Published on 11 Jun 2025
Rising wage costs, inflation, and ongoing skills shortages are putting pressure on retailers to reduce spend while still meeting fluctuating customer demand. Traditional staffing solutions, often managed by agencies, provide little transparency or flexibility - making it harder to plan shifts, control budgets, and retain reliable staff.
That’s where smarter retail workforce planning comes in. By rethinking how shifts are planned, staffed, and managed, retailers can keep operations running smoothly while gaining more control over labour costs.
In this article, we explore the key challenges retailers face, why traditional staffing models fall short, and how a flexible, digital-first approach can help businesses plan ahead with confidence.
Retailers in the UK are facing rising operational costs at the same time as growing labour shortages, making effective retail workforce planning more important than ever. Wage costs are climbing faster than the national average due to inflationary pressures and the need to attract staff in a highly competitive market.
In 2025, for example, pay in retail rose by 6.7%, from £11.44 per hour to £12.21 per hour. Roles such as warehouse operatives, delivery staff, and store associates are becoming more expensive to fill, directly increasing labour budgets.
At the same time, ongoing skills shortages continue to disrupt retail operations. Vacancy levels remain high, particularly in logistics and warehouse roles, forcing businesses to pay more to secure reliable staff during peak trading periods. Seasonal demand spikes, such as the run-up to Christmas or major promotions, make this even harder, as businesses struggle to plan ahead while keeping costs under control.
These pressures are compounded by broader economic uncertainty. High interest rates, inflation, and weaker consumer spending are putting retailers under intense margin pressure, leaving little room for inefficiency in workforce planning.
To stay competitive, businesses must rethink how they plan, schedule, and manage their workforce - balancing cost control with the ability to respond quickly to changing demand.
Despite the urgent need for smarter retail workforce planning, many businesses are still held back by outdated staffing models. Traditional agencies control both the selection of workers and the pricing structure, leaving retailers with little transparency into how costs are set or why certain candidates are chosen. This often results in paying more for less-qualified staff, putting additional strain on already tight budgets.
Hidden fees add to the problem. Traditional agencies frequently impose extra charges on top of wage rates, leaving retailers with limited visibility and little control over their true labour spend. Instead of being able to plan ahead with confidence, many businesses are forced to accept candidates at a premium, regardless of fit or cost-effectiveness.
Inflexibility is another major obstacle. Fixed pricing models and rigid processes make it difficult to adjust staffing levels to meet changing customer demand. Retailers can find themselves overpaying for workers during quieter periods or scrambling to secure last-minute cover during peak trading seasons. This lack of flexibility not only drives up costs but also undermines the ability to plan and schedule staff effectively.
Retailers need more than short-term fixes - they need a way to plan, schedule, and manage staff with greater visibility and control. That’s where a digital-first approach makes the difference. With Coople’s platform, businesses can take control of their workforce planning, reduce costs, and stay flexible in the face of changing demand.
Unlike traditional staffing agencies, Coople offers full transparency. Retailers set the hourly wage themselves, with no hidden fees or markups, making it easier to manage budgets. The platform also enables flexibility: jobs can be posted directly to a pool of qualified, vetted workers, allowing businesses to fill shifts quickly without being locked into rigid contracts. Favourite Pools, trusted groups of workers who can be rehired at short notice, further streamline planning and reduce onboarding costs.
Because workers are rated by previous employers and matched by Coople’s algorithm, retailers gain access to reliable staff they can bring back again and again. This combination of transparency, flexibility, and quality ensures that workforce planning becomes less about firefighting and more about building resilience.
With Coople, workforce planning in retail becomes more strategic and less reactive. Our platform gives you the tools to stay in control of costs while building a flexible, reliable workforce that adapts to your business needs.
Together, these advantages mean that retail workforce planning is no longer just about cutting costs. With Coople, it becomes a way to build resilience, stay flexible, and give your business a competitive edge.
Rising costs, labour shortages, and seasonal peaks will continue to challenge retailers — but with the right workforce planning strategy, you can stay ahead. Coople’s flexible platform gives you visibility over labour spend, access to a pool of vetted workers, and the tools to plan smarter, not just cheaper.
See how it works in practice. Register today to get instant access to the Coople platform, or watch our demo to discover how easy it is to plan, schedule, and manage your workforce with full transparency and flexibility.
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