"If you've been in a retail store recently, you've probably seen long checkout lines, hard-to-find help - and disgruntled shoppers. Online shopping shows evidence of similar stress, as frustrated consumers abandon digital shopping carts. A telling data point: Customer experience indices have been declining, as seen in drops over four consecutive years with Forrester's customer experience (CX) index across industries hitting an all-time low in 2025 for North America."
"In the retail industry in particular, Forrester's retail CX index fell to 71.3 in 2025 from 72.4 in the previous year for the U.S. (Forrester's CX indices measure how well a brand's customer experience strengthens customer loyalty, on a 0-100 scale: 0-54 is very poor, 55-64 is poor, 65-74 is OK, 75-84 is good, and 85-100 is excellent.) Customers' dissatisfaction with their shopping experiences has real business implications:"
Customer experience in U.S. retail has weakened, with Forrester's retail CX index falling to 71.3 in 2025 from 72.4 the prior year and broader CX indices reaching an all-time low for North America. Shoppers face long checkout lines, staff shortages, out-of-stock and disorganized merchandise in stores, while online shoppers confront overwhelming choices, difficulty finding options, and cart abandonment. Poor experiences drive switching: PwC found 52% of consumers switched brands after an inferior product/service experience and 29% switched due to a poor in-store or online experience. Retailers should ensure seamless payments and prioritize personal expression, clear value positioning, loyalty programs, enabling technologies, and faster operations.
Read at MIT Sloan Management Review
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