Gartner estimates global retailers' IT spending to grow 3.6% in 2019

CHENNAI: Global retail sector’s technology spending will grow 3.6% to reach almost $203.6 billion in 2019, with similar growth rates expected for 2020 and 2021 as well, a forecast from Gartner has said.
The retail industry clocked 5.6% growth in technology spending in 2018 worldwide, according to the same study.
The global consulting firm believes that customer expectations and competition are forcing retailers to invest heavily in digital transformation.
The Gartner study found that software is the fastest-growing category of technology spending, as retail CIOs prioritise technologies such as analytics, digital marketing, and artificial intelligence (AI) for the sector’s growth.
Further, Gartner predicts that by 2023, Alibaba and Amazon will have captured 40% market share of global online retail, up from 33% in 2017.
“Retail CIOs used to be tasked with minimising risk and cost. Now they are held accountable for business results. They are prioritising ROI and other measurable business impacts. Retail CIOs are investing in analytics for both near-term benefits like decision making and to prepare for innovations such as smart machines, AI and augmented reality- all of which will require robust datasets,” Molly Beams, senior director, analyst at Gartner, said in a statement.