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EuroCommerce was pleased to see that the recently published report of the High-Level Group on Retail Competitiveness (HLGRC), takes on board many of the points which it has been putting as priorities for concrete action. It would like to see the group's recommendations implemented soon by the Commission, and some follow-up to the group's work considered.

Commenting on the report, EuroCommerce Director-General Christian Verschueren today said: "The completion of this work by the High-Level Group is an important milestone. As a sector that counts for 1 in 4 businesses and 1 in 7 jobs in the EU, and interacts with its 500 million European consumers, retail and wholesale can play a crucial role in European recovery. The work of the High-Level Group rightfully sheds light on this important sector, and on some issues it faces in Europe."

There has been real progress since the Commission set up the European Retail Action Programme (ERAP) and the High-Level Group. In particular, EuroCommerce welcomes the emphasis on:

• addressing remaining barriers to the single market such as restrictions on establishment, supply competition, or gold-plated product requirements such as labelling;
• the importance of e-commerce and the digital economy as a transformation factor of the sector;
• the significant innovation that takes place in retail and wholesale;
• the many SMEs in the sector and their challenges.

On the other hand, EuroCommerce regrets that the High-Level Group has not produced a more strategic report on the future trends and drivers of retail and wholesale competitiveness. Also, a more in-depth analysis on SMEs and the challenges they face, would have better illustrated the richness and diversity they bring to the European economy. Finally, the recommendations on innovation tend to focus on EU research programmes, whilst lifting regulatory and other single market barriers would have a far greater effect in stimulating innovation in the sector.

Highlighting scope for future work, Verschueren concluded: "We encourage the Commission to build upon this work and fill some of the gaps we have identified. For example, we suggest that the Commission consults with other players in retail and wholesale to enrich the perspectives. We would also recommend the Commission to conduct an in-depth strategic study on the retail and wholesale sector, to help guide future policymaking."