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After a retail apocalypse, on-going spikes of Covid-19, and a world waking up to it’s own systematic racism, how do brands move forward? How do we entice consumers back to stores?

Covid-19 in combination with world wide on-going protests have changed a lot for consumers and their shopping behavior. Retailers have already needed to respond with expanded focus on ecommerce and shipping solutions but most in the industry agree that on-line sales, while growing, still did not make up for the loss of in-store sales. For most brands to survive, enticing consumers back to IRL locations is necessary for survival. Immediate changes around social distancing and sanitizing are necessary for the short-term but looking ahead the implications of the health crisis and social change are likely to push retailers toward innovation, agile inventory refills, and a new direction in staffing as well as a dramatic rethink of the environment (both corporate behavior as well as in-store) and brand purpose to capture a meaningful store experience that leaves a lasting impression and makes consumers feel good about spending time in a store again.

With bankruptcies , closing stores, and looting in the headlines on a daily basis, we must ask ourselves what will meaningful retail look like in the future and the answer is not just endless stores. It means heightened store experiences where people can engage with an ever-greater emphasis on digital, and a creatively integrated brand story with merchandise that answers the needs of the consumer. This is a massive transition for brick-and-mortar away from a simple point of distribution to a digitally integrated, thought provoking, storytelling space containing on-brand, in-season merchandise.

“Where we find ourselves today is at the end of the beginning of e-commerce” according the Doug Stephens, owner of retail consulting agency The Retail Prophet. Stephens told Retail Dive that we will continue to see a slow migration of sales move from IRL to e-commerce sites as new platforms and technologies emerge to allow for even more complex purchases virtually. Does this mean the death of brick-and-mortar? No, but stores must adapt and quickly.

PHYSICAL SPACE REIMAGINED

Post Covid-19, getting customers into the store will be even more challenging. We will see stores expand into sidewalks and parking lots enticing consumers to enter. There is a need to create more space or the feeling of more space which could translate to fewer fixtures and therefore fewer styles on the floor. Every style now holds more meaning and pressure to translate into a customer transaction. A more open space presents an opportunity for retailers to return to a model of exclusivity with more of a gallery like approach where each piece will feel rarer. This would be a quantum leap for US retailers that have made a habit of taking on massive amounts of inventory only to sell most at a discount, simultaneously devaluing brands while training customers to expect discounts at all times.

Norman Roberts, design director, FRCH Nelson told WWD, “Aesthetics-wise, retail is moving to a ‘less is more’ philosophy. Spaces will be minimal, simpler and flexible with open floor plans without designated aisles…There are a lot of stores that don’t have the right infrastructure. They need more flexibility.”

Surfaces need to be easy to clean and with little clutter to keep anxiety levels low. Colors should be simple and minimal with a focus on calming warm tones with happy connotations such as yellows, oranges, and amber. Nature will continue to bring a feeling of anti-anxiety to public environments so look for natural and reclaimed wood to remain in vogue as designated trims and focal locations as well as green plants to multiply. However, that perfectly weathered farm table may need to be reconsidered due to porous surface. Consider an intermediate material cover such as tempered glass. Going forward, look for metal surfaces such as silver, copper, brass, and bronze which all carry anti-microbial properties.

Revolutionary brand Neighborhood Goods is setting the stage for the flexible retail environment of tomorrow. Sleek yet mobile, flexible fixtures are an important planning element to the brands aesthetic and allows them to accommodate an ever-changing brand and product assortment. The fledgling retailer has adopted both flexibility and technology to outperform the competition including fixture innovations, magnetized wall hangings, and a slew of technology advancements. Large fixtures are on wheels and easily broken apart and reconfigured. Magnetized walls allow for lightning speed transformation of wall hanging fixtures possibilities with a clean and clutter-free aesthetic. All of this mobility also supports event coordination and allows the necessary flexibility to be cleared or redesign spaces quickly for events, and then returned to support daily functions seamlessly.

In a country with roughly 22.5 square feet of retail space per capita (more than any other country) retailers have a lot to think about. Gone are days of set-it-and-forget-it retail stores. The notion of building a store and leaving it alone for 5-10 years without an update is a thing of the past. There needs to be shift away from massive rollouts of new stores each year and instead focusing on updating and refreshing current stores.

ARTFUL/EMOTIONAL APPROACH

As explored in my article, Future of Design, I argue that the best path forward is through a thoughtful and artful approach laced with creativity, originality, and emotion to bring much needed newness and a fresh perspective to appeal to a modern consumer. The emotional experience needs to extend beyond the initial design into a complementary retail space to create an immersive experience that ultimately drives sales.

Few would deny that Instagram has become an integrated technology into the modern retail experience. The app has taken store design to new levels. “Do it for the ‘gram” is now a focus of many brand managers and store designers with the understanding that beautiful curations of product and art inspire shareability. Almira Cuizon, VP retail operations at Roots said it best, “If customers don’t want to take pictures in your store, they’re not talking about you, So make them talk about you.”

Selfridges is a retailer that has proven a success of the artful approach with year-over-year increases in 2019 of 6% in a time when most are in the red. Taking a closer look at their model demonstrates a multi-pronged approach to its strategy and has chosen to invest in both physical and digital sales channels. Their in-store strategy highlights and promotes art and community as a way to excite consumers, connect with community, and drive traffic. Namely they launched a major campaign that spanned the majority of 2019 entitled, “State of the Arts” in which the store explores questions such as, What is the state of art today? How can it enhance community? What role does it have in our lives? Through this exploration of media and art they’ve blurred the lines between retail and gallery spaces, art and impact by featuring 9 commissioned artists all of which created installations worth making a trip to see. Eventually the installations are to be placed around the city of London tethering Selfridges to beautifying the city and connecting with community.

Additionally, carving out a large dedicated high traffic area featuring collaborations with upcoming and brand building names like HighSnobiety as well as Alyx and Moncler and a collaboration between Highsnobiety and Maison Margiela. They redesigned a dedicated streetwear room with accompanying skateboard bowl that came with professional skateboarders offering lessons to capitalize on streetwear sales.

Another major distinction worth recognition is quality over quantity. Operating only four stores globally, Selfridges has focused on upgrading and updating continuously allowing for an agility, newness and experience driven strategy. Perhaps we should embrace a future with only one or two Macy’s, or Neiman’s. The rarity making each a true destination.

MEANINGFUL

For decades brands stayed neutral on all topics of purpose, impact, or politics. Driven by a want to service everyone and a fear of alienating anyone, brand purpose was watered down to fluffy generic topics such as “convenience”, “prices” or, luxury model of “we make pretty things that are rare.” Shareholders were the sole focus of all advertising dollars and brands that strayed from this model risked plummeting stocks and ousted CEOs. Today consumers, shareholders, employees, and supply chains have collectively demanded social impact of companies. Thus marking a meaningful and historic shift from self-serving leadership to community serving leadership.

To say that the brands chasing “lowest everyday price” are going away would be incorrect and naive. There will always be a consumer for the cheapest option but competition is stiff and it’s an ugly spiral to the bottom with few left standing when they get there. For most brands, being the cheapest isn’t an option and hopefully isn’t the goal. So how does a brand stand out? Why should a consumer visit your website or click on your product if found floating in the vat ethos of Amazon? The answer is meaningful brand purpose.

At the end of the day brands need to find a way to cut through the noise and speak their truth to a consumer eager to spend money with brands that share their values. The narrative once dominated by government is now lead by brands. The future will be dominated by brands that stand for positive change and a better future.

SEAMLESS TECH INTEGRATION

Emerging technologies continue to drive digital disruption. Two points of focus post covid-19 will be automated inventory solutions and frictionless shopping to increase retailers’ efficiencies, consumer convenience, and store experience.

If there is anything we’ve learned during covid-19, it’s the true costs of carrying endless inventory. Dead stock inventory is estimated to cost the U.S. retail industry as much as $50 billion a year. Advanced retailers like Walmart are also integrating data analytics into every touchpoint of their business, including sales predictions, store optimization and product recommendations, consumer demographics, and behavior tracking as well as in-store analytics and reporting.

Neighborhood Goods has made a thriving business of understanding and sharing their data with their in-store brand partners by currently offering them weekly shopper data (soon to be real-time data and analytics). Data goes well beyond the products sold and color preferences to reveal the true demographic such as age and sex, extending to whether they are more likely to turn left when they walk in the door. Tracking other products and mapping consumer touch points throughout stores can lead brands to knowledge of truest demographic and clarity around competitors as well as possible future partnerships to scale businesses faster.

Modern beauty brand, GLOSSIER, is another to watch. Coming from a technology-based foundation building on a robust on-line following, owner Jessica Wiess built her physical stores as an extension to the on-line experience mastering the omnichannel touch points with a knowledgeable staff armed with tablet POS systems that order directly to an in-house stockroom for you to pick up on your way out. There are no cumbersome checkout lines and consumers can snap a perfectly curated insta shot on their way out the door.

As consumers become more attuned to seamless experiences (and possibilities that tech can enhance their lives) the expectations become greater. The successful integration of technologies will be a key determinate of success in the decade to come.

PERCEPTION OF SAFETY

The trend for the past decade has been to build an atmosphere that encourages customers to linger and socialize. Integrating coffee shops and seating areas are the norm. Going forward stores need to reconfigure their spaces for the cleanest, safest, most efficient shopping. Several phases of safety may be necessary to deliver the peace of mind necessary to get consumers back in store.

Setting customers at ease with a visible and deliberate plan for sanitizing products and surfaces is the most immediate and first phase of several changes necessary. This includes clear posted direction of store policy on cleaning and traffic flow as well as visible and marked bins for merchandise that has been “handled/contaminated” for cleaning before being restocked. Additionally, implementing communication that items have been cleaned recently and regularly can ease tensions. Advanced solutions, or second phase options, include in-store personal interaction with product followed by touchless and sanitized delivery directly to homes.

Dave Gilboa, co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker told FastCompany “associates will sanitize pieces of eyewear before and after a customer tries them on. He believes that showing of cleanliness is important not only for staying safe but also for giving customers peace of mind.”

Now is also the time to consider air quality with upgrades to HVAC and air filtration systems. This will reduce the air containing microorganisms and help with how air quality feels. We may even see retailers completely rethinking how to show off or emphasize air filtrations as part of a store upgrade. Imagine an HVAC in a clear lucite container as the new modern focal point for a store. Think the Pompidou reimagined.

INTUITIVE

With consumers uneasy to enter stores, layouts need to be planned for intuitive product placement allowing customers to get in and out quickly allowing for a seamless experience. That in mind, it is more important than ever to get to know your consumer to better predict patterns and organize accordingly.

Merchandising updates will be necessary to solve for traffic flow. Pre-coronavirus merchandising entailed boutique displays of chic offerings usually dense collections of grouped products that served as a statement of seasonal trend while simultaneously forming a larger color story. That was fine in a time when patrons could stand shoulder-to-shoulder. Going forward, smaller groupings of product distributed in several areas will be necessary to avoid bottlenecking. Individual grouping of products will still need to complement the larger powerful brand/trend story and thus allow for meaningful merchandising while spreading customers to a safe distance.

RENEWED STAFFING FOCUSAfter a decade of decreasing sales associates in stores to the point of extinction, finding tumble weeds in places formerly occupied by store associates, we will see increased importance on retail staff hiring and training. The good and bad of retail is that it’s a social experience. Interacting with products is one thing but the customer service offered in store is the distinguishing factor that sets brick-and-mortar apart from on-line.

Neil Boyarsky, cofounder and CEO of Bandier, spoke to FastCompany about their focus on retail staffing and their importance of customer relationships post pandemic. He explained customers are talking to their local store associate about their needs over the phone, staff members then send products for customers to try at home. “We’re going back to old-fashioned clienteling,” says Boyarsky.

Going forward consumers will surely not be pleased to find themselves standing in long checkout lines feeling crowded and uneasy. A solution entails a seamless 1:1 customer service experience from start to finish. Louis Vuitton and Virgil Abloh have already demonstrated this service model at their pop up in NYC at Chrome Hearts. The pop up shop has come and gone but it left a lasting impression where they held customers in line till a designated “retail stylist” became available and escorted you through the artful space adapting to each individual shoppers’ needs and armed with knowledge of a wide range of topics such as inspiration, design details, and pricing. The 1:1 interaction ensured all questions were answered and held the number of customers in the stores to a controlled number. Each staff member facilitated portable checkouts for a seamless experience. This level of attention is extreme but gives an indication of where the luxury market stands and the importance that staff has on a resonating customer experience.

Neighborhood Goods owner boasts robust employee education including proper training on all brands as well as focus on hospitality. They have rethought the hiring of staff with fewer members that are compensated well with an above-average wage and good benefits. Staff is therefore not influenced by commission-based sales. Results show increased customer satisfaction.

SEASONALITY RESET

Put the right merchandise in the store when the customer needs it. Sounds simple, right? One would think, however, fashion has long been on a path headed in the wrong direction adding seasons and deliveries to the calendar that few could explain. Example: Resort collections also known as cruise, AKA Pre-Spring landing in Nov/Dec and lasting on floor longer than better known/viewed Spring seasons. Same goes for pre-fall, which is really a summer delivery. All this demonstrating toxic behavior leading the industry to delivering wool coats on the floor in Aug and swimwear in Dec.

As reported in BOF, Belgian designer Dries Van Noten along with a forum of retailers and brands have released an open letter to the industry calling for fashion to realign deliveries with real-world seasons and to rethink on-going markdowns strategies. The group went on to request that seasons change pushing the Autumn/Winter to August through January and Spring/Summer to February through July. They also wish for their retail partners to contain sales promotion to the true end of season, January and July.

This calls on all buyers across omnichannel operations to dramatically rethink their seasonal buying strategy. It could mean the end of the holiday extravaganza markdown days like Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Singles Day. Retailers should reevaluate whether the traffic generated by sales is worth margin deterioration and damaged brand equity for labels and retailers alike.

A wise man, Daniel Defoe, once made mention there are no guarantees in life beyond death and taxes. We would be wise to upend the quote to include “change”. In modern times, there is truly nothing more evident. The retail industry is transforming through a period of unprecedented change. The mission going forward in our “new normal” is to implement on-going and meaningful change to our store environments that allows consumers to feel good about spending their precious time there. They must be courted as guests by a professional and knowledgeable staff, put at ease with visible cleanliness, immersed by a brands emotional and artful story, impressed with a selection of curated in-season thoughtful merchandise and seamlessly sent on their way.

Written by: Rachael Bennett

Business Highlights:

http://www.rachaelbennettstudio.com/newsletter-industry-insights/futureofdesign

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https://www.retaildive.com/news/the-future-of-retail-what-2020-and-beyond-will-bring-to-the-industry/569615/

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https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/recasting-stores-in-a-pandemic-and-its-aftermath-1203634719/