IORMA solidifies its reach with Johannesburg office launch

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This serves as a hub for businesses wanting to understand local and global consumer trends. It has offices in major international markets including Dubai and, with offices being set up in the US, China and Brazil.

Members include retailers, manufacturers, financial organisations, telecoms, logistic, technology, consulting, marketing, and market research organizations; consumer interest groups, governments and academia - any organisation or individual based anywhere in the world with an interest in global consumer commerce.

Omnichannel commerce provides experience continuity across brands and points of engagement. Brand owners need to consider how to empower all consumers in every environment, across any platform. Consumers today are seldom loyal to one brand; they are loyal only to their own experiences and to whomever (point of sale, website or brand) assists them to select, research, communicate and pay for products in a seamless fashion, and to receive customer care, both on & offline.

The South African hub, led by Alastair Tempest, opens up a world of possibilities for those businesses that are looking at Africa as a growth region.

"I'm pleased to have this opportunity to get IORMA established in Africa as a resource for the African omni retailer. We will be setting up an Advisory Council to help identify the issues we will be looking at, which include tapping into and taking part in international research, holding round-tables, identifying information which will be to the benefit of omni retailers here in Africa. A number of the biggest South African retailers are investing heavily in other African countries and IORMA will be there as a global resource. We also plan to act specifically as a centre for African e-commerce players," says Tempest.