Where is retail going? And what about the consumers, are they heading the same direction? The Rewir Trend Review is back! Read #5 today.

1. REWIR TREND
REVIEW #05
How does retail of today
keep up with the consumers
of tomorrow?
Photo Vilainecrevette, Shutterstock
YOUR MONTHLY BRAND & BUSINESS UPDATE
THE APRIL ISSUE, 2015

2. Brands,
trying to
herd cats…
Seriously, trying to get in to consumers’ minds is like
surfing with a blindfold. Is it even possible to find
opportunities to make the brand experience seamless
from online to brick-and-mortar stores?
Consumers of today (and of the future) are better-
informed, more educated, tech savvy and lead multi
tasking lives on high levels of complexity. Take the
Millennials for example. On the one hand, they’re not
overly excited about ownership – they might rent their
evening gown online and ride to the party in a cool,
black car from Uber. On the other hand, they totally
outsize other market segments when it comes to using
the smartphone as point of purchase, from midnight
THE SCENE
pizza to round the globe travel. In other words, brands
must transform their process, changing the overall
brand experience from the physical stores in to the
smartphones of the ever growing, picky consumer
base. They need to not only get their attention, but
even contribute with inspiration and storytelling in
order to bring their audience added value. Only then
a brand is truly relevant and choosable.
Welcome to this issue of the Rewir Trend Review
where we will give you the latest on where retail
is going, why and when. And most importantly,
what you need to do to keep up with the
consumers of tomorrow.
Photo Rawpixel, Shutterstock

3. I want it all,
now!
Consumers expect to get what they want,
when they want it. Increasing e-commerce
makes consumers impatient and intolerant
– not wanting to wait a few days for
delivery. Stores being open 24/7, customer
service that never sleeps and an engaging
way of communicating between brands and
their consumers is a must. Going out
shopping can be done from the sofa in a
living room, research shows that the
average consumer reaches for their
smartphone between 150-200 times/day,
often to window shop and buy goods.
The lines between online and real stores
are blurred and a consumer pattern called
BOPIS is coming strong – buy online pick
up in store. New business models are
created so consumer brands can reach
their target audiences with relevant,
personal offerings and messages within the
consumer’s mobile context and mindset.
MINDSET
Photo David Lillewarg

4. Care for
a glass, madam?
The good thing is, physical stores are far
from becoming obsolete. To create an
authentic in-store experience, retailers
need to find out the true reason for building
their store in the first place. Is it a place for
social gatherings or is it where customers
are educated about products and offerings
or even pick up?
EXPERIMENTAL
Photo Steve Cukrov, Shutterstock
In the UK, Hedonism is a good example of
having created an immersive experience
around its product, wine. It has everything
one could ask for in a wine – tastings,
décor, education. Clearly defining the
purpose behind the store will go a long way
towards creating a memorable, synergetic
experience that may very well begin on the
screen of the customer’s smartphone.

5. Photo http://estimote.com
This way,
please!
NEW PERSPECTIVES
The brand’s iBeacon-based technology
uses Bluetooth Low Energy to send
messages to customers when they enter a
store. To access these, shoppers need to
have downloaded the retailer’s mobile app.
Now they can view product information,
get personalized deals along with reviews
by placing their smartphone near a
Shelfbucks device. While the retailer
can access detailed customer analytics.
The now established relationship between
shoppers and their smartphones perfectly
facilitates the ever increasing advancement
in geo-location opportunities. Brands can
fine-tune their offerings at the right
occasion and environment to the right
target audiences.
Since February 2014, Shelfbucks mobile
shopping services have tried their solutions
in pilot shops across the US.

6. I love
your look.
Since social platforms will continue to be
a dominant centerpiece within our lives,
smart retailers need to understand on-line
social behaviors. Mastering these insights
will help influence future transactions.
Covet Me is an app, recently launched in
Berlin (December 2014). With the app,
consumers get the opportunity to earn
vouchers by sharing all kinds of fashion
REWARDING
Photo Angela Blumen
related products on social media.
The app allows fashionistas to post
products, tag cool clothes or even create
outfit posts for other users to watch. All
these are viewable on social media
platforms. Every time people click on a
Covet Me link, members earn points which
can be traded for vouchers to spend on
apparel brands such as TopShop, ASOS
and Net-A-Porter.

7. Get real!
Consumers seek brands that are real and
authentic and not only in it for the money.
MAMUT, an Uruguayan footwear brand,
wanted to dig deeper into the hearts and minds
of their customers. During a period of two
weeks in February 2015, people could
exchange plastic and glass bottles collected
from the beaches – for discount on shoes.
The campaign, designed to encourage people
to make the beaches nice and tidy, gave $4 for
every bottle which in turn could be spent on
purchases of the brand’s summer collection.
And there is a win-win situation for everyone!
DEMANDING
Photo https://www.mamutshop.com/site/shop

8. At your
service!
Neiman Marcus business operations went
omnichannel in February 2015 – blending its
online and offline shopping divisions to create a
seamless experience for its customers.
With its new service called Snap Find Shop,
customers can take photos of almost any
merchandise and find similar items from
Neiman Marcus in a single click. The brand is
successfully using technology to create a digital
experience that is entirely centered around
their customers.
GOING THE EXTRA MILE
Photo from http://www.neimanmarcus.com

9. Tailor
made
Sports brand Patagonia is using big data to
identify predictable behaviour patterns in
their consumer database. Then use the
findings to fine-tune their marketing
messages at a time that is right for each
consumer. After analyzing the data in
Patagonia’s customer database, it
determines the optimal email deployment
time to maximize the likelihood that a
customer will receive an email at a time that
is most likely to result in a click, and
ultimately, a conversion. Since Patagonia
started with this, email-based campaigns
have achieved an 33% increase in sales.
PATTERN RECOGNITION
Photo Curioso, Shutterstock

10. Get
moving!
In September, 2014, The North Face in
Korea opened a pop-up store with a
retractable floor, as part of the US outdoor
apparel brand’s Never Stop Exploring
campaign. As the floor disappeared,
shoppers were forced to ‘climb’ up the
walls, which featured rock-climbing holds.
To exit the room, participants were forced to
jump from the wall onto an inflated floor,
attempting to capture a North Face jacket
suspended from the ceiling in the process.
Photo The North Face Pop Up | South Korea
PUSHING FORWARD

11. Confused
on a higher
level?
The sheer convenience and speed of making
purchase decisions on mobile devices is
unbeatable. Isn’t it therefore time for retailers to
get back to basics? Understanding and
capitalizing on the ways brands can thrive in the
brick-and-mortar environment?
What consumers obviously want is a unique
experience that elevates and adds a dimension of
intelligence and involvement to retail shopping.
Photo Chuck Wagner, Shutterstock
BRAND INNOVATION
It is no longer about picking from the shelf.
Indeed it is more about creating engaging
moments of experience. Taking the online into
the in-store and vice versa. And dialling up on
innovative ways and means that brands
communicate to today’s device-savvy consumer.

12. Behind
this issue
David Lillewarg,
Editor in Chief
david.lillewarg@rewir.com
Ruby Windrup,
Editorial content
ruby.windrup@rewir.com
Angela Blumen,
Content design & distribution
angela.blumen@rewir.com
Photo John James, ImageShack

13. You can find our archive for Trend Reviews on
www.rewir.com/trend-review
Or on:
http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trend-review-04-2015
http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trendreview-032015-44307357
http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trend-review-the-december-issue-2014?related=3
http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trendreview-01-2014?related=2
Archive
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