Melissa Fryback on 18 April 2010 at 12:53 PM in The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)
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Melissa Fryback on 29 March 2010 at 11:06 PM in The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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While some might not consider it "breaking retail news" we thought it was worth a shout-out to a retailer who is doing an amazing job of engendering loyalty among its shoppers (and increasing basket size) simply by embodying the values of their brand.
This past weekend my children put on a shoe drive for Haiti at Lululemon Athletica's store in Portland, Oregon. They wanted to actually DO something to help the victims of the earthquake, and - since they didn't have any money of their own - ended up organizing the kids in my son's Cub Scout pack to collect up shoes to help the Soles4Souls program, a nonprofit that collects new and gently worn shoes in the US and distributes them to needy people around the world. With the kids organized and the charity selected, the only thing left was to determine a date and a place to do it.
That's where Lululemon Athletica came to the rescue. I regularly go on a long run Saturdays with a wonderful group of people, and many of those runs are hosted by Lululemon. They provide a place to meet, a bathroom, snacks, water, and a lovely 15% discount off everything in the store for the day. That generosity alone has kept me loyal to their brand, but their support for the shoe drive truly embodied the "global brand, local presence" values of the retailer: without requiring special approval or a lot of rigamarole, the store manager and staff invited us to host the shoe drive in their store. While many retailers support community events like this, Lululemon truly went above and beyond by setting up a table for my kids, Tweeting about the drive and even creating an event for it on Facebook! The exposure was the perfect complement to our own actions, and as a result of Lululemon's help, my kids collected over 150 pair of shoes in just a matter of hours!
I could just simply thank Lululemon Athletica here for really going above and beyond for a couple of kids, but in the bigger picture this retailer shows clearly how to create and keep brand loyalty:
In a 2009 NRF blog post, Lululemon CEO Christine Day shared her thoughts on what differentiates the retailer from its competition. Our experience with the store manager last Saturday was a perfect embodiment of these ideals. I didn't have to fill out a form or go through "community relations"... They simply wanted to help, so they just made it happen.
One of the hot buzzwords at NRF this year was "social media," and the irony is that for all the talk, very few retailers understand what it means to be truly SOCIAL. Just as Facebook is more than a one way channel for promotions of products and coupons (note: if that's how your brand uses it... it's called a "Web site," not social media), shoppers need to feel that they are a part of something other than a fabricated marketing campaign... they need to be invited to participate in the brand. And this is part of what Lululemon has done that is so fresh and exciting: shoppers not only feel a part of a stylish global brand community, they also feel at home there. It's truly a global brand with a local presence.
150 pairs of shoes collected by my children only makes a small dent in a massive crisis in Haiti, but if more retailers embrace the spirit of Lululemon Athletica, shoppers will not only be able to make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate around the world, they'll also be able to enjoy supporting a great brand while they do it.
Melissa Fryback on 01 March 2010 at 10:07 PM in The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
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Melissa Fryback on 21 February 2010 at 02:30 PM in The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
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Danny Gottleib on 12 February 2010 at 07:00 PM in Retail Innovation Trends, The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Many retailers fail to understand the importance of the fitting room, instead opting to give their customers a glorified closet - a small, five-by-five room with roughly two hooks, and a few mirrors at the end of the hall. The incredible potential for the fitting room is overlooked by many, to the detriment of their own profits.
So it’s up to each individual retailer to figure out how to balance providing too much assistance to the customer and not providing enough. You obviously want your customer to end up spending more at your store than they intended, but you also don’t want them leaving feeling as if they were pressured into trying on clothes they didn't want or donating their life savings to a cult. There idea is for retailers to transform their fitting rooms from what is essentially a broom closet with a hook on the wall into an essential part of the shopping experience, and create an experience so exciting people tell their friends about it.
Now that we've given you the bad news about the state of the dressing room, stay tuned for part two where we discuss how to change things: from new innovations in lighting to new technologies that make mirrors seem magic. Stay tuned!
Danny Gottleib on 09 February 2010 at 07:23 PM in Retail Innovation Trends, The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Melissa Fryback on 13 December 2009 at 10:11 PM in The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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The holidays have arrived and it's time for me to make that traditional annual visit! No, not to grandma's house... but to the mall! Here in the United States and abroad malls (aka "shopping centres") have a similar vibe, format and purpose: Provide a disparate collection of chain stores under one "roof, a big box category killer or two, and anchor it all with a couple department stores or hypermarkets at the ends. It's a model that worked well for many decades, but like so many things in retail... is struggling in the "new normal" of 21st century retailing. According to Georgia Tech professor Ellen Dunham-Jones, coauthor of Retrofitting Suburbia, beginning in the mid 1990's, a decline in tenant occupancy began, suggesting shoppers were beginning to shy away from the tried and true mall model. A downward spiral began: vacant store windows and shuttered doors meant fewer choices for shoppers, leading many of them to look elsewhere, and the decline in foot traffic lead to even more vacancies, starting the cycle anew.
Now add in a global recession with an unprecedented number of retailers closing up stores: suddenly the sprinkling of vacant space "available for lease" has become in some cases whole corridors or even the entire mall. There's even an entire website dedicated to mourning the passing of shopping malls.
So how are malls trying to stave off demise or even prosper? Promotions? Increased advertising? Retrofitting? All of these are parts of the solution, but truly if that's all it takes, why are so many malls still going under or suffering so badly?
While there are many new ideas for how retailers can embrace new formats (and we'll be exploring several of them here on the GREC blog), this posting is about a particular concept that's rising in popularity all over the world: the pop-up store. According to RetailTraffic, the pop-up is where a retailer is allowed to sign a temporary lease lasting anywhere from two months to six months. Mall owners have pushed hard against this trend - preferring the perceived stability of long-term leases - but given the rising vacancy rates and big-box store closings, more and more are seeing the value in changing their mindset.
Pop-up retail isn't about the calendar/game stands or Halloween costume stores that spring into being during the holiday seasons or the ubiquitous kiosks selling everything from faux hair extensions to emulational sleeping kittens... pop-up implies something more...
I saw it in a mall in Hong Kong: A strikingly beautiful all glass building temporarily erected right in the middle of the main floor. The merchandise was unique graphic t-shirts artfully arranged as if in a museum. The entire roof was signage, announcing to the 7 floors of escalators that it was, indeed, the "I.TXX POP UP STORE" in unmistakable language. In short... it had my attention.
What makes the pop-up different isn't just that it's temporary; there are three major types of pop-up that are now gaining popularity:
So why is pop-up retailing the "big idea" that reinvents the mall and gets retailers and shoppers back into the mall space? Because pop-up retailing changes the rules: the store is an event - not just a destination. And this new paradigm gives retailers the flexibility to try new things, delight their customers, and create a sense of urgency without the "sale prices end Friday!!!!" hype. And I'll add one other point to that... consumers EXPECT more from the shopping experience - even in existing formats - so adding a pop-up experience to how shoppers see your brand can lead to increased sales in your existing stores as well.
And for extra customer satisfaction: for all of us who face this holiday season with lowered expectations, fully prepared for another trip to the mall to see the same tired holiday displays and "Black Friday" sale prices on the way to see Santa, surprise and delight us... Give us an incredible pop-up experience, and use a combination of social media and a mobile retail experience to lead us there to shop!
Melissa Fryback on 17 November 2009 at 10:17 PM in Mobile Retailing, Retail Innovation Trends, The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
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My post today is strictly based on retail DESIRE - not observation about what is happening in the world of retail. So read my musings if you like... this blog is meant to provide insight, hopefully inspire, and maybe even incite a lil' rebellion. And this entry is about shoe shopping... no not the pretty kind, but the functional kind, where the shopping experience could use a little improvement.
I tend to get my best ideas while out running, which means I spend a lot of time running trying to keep my creative juices flowing. Well, all that running takes a toll on my feet and shoes, and despite knowing that recent blisters and sore joints were caused by the cushion in my running shoes being completely worn out, I went many, many more miles on them than I should have. So I took the time today to purchase a new pair.
At a recent race I'd managed to pick up a coupon for 10% off at a local running store (without an expiration date mind you), and after finding the (of course printed) coupon in the junk drawer of my kitchen, I thought I'd take them up on the offer and buy a new pair from them.
Thinking ahead I called the store to make sure that they had my brand, in my size, and in stock. The result... a resouding NO. So they lost the sale. Now I don't speak for every hard core runner out there, but I have been wearing the same Saucony Omni 8's for the past 4 years and I am a brand loyalist. I wouldn't trust my feet in anything else. They manage my pronation, help keep me relatively injury free, and achieve some personal running bests! I'm not about to switch now. They retail for $110 and IF I can get 10% off somewhere and they have them in stock, they have my sale.
SO here's where I begin to think about the retail experience and where the loyalty to brand and the consumer experience could get FAR better in my opinion. Knowing what I know about running shoes, I should be getting new shoes about every 300 to 500 miles (there are a lot of variables to how many miles, but I won't deep dive here...) and I know that I like to track and log my progress.
Recently I began to use an app in Facebook called RunLogger to do this and I also know that there are several mobile apps that do that AND log for you. Many phones are GPS enabled and will tell you quite a bit about your run. THAT is fantastic! But these applications could do so much more...
What if - during that time period where I was likely to need new shoes - I was messaged by a nearby retailer and told that they have my Saucony Omni 8's in a size 8.5 in stock to either ship to me or come into the store to buy? If they wanted me to come in the store and try to upsell me on a few other goodies instead of just having my new shoes delivered, they could offer simple services like an analysis of my last pair of shoes (a review of how they are wearing, any injuries had since the last purchase, etc.) or free pair of socks to sweeten the deal. They could even make it time sensitive - my own personal "one week only sale" to get my 10% off.
And where is the natural place to reach out and touch me with a retail offer based around my running habit? MY PHONE OF COURSE!!!
So I ask you, what other things in your life do you routinely need? Milk? Diapers? Cereal? Toilet paper? Shampoo? Where does your loyalty as a consumer lie - to the brand or to the retailer? Especially with products where you KNOW how much you use and when? And what do you as a retailer really KNOW about those habits? Probably a LOT, but you aren't using that information to help me buy more, or more frequently, or higher end products.
As mobile applications create a new model for consumers to share data with retailers - and profit from the sharing, retailers need a new engagement model that spans ALL the touchpoints with shoppers - from their inbox to Facebook to their mobile phone. And don't forget, some of us rely near exclusively on the mobile versions of sites like Facebook... and if your strategy is to simply buy ads there, guess what? We don't even see them...
In the end, I bought my shoes at another store - and paid full price. They had great in store service - but the only reason I even found out about that was the simplest retail draw of all: they had my shoes in stock when I called!
And one parting thought: When I went up to the counter, they asked my name and looked me up in their CRM system... but as far as I could tell, didn't do anything at all with that little morsel. Remember, retailers: if you ask us for info, use it to help us. And a note to that particular retailer: you've got 300 miles to figure out how to get me back for the next pair of shoes...
Melissa Fryback on 30 September 2009 at 03:35 PM in Mobile Retailing, The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Just this last week, a whole batch of discount cards meant to entice me into their stores came via my physical mailbox... Some offered a percentage off, others with a modest cash discount. From the looks of it, my first purchase needs to be a bigger wallet to hold all of these cards!
Everything from reward cards to gift cards to loyalty cards are scattered around my house, my car and in many of my purses. And the most painful part of it all? I NEVER seem to have the ones I need when I am out shopping!!! So this morning I took a pick of my most recently acquired assortment and began considering... What good are they all to me OR the retailer if I never use them? I count my nickels as much as the next guy, but realistically I'm not going keep a 2" thick rubber band bundled collection of plastic cards in my purse! OK... Maybe with the exception of my daily used Starbucks Gold Card...
AND that said... Just this morning the NY Times Gadgetwise Blog a glimmer of hope was offered based on a mobile phone-based test Starbucks in running in several stores. I'm delighted to read this and I don't think it's too far fetched to say that soon I'd love to be able to ORDER my special "grande, nf, 3 pump, no whip mocha" without having to even state it and PAY with a simple swipe of my mobile! Heck, my phone is the one item I can always guarantee retailers I'll have on me!!!Starbucks is joining a rapidly growing number of retailers that understand and are preparing for the implications of billions of smartphone-armed shoppers in their stores. The Global Retail Executive Council has partnered with CTIA for the inaugural GREC Mobile Retail Experience™. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience mobile retailing both on the show floor in the dynamic and innovative "Tag Your IT!" pavilion and in an exciting and informative conference tracking featuring a range of topics of critical importance to both industries.
So if you’re a retailer and want to be in the know, please join GREC in San Diego - Wednesday, October 7 and listen to a dynamic lineup of speakers covering the gamut of issues faced by retailers exploring this mobile shoppers realm. www.mobileretailexperience.com And if you don’t... at least get ready to start thinning out your wallet!!!
Melissa Fryback on 23 September 2009 at 12:49 PM in Mobile Retailing, The Retail Experience | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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