Sustainable Growth

As a large employer embedded in every community across Ireland, economic growth for the retail industry positively impacts society as a whole and delivers quality, value and choice to the consumer. In this challenging operating environment, identifying opportunities to improve competitiveness and innovation, while also supporting long-term growth, is crucial. As part of this focus, Retail Ireland and its members will aim to advance initiatives and policies to promote retail investment and digitalisation, drive sustainable growth, and deliver an innovative, resilient and competitive retail environment.

In terms of representing the needs of the sector, Retail Ireland will aim to:

  • Promote retail investment by safeguarding cost competitiveness Ensuring business cost efficiencies are prioritised, such as rates, rent, insurance and energy costs in order to support industry growth and investment. Retail Ireland will also advocate for sustainable labour market costs.
  • Bring forward initiatives and advocate for consumer and regulatory policies which support digital retail, e-commerce and omni-channel transformation Retail is highly competitive, with international and internet-only retailers increasingly sharing the market. The sector will advocate for more support to accelerate digital transformation and enhance online capabilities.
  • Support policies to boost consumer confidence As part of this strategy, Retail Ireland will support Government measures to underpin consumer confidence.
  • Collaborate with key stakeholders to drive sustainable growth Retail Ireland and its members will engage with key stakeholders on priority issues such as sharing knowledge on how best to:
    • advance cutting-edge digitalisation
    • promote regional investment and development
    • assess the impact of Brexit and related supply chains

The association will work with key industry leaders on accelerating training and support mechanisms to bolster cyber security, and advocate for measures to alleviate economy-wide cost pressures on businesses.

In order to advance the sector’s growth and competitiveness, Retail Ireland aims to champion and drive campaigns and initiatives that:

  • Showcase the critical role and contribution of retail in the wider economy
  • Highlight the role of a thriving, competitive retail sector in addressing cost-of-living concerns