The Magic of Retail
At BEL, we like to experience the current state of retail for ourselves so that we better understand the landscape and see the obstacles brands are facing. Our reoccurring retail walkabouts involve an afternoon of field research scoping out the latest and greatest retail displays, paying special attention to new, tech-driven retail solutions. This hands-on delve into the current retail climate allows BEL to better assess and provide top-end retail solutions for different brands’ needs. Check-in on Retail Roundup every other Monday for updates and insights from our walkabouts!
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” – Arthur C. Clarke
My favorite part of walkabouts is experiencing the true magic of retail. There’s something so unique and memorable about walking into a store that just makes you go “wow.” Why? Because it’s rare.
Most stores meet expectations. Clean changing rooms, helpful staff, clean displays, easy navigation; But very rarely do customers walk away with a sense of wonder from what they’ve seen. Retail has followed the same formats for the last 20 years, but now, people are hungry for experiences. They’re looking to interact with brands and looking to walk away with that “wow” factor. Retailtainment has become more and more important as Covid slows and we see an increase in foot traffic at brick-and-mortar stores as people flow back out of their homes. The technology is here. Retailers and brands just need to stretch their visions on how it can be incorporated. Brands everywhere should be asking the important question, “how do I captivate my audience?”
Our latest walkabout focused on finding the magic. We visited dozens of stores, seeking out those that created these experiences for customers.
First, we found palm-scanning technology at the Amazon 4-Star store, the brick-and-mortar shop for Amazon that houses select products with 4-star reviews and above. The technology analyzes the customer’s palm up to minute characteristics such as lines and ridges and vein patterns. The biometric scan is then tied to a physical credit card. After the initial scan, customers can forevermore pay with a wave of their palm, a much faster payment form than digging through your wallet for a credit card. While Amazon One is still limited to Amazon stores only on the East Coast (the technology is rolling out into Whole Foods stores in Seattle for testing), Amazon has plans to stretch their tech to outfit stadiums, retailers, office buildings and more.
Our second find was Showfields, self-dubbed “the most interesting store in the world.” In terms of an immersive retail experience, this pretty much hit it on the head. Showfields’ goal is to demonstrate the power of offline shopping; They offer themselves as a brick-and-mortar platform for small e-commerce businesses that cannot afford to expand to full-scale storefronts. I could dedicate an entire article to this store alone, but here are the standout moments from our visit:
On our trip, Showfields was trying out a new wand-tapping technology. To add onto the magic theme, customers pick up a wand at the door and activate it by entering their email address. The wand allows the customer to access special offers and the “secret door” hidden throughout the store.
Why does this matter? Showfields has found a unique way to solve the common struggle of collecting customer information from physical store locations. While online shopping delivers brands a host of customer contact information, physical locations struggle to produce the same data. Similar to a pop-up box offering a discount code in exchange for your email, Showfields deploys the same upfront email-capture method.
And they’re smart about it. First, by offering in-store-only rewards and the chance to discover the elusive “secret door,” they not only collect the data, but increase the amount of time customers spend in their store attempting to collect these offers and experiences. Second, by introducing the offers at the door, it creates an unspoken map, setting up the customer to browse the entire store. Let me explain.
We walked around the store waving the wand over coded items to learn more. Hidden amongst all the codes were 3 different offers, 2 discounts and 1 code for the secret door. Once the code for the secret door was discovered (on the first floor), it directed you straight to the third floor if you wanted to find the door. The secret door is placed in the last room on the third floor, ensuring customers walk through the entire display. Once the door is opened, there’s a hidden slide that takes you down to the second floor, again at the end of the store, ensuring customers must walk through the entire space before reaching the stairs that lead to the exit.
Slide Entrance and Exit
None of it feels forced. Unlike a Bed Bath and Beyond or IKEA, the space is not set up to where you HAVE to walk through all of it. The beauty of Showfields is that it’s all by choice. It feels exciting, magical, and very much captures the “wow” factor a true shopping experience should entail.