Pop-up retail is all about generating excitement and buzz. Guerilla marketing at its ubiquitous best, pop-ups rely on a product-relevant location, well-placed PR and word of mouth amplified through social media. Now popular with retailers entering new markets (Target), testing new waters (Nordstrom), leveraging seasonal demand (Ebay) or launching limited edition collections (Roots XL) they are aimed squarely at consumer influencers , early adopters, fashionistas and brand devotees. Typically, these orchestrated brand experiences are active selling spaces with the added benefit of old-fashioned showmanship and product interactivity. However, the latest pop-up to appear on King St. West in Toronto, the[…]
Gentrification of Leslieville – Good for retail!
As the news circulated this week that a new store, Good Neighbour, is opening soon in Leslieville, it’s apparent that the neighbourhood is continuing on its expected gentrification trajectory. Critics might say that this is one more nail in the coffin, for the accessibility of the neighbourhood. I believe it’s a natural and positive progression. And a good thing for retail. Gentrification: a bad word? (Or the natural order of things?) By definition, gentrification is the renewal or transformation of urban working class neighbourhoods into middle or even upper-class neighbourhoods. The term can conjure fear and ire in long-time[…]
Retail Visibility = Customer Accessibility
Vision is what propels us forward in the world. When something enticing is within our sight line, we automatically believe that it is accessible to us and we will move consciously or unconsciously towards it. So, in the world of retail, what is visible to the customer is accessible to the customer: visibility = accessibility. From our early beginnings walking upright, we have used our visual acuity to scan the horizon for prey and predators, zeroing in on both opportunities and threats. With over one quarter of our brain involved in visual perception and 70% of the body’s sense receptors[…]
Display windows: TIFF on display
Storefronts may be billboards that express retailers’ brands but it is display windows that ultimately speak directly to the shopper on a more intimate level. Display windows are an opportunity for the retailer to make a compelling statement that captivates the shopper’s attention, generates excitement and entices customers into their stores. They are also an opportunity to connect with the community by reflecting what is most relevant to customers in that moment – whether it’s back to school time, the cusp of a new season, a holiday or a local event. It seems that the Toronto International Film[…]
New retail: Shoppers feeding food deserts
Food deserts, by definition are neighbourhoods where there are few or no food stores within convenient proximity. Depending upon the source, the definition varies, often including socio-economic factors (income, culture and ethnicity) or delineating between healthy and non-healthy food options, as well as affordability. These under-served neighbourhoods exist everywhere – and Toronto has its fair share. As a very urban city, much of the city’s population lives within the core and immediate perimeter where many residents don’t own cars. In this city of neighbourhoods, that bring together the have and have-nots, Toronto residents expect to be able to find all[…]
Why retailers should care about their washrooms
Washrooms are neither a glamorous subject, nor one that immediately comes to mind in the retail world – yet washrooms, restrooms, bathrooms or toilets, depending upon where you are in the world, are an essential amenity for large footprint retailers such as department stores, housewares or bookstores. In these cases, they need to be thought of as more than a simple customer convenience. They are an opportunity. Over the years, my work has taken me to major cities (New York, London, Paris, Berlin) to explore and research world-class department stores (Bloomingdales, Bergdorf Goodman, Nordstrom, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Au Printemps, etc.).[…]
Making retail personal
Retail should be personal. To be successful, a retail brand needs to make retail personal by connecting personally with each and every customer. Regardless of the retail channel – bricks & mortar, mobile or on-line – a brand’s personality and actions must speak to each customer in such a way as to tap into his or her secret desires and aspirations. When retailers occupy a niche market, where a bricks & mortar presence may not be feasible, and their chosen retail channel is on-line, making that connection can be difficult. There is no physical environment to engage and experience, no[…]
Retail Flagship? Roots misses opportunity
For retailers, a retail flagship is an opportunity to make a big statement by creating a unique and elevated brand experience – one not found in the rest of their chain. Often the largest store in the chain and located in a prominent location, it can offer something unique, whether it be the full line of merchandise, exclusive merchandise or a more upscale merchandise mix. When well-conceived, spectacular design, engaging customer experience and innovation meet to bring the brand to life in a relevant and resonating way for the customer: think Prada in Soho and Saks on Fifth Ave in[…]
Retail is everywhere and everthing is retail
Sometimes it’s easy to forget that everything we own and every service we use has been acquired as a result of some form of retail. By definition retail, is the selling of goods. Simply put, retail requires a product/service, seller and buyer. Even the biggest ticket item and often intensely emotional purchase, our home, falls in this realm. Although the focus of my blog is the built retail environment – bricks and mortar retail – my recent experience has led me to think about the retail aspect of the real estate sector. Over the past 3 months, having endured the[…]
Perfect Retail Marriage: The Bay & Kleinfeld?
In May, The Bay is set to launch a Kleinfeld Bridal shop in their downtown Toronto flagship – the first of its kind in the world. If successful, the retail concept could pave the way for additional locations helping to position The Bay as a leader in the bridal market. But, will The Bay be able to successfully recreate the brand retail experience that customers expect? Although 10% of Kleinfeld’s customers are reportedly from Canada, for the majority of Canadians their understanding of the brand comes primarily from television. For viewers of TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress”, Kleinfeld is known[…]