US Retail & Consumer

How do I manage the challenges of today to achieve success tomorrow?

The Retail industry is a consumer-driven industry and the recent economic turmoil and marketplace forces have created a challenging environment. The economic crisis is accelerating consumer trends and creating a greater urgency for retailers to address new marketplace realities. Retailers will be increasingly constrained in their ability to grow and maintain profit margins as a result of high operating expenses, market saturation, the rise of multichannel buying, an aging population, less affluent buyers, diminished consumer loyalty and the rise of digital media to influence purchase decisions.

In order to remain competitive in today's changing world and ensure future success, retailers will need to ensure they remain focused on the long-term horizon and find innovative solutions to create value, fiercely reduce operating costs and mitigate risks throughout the entire enterprise.

Retail industry issues

How PwC can help

For retail & consumer companies throughout the US and across the globe, we offer a strong and reliable network of dedicated industry professionals. Our mission is to help our clients extract value from their multinational operations, to develop a competitive advantage across the value chain, and to ensure that all corporate stakeholder expectations are recognized and met.

How we are organized to serve retail & consumer products clients

PwC's retail & consumer industry practice is combined into a single practice in order to encourage the exchange of ideas and knowledge among clients with similar issues and to facilitate the sharing of knowledge. Our practice professionals and clients benefit greatly from an understanding of business and technical accounting issues from both the retailer and vendor/supplier perspectives and by sharing such knowledge and best practices, our clients are better advised and served.

Our thought leadership and leading-edge thinking on issues, trends and innovations—antifraud, digital transformation, supply chain integrity, brand reputation risk, emerging markets, etc.— are well-recognized within the industry and create value for our clients. We also maintain strategic relationships with the key trade associations serving the industry such as the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) where we are members of the Associate Members Council and an active participant in the President’s Council and sponsor of the Greenbrier Executive Conference; the National Retail Federation (NRF) where we provide advice and counsel to the Financial Executive Council; and the World Economic Forum (Davos), where we annually facilitate a panel discussion for the governor’s of the Retail and Consumer Goods Council.