SAN DIEGO, April 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Michael Zimmerman of hedge fund Prentice Capital notes that 17% of US consumers used a "click and collect" service last year and believes that fulfillment is going to be the next big battleground among internet retailers (1). The concept is very simple: Customers buy something online then, rather than wait for the mailman, go to a shop and collect it themselves.

E-commerce was meant to revolutionize how we buy things, but it didn't work out like that: customers are bedeviled by the dreaded "Sorry, you were out" cards and late deliveries.

Click and collect is taking off because it solves the delivery problem: people just don't like waiting for deliveries, but most are happy to pick up from a local store.

Europe leads the way with this innovative approach - 40% of British shoppers bought online to collect in-store during 2013, and as shoppers adapt to buying with mobile devices, the service can expect "explosive growth" over the next few years according to Zimmerman. Planet Retail's new report (2) predicts the number of people using the service will double over the next three years.

Natalie Berg, global research director at Planet Retail. "Shoppers are already accustomed to browsing and transacting on their own terms – choice in fulfillment is the final piece to the puzzle."

Zimmerman agrees, predicting that fulfillment of shoppers orders will be the next big battleground in retail. Zimmerman is backing his opinions: Prentice Capital's regulatory disclosures demonstrates that the Michael Zimmerman fund favors stocks with powerful brands and well-conceived mobile and online commerce strategies (3).

Michael Zimmerman's Prentice Capital Management is a financial investment advisory firm founded in 2005, based in Greenwich. Prentice specializes in public and private investments in the U.S. consumer retail sectors.

Sources:
(1) "Why click-and-collect is so important for retailers", 18 November 2013, econsultancy
(2) "Click & Collect: retail fad or future of the high street?", 07 Apr 2014, Planet Retail
(3) SEC EDGAR, 15 March 2014

SOURCE Prentice Capital