Why customer focus alone is insufficient for retail survival

Executives must think about employees just as much as customers.

Total experience is the key to building an organisation that will last, as the majority of customers nowadays are willing to pay a premium for superior experiences.

This is what Marnelli Eileen Fullon, customer & growth and innovation & experience design leader at SGV & Co, reminded retail firms during the Retail Asia Summit 2026 held at Shangri-la, Makati.

She noted how Netflix addressed the hassle of renting videos back in the day by listening to customers and has successfully made its name in the streaming industry.  

However, Fullon said focusing on customers alone is no longer enough to drive total experience. “We often forget employee and partner experience, because sometimes we are so client-focused that we forget our employees are people who get tired.”

She said that 70% of employees feel disconnected from their company's purpose and mission, noting that it is not just a human resource responsibility to make sure that employees are taken care of.

“Ideally, everyone in the company, particularly executives, should think about the employees just as much as the customers,” Fullon said.

When employees do not feel valued, she warned that it becomes expensive to replace them. “Sourcing, hiring, and training costs are high, but the real difficulty is culture fit, as it takes time to ensure people share your organisation's values and purpose.”

Fullon shared the horror story of an international fast-fashion retailer where suppliers were found paying illegal wages in unsafe conditions.

“Even after promising reforms, they pushed suppliers into unsustainable pricing, which resulted in a $1.5b to $2b market value hit, a 17% decrease in profit, and massive lawsuits,” she added.

Moreover, she noticed how some firms treat company partners like an afterthought. Fullon said that if they are not performing well, there are negative implications for retailers because it is their brand that is affected by the behaviour of partners.

“We get so focused on the end shoppers that we forget the merchants who have been with us for 20 years,” she added. For a partnership to work, Fullon said it needs to be long-term, and partners need to be profitable too.

To create a total experience, she said that retailers must choose the right people who are a cultural fit, and invest in the ‘backstage’ of their business.

“When employees are engaged, partners are empowered, and customers are delighted, our businesses thrive,” she concluded.