Nurun published a useful trend report on the future of retail defining . They define Six trends that they think will shape the future of retail.
1.) Social Product Discovery, Consideration and Evaluation
2.) Product placement morphs into content and commerce
3.) Integrated Expansion of the Omni-channel
4.)The New Geography of Merchandising
5.) I’ll trade my privacy for a 5 dollar coupon
6.) Sophisticated Frugality
For the whole report Digital for real life
It was just a matter of time and now it it is reality. The chinese are here to stay also in retail innovation!
A 2000sqm combined bookstore, fashion retailer and gallery has been named the world’s best designed store of 2012.
Fangsuo Commune in Guangzhou, China, was judged the best from some 100 entreis from all over the world. The massive store, which encourages shoppers to visit to rlax and ‘hang out’ as well as to shop, aso features a cafe, home living collection and space for special cultural events.
Because I haven’t published that much this month I will therefore give you a wrap-up of the most interesting things I already twittered with some explanation why I consider it interesting.
1. Sleep above the store at Maison Rika in Amsterdam
A guest room above a store? What is more engaging than being so close to the store the brand and its story.
2. Small businesses can sell their product at Target
3. The first ’Start up store’ opened its doors in New York
Individualism and an uncertain employment market infuses the rise of a new mercantile class. Retail concepts that offer more niche products/services and takes the (new) small entrepreneurs serious will be winners.
4. Top shop bus service to promote new store
If viral marketing is the word, than this ‘billboard’ bus that drives you to the new shop location is a winner.
5. Radio Shack recognize it roots and starts a community site
Acknowledge your heritage by giving your first fans a platform to meet and share knowledge is a wise marketing move for every brand. When this platform is all about creating, it’s spot on the current trends.
6. Swap vending machine
Now the environment and the crisis are dictating the way we think about consumption. New (commercial) initiatives around swapping are more relevant than ever.
7. JC Penny’s groundbreaking (price) strategy
In a time that service seems to be a must and price is leading. Thinking different about pricing your product can be a great way to keep the lead.
Brands have teamed up with famous individual designers or other brands for a while now, but Swedish retailer H&M taken this trend a step further by developing a clothing line for the book and movie Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The line was launched with a pop-up shop in the Meatpacking district in NYC, open only from December 14th to the 18th, 2011. This cross-promotion also refers back to the brands’ Swedish origins and celebrates a cultural path with an unconventional theme and attitude. Integrating brands and cultural events is a promising trend that benefits everyone involved, and is ideal for customers who are open to identifying with popular characters or social movements. We fully expect to see more of these cross-promotional activities as brands look to integrate themselves further into their customers’ lifestyle.
I really love the list of 12 things to watch out for in 2012 by marketing agency Idea works shown in the last message. So I thought it would be nice to illustrate it by a slide show with examples.
Many are interpretations of what I think suits the point others are already being mentioned by Idea works.
For the the list and explanation of all points click here
Starbucks seems to enter a new stage in their recycle design experiments. In the company’s hometown Seattle the coffee chain is opening its’ first store made of used shipping containers. The containers are actually the discarded ones being used to import tea and coffee.
In the New York Times Starbucks says that the eco-friendly concept may lead to more shipping container stores, but keeps the possibility open that it can also be a one of a kind experiment. The store is drive-up and walk-up only with no space to lounge inside. Just another experiment that makes the brand, that almost felt victim to blandness, interesting again.
via Seattle PI
My stats show me that people are always very interested in predictions of the future. Thinking about the future is significant, but bare in mind that our capability to think about it is limited by our knowledge of today. Disruptions in technology and culture can make a prediction of the near future totally ridiculous or very old fashioned in retrospect.
The Internet is a recent example that changed retail in ways we never expected and not long ago thought impossible. Mobile is already doing the same in a very short time. And if the technology is in some sort of way quite accurate than cultural and social changes makes the prediction almost comical or satiric.
Culture but also economy and politics are the other big driving forces of change that can be so unpredictable. The (spending) power of women, global migration and recently the economical crisis’s are generators or catalyser of change.
I gathered some cool, funny and remarkable examples of predictions about retail from the past. Some are almost spot on, others are falls or completely ridiculous.
Stunning prediction of on line shopping but in the future classic role models are still going strong in household according this short film.
This high tech department store from the 80′s wasn’t promoted because of the Technophobia in this decade.
“On-line shopping isn’t possible!” Was one of the opinions back in the 80’s of last century.
