And currently , there are whole groups of people that are being overlooked by much of the retail industry . They may not be white , straight and able-bodied , but they ’ re still looking for brand and shopping experiences that speak to them and cater to their unmet needs , just like everyone else .

To add insult to injury , some customer bases , such as people of colour or with disabilities , are often neglected until something happens , like the Black Lives Matter protests or International Day of People with Disability . Then , you ’ ll see businesses make a mad scramble towards tokenistic social media tiles and a few blog posts here and there – followed by silence for the rest of the year .

As a publication , in the past , we ’ ve been more reactive than proactive when it comes to writing about some communities and their needs . Sure , we ’ ve written stories about major supermarkets offering a Quiet Hour for customers with autism and retailers launching accessible websites for the visually-impared community . But these issues deserve more attention than the odd news story every few months .

Since having that realisation at Inside Retail , we ’ ve launched In my shoes , a new online series of first-person accounts about what it ’ s like to shop as someone who is often ignored by retailers . You might be a plus-size man looking to buy a new suit , a Black woman searching for shampoo that suits your hair type or someone who ’ s in a wheelchair and needs a pair of pants .

The aim of In my shoes is to help amplify the voices of those who aren ’ t being heard , and it ’ s just one of the ways that we want to lead the conversation on the issues that need more regular air time in the retail industry . At the end of the day , these under-served communities are all missed opportunities for savvy businesses , and let ’ s be honest , many of these people don ’ t currently have a seat at the table within retail businesses , making it even harder to identify their needs . If your leadership teams don ’ t reflect your customers , then how do you know what they ’ re looking for ?

Since launching the series , it ’ s certainly opened my eyes to the challenges some customers face when they go shopping . We ’ re always on the lookout for different points of view at Inside Retail , and if you or someone you know would like to share their story with us , let me know . Our details are below , so drop us a line – we ’ d love to hear from you .

Jo-Anne Hui-Miller

Managing editor , Inside Retail

I love non-profit Thread Together . Here ’ s founder Andie Halas at the opening of its new warehouse in Sydney .

Editor Heather McIlvaine checked out next season ’ s trends during Melbourne Fashion Festival .

6 | www . insideretail . com . au May 2021