing their customers with a full omnichannel experience.

The pandemic and political issues such as Brexit have created major supply chain issues for retailers over the past few years. In 2024, supply chains were still catching the attention of our readers, with a story about geopolitical tension in the Red Sea one of the most read of the year.

The analysis piece examined some of the struggles retailers had faced and asked senior leaders in the retail industry how organisations could adapt in the future for any further disruptive events.

In third place was the announcement that Adam Selipsky, chief executive of Amazon Web Services (AWS), was to step down after three years in the role. Matt Garman, a senior vice-president who oversees sales and marketing at AWS, took over the role on 3 June.

Next up was the news that the Very Group had appointed Nadhim Zahawi, former UK chancellor and MP for Stratford-on-Avon, as non-executive chair and board member. In his new role, Zahawi works closely with Very’s management team to explore the expansion of the business into new areas as well as focusing on maintaining continued sales and profit growth.

Finally in fifth place was an in-depth analysis piece examining the homewares sector following the collapse of Carpetright. The article looked at what, if anything, Carpetright could have done to prevent its demise and what lessons other retailers could put into place to avoid calling in the administrators.

---