Not long ago, many industry voices were predicting a full pivot to digital shopping. I heard so many people claiming malls would empty and grocery aisles would remain quiet forever. I disagreed. And now, in 2025, the results are clear: brick-and-mortar isn’t just back—it’s thriving! And smarter labor strategies are the key to unlocking its potential.
The Store Is Back—and Evolving
Physical retail isn’t stuck in the past—it’s adapting and expanding:
- U.S. brick-and-mortar sales in early 2025 hit $1.46 trillion in Q1, up 2.8% year-over-year, while representing 84.1% of total retail sales (Capital One Shopping).
- Globally, in-store retail sales could reach $24.9 trillion in 2025, a 3.6% increase (Capital One Shopping).
- Retail executives anticipate mid-single-digit growth in 2025 and are investing in AI, loyalty, digital, and omnichannel initiatives (Deloitte).
This is a hugely exciting time for brick and mortar retail. Not only are people flooding into physical stores—the technology to help drive this trend forward is ready to go. But, as always, many organizations are experiencing a disconnect between the technology they currently use and where they want to go.
2025 Labor Landscape: Strong Demand, High Volatility
Stores are clearly busy. And that’s great news! But there’s a dark side. Let’s dig into some of the numbers:
- Retail turnover remains high at 24.9%, among the highest of any industry (Inspirus).
- Employee retention is alarming: over 50% of employees are actively job-seeking. Interestingly, 42% of turnover would be preventable with better engagement (paycor.com).
- U.S. labor shortages persist—about 70% of employers are struggling to fill vacancies (https://explodingtopics.com/blog/labor-shortage-stats)
In retail and grocery, turnover has reached 19–25%. Frontline roles juggle 2–3× more tasks per shift now than in 2019. I don’t think it’s too much of a leap to connect the two facts.
All of these challenges are intrinsically linked to labor models. Business is significantly up—empty roles are more difficult to fill. So, what can organizations do to get all the benefits of the brick-and-mortar boom while avoiding these challenges.
WFM: From Scheduling to Differentiator
Traditional labor models ensure retail and grocery floors coverage. That isn’t enough anymore. The current boom has been relatively sudden, and a lot of labor models simply weren’t built with these sorts of numbers in mind. Today’s WFM needs to:
- Match the right staff with the right roles, whether it’s serving customers, fulfilling BOPIS orders, stocking shelves, or running self-checkout.
- Use AI-driven forecasting to anticipate demand and proactively support shifts.
- Implement task-based scheduling, reducing context switching and wait times.
- Equip store leaders and staff with real-time tools—from mobile visibilities to shift-swapping and training on the go.
The retail world is dynamic at the best of times, trends hit hard and fast. Traditional labor models just aren’t built to handle that. You need to level up your WFM.
The Axsium Point of View: Labor as Strategy
At Axsium, we don’t view Workforce Management as a cost—it’s a competitive advantage. And with the right partner helping you to adapt your WFM practice, you can get the best out of the bricks-and-mortar boom.
- Need to redesign your labor model to more flexibly support both in-store experience and back-room fulfillment? We can help.
- Need to bring clarity and cut inefficiencies by defining your labor standards and task management? We can help.
- Need solutions that empower your leaders to optimize productivity, compliance, and customer satisfaction? We can help.
Of course, big changes can lead to big challenges themselves. That’s why we reinforce change with training, and hands-on adoption. It’s the best way of ensuring new tech and practices stick.
The Store Has Returned—Is Your Workforce Ready?
Brick-and-mortar is experiencing a renaissance—but this resurgence comes with complexity. Tight labor pools, evolving customer expectations, and technological demands are just a few of the challenges many organizations are seeing.
Success in 2025 hinges on recognizing your workforce as a dynamic asset. It’s not about how many people you have but how and where they work, how prepared they are, and how fast your systems can adapt.
Is your WFM strategy built to win in today’s retail landscape?
Reach out and let me know your opinion on the resurgence of brick-and-mortar.