Consumers drive retail innovation

With the World Retail Congress in full swing in London, attention has turned to how

the 'empowered' consumer, or the 'I-Con', will drive retail innovation in the future. A new report from Mastercard shows that 33 percent of retails believe empowered customers will force change, while 37 percent believes that increased competition will push retailers towards more innovative solutions as they vie for business from technology-savvy customers.

According to the report, new technology will be developed to match customer demand, with 44 percent of retailers offering contactless payment technologies in stores within the next year. Retailers, however, are unsure of which technologies will be developed in the future, interfering with how to invest.

The majority of high street retailers - 41 percent - believe they will provide mobile points-of-sale in stores by 2020. A further 33 percent will offer self-service kiosks, while 35 percent will use location-based technologies to attract customers.