The shopping experience and the store’s role in a multichannel environment will feature strongly at Retail Week Live 2013. Anna Richardson-Taylor previews the big themes.
Only one month into 2013 and the year is already shaping up to be eventful. Success stories such as John Lewis’ strong Christmas alternate with high-profile failures such as HMV’s and Jessops’ administrations. It’s looking likely the year will be as turbulent as the last.
In many of the distress stories, the headlines tend to mirror the price retailers pay for dithering when it comes to innovation. There are both challenges and opportunities in retail at the moment - what matters is having the right priorities.
Many of those priorities will be explored at this year’s Retail Week Live, held in London on March 13 and 14.
Some of the industry’s leaders, innovators and opinion-formers will dissect and debate a wide range of topics, from understanding customer behaviour to expanding abroad.
But one subject that will likely spark particularly engaging debate is the bricks-and-mortar store and its future in a multichannel world.
Retail Week Live’s store discussions will set out the vision of some leading retailers on how their estates fit into their digital strategies.
John Lewis IT director Paul Coby will discuss ‘showrooming’, in-store technologies and the evolution of the store with Tesco chief information officer Mike McNamara, Oasis deputy managing director Hash Ladha and Richard Flint, general manager of direct to consumer, Western Europe at Nike Stores.
Omnichannel is here
John Lewis has long understood that omnichannel retailing is about getting away from the notion of distinct online, in-store and call centre operations in a retail business, says Coby.
“It’s about how it all joins up. John Lewis foresaw that people want to have as seamless an experience as possible - I don’t think this is the future, it’s here and now,” he says.
John Lewis opened four stores last year and technology is integral to them. The department store group’s new format in Exeter, for example, uses technology to allow customers to access its full range in what is half the footprint of a conventional John Lewis store.
The use of in-store kiosks for product information and an electronic shelf-edge pricing pilot are all part of John Lewis’ ongoing evolution.
“One of my key policies is to try things,” says Coby, who notes that the retailer has just launched internal innovation event Pitch (which stands for partnership, innovation, technology, challenge) to encourage new ideas in-house. “It’s about being open to ideas,” he says.
But within this ‘here and now’ of omnichannel, Coby says retail is still about staying true to the company’s founding principles of “value, assortment, service and trust”.
Brand experience
Ladha believes that, while technological integration is important, the store continues to play a crucial role.
“Given that a lot of retailers are reorienting their business and a growing share of sales are coming from online, what is going to be really critical is multichannel - and stores being a really great brand experience,” he says.
Last year, Oasis invested more in its windows than in the previous seven, a strategy that remains in place for 2013. “Because the customer can shop 24/7 on any device, the online experience can sometimes be a bit sterile. So in order to get what your brand is about across to the consumer, people are up-scaling their store,” says Ladha.
Localising shop windows is another example of how Oasis is improving the shopping experience. For example, its Christmas windows, which built around the theme ‘going home for Christmas’ referenced local areas in decorative signage.
Ladha cautions that not all technologies are appropriate at all times. For example, even though Oasis’ newly refreshed mobile site offers some location-based functionality, Ladha says the retailer still treads with caution when it comes to GPS-enabled push marketing.
“I would hate to enter a world where you’re walking into a shopping centre and you have 60 alerts on your phone,” says Ladha. “That would be such an inappropriate way of treating consumers who are trying to spend some money with you.”
PayPal UK director of strategic client services Simon Moran agrees. He says: “The most successful retailers are focusing on using technology to meet true customer needs in a compelling way, rather than innovating for innovation’s sake.” He adds technology can help create a more personalised shopping experience in store. “One of the main reasons customers go to the shops is because they want to experience the look and feel of a product.
“Successful retailers allow that physical interaction as well as providing functional technology that streamlines the experience, so that it is just as easy to shop in store as online.”
Technology types
Simon Holder, multichannel development director of Wickes Building Supplies, who will talk about how to achieve omnichannel success at Retail Week Live, is exploring different technologies.
He says tablets are particularly interesting at the moment, and is investing in mobile apps and exploring the
possibility of tailoring them to Wickes’ different customer types (such as retail customers and tradesmen), who might require different functionalities, from the purely transactional to the inspirational.
He adds that putting in-store colleagues at the centre of a multichannel strategy is vital. “Technology is there to enhance the experience our customer has when they interact with our colleagues,” Holder explains.
Another crucial aspect of any retailer’s long-term strategy should be investment in back-office capabilities, believes Coby.
John Lewis is to invest significantly in a new order management programme, as well as customer and supply chain systems. “They don’t necessarily attract the headlines,” he says. “But if you are to deliver a newly joined-up omnichannel experience, you need to invest in those as well.”
So, when it comes to technology touchpoints, whether customer facing or back office, and no matter what
new platform or device, distinctions between virtual versus bricks and mortar and online versus offline are perhaps no longer worth making.
Customer preferences evolve at pace and expectations rise, no matter what platform, so the key for every retailer is to remain nimble. As Holder says: “It’s almost like your strategy becomes one of agility.” A general sense of direction is crucial but so is being able to react and adapt as you go.
John Walden to focus on digital
At Retail Week Live, John Walden will discuss ‘Retailing for a Digital World - Are Traditional Channels Relevant or Redundant?’ He will explore what role traditional retail assets such as stores, catalogues and colleagues have in the industry’s future.
What are your key priorities for Argos in 2013 and which areas of the business will you be focusing on?
In October 2012 I announced a transformational, five-year strategic plan designed to reinvent Argos as a digital retail leader. In 2013, my key priority is to get this plan off to a strong start by making progress on our most important strategic initiatives. These include making our customer offer more universally appealing by improving ranges and value; repositioning our channels for a digital future, including world-class digital customer experiences and streamlined store experiences to support digitally led transactions; and offering more products to customers faster through our national network of stores and home-delivery options.
Which trends do you think will be important in retail in 2013 and beyond?
Increased adoption of the internet and other digital channels, by both consumers and retailers, will likely continue. We expect tablet and mobile channels to be used increasingly for commerce. Our own business on these devices has increased 125% in the past year.
With our UK market arguably saturated with store space, we believe that the push for convenience will increasingly move to order fulfilment - faster and cheaper means of product collection and home delivery.
Although technology has been a trend for decades, the amount of global investment in consumer-related technologies remains strong. Innovation should continue at pace, particularly in areas that will improve the information and tools available to assist consumers in their daily lives.
Successful retailers in mature markets, such as the UK, will naturally face limits to growth. The general appetite to expand internationally, including to developing countries, seems likely to continue.
Perhaps our toughest challenge is the economy. The consensus for macro-economic growth over the near-term seems to expect little improvement. At Argos, we are responding to this difficult environment in several ways, such as passing along more savings and providing better value to customers; working hard to build a strong and resilient business; and providing fair wages and skills training to thousands of Argos colleagues hired from local communities throughout the UK.
What are you interested in hearing about or discussing at Retail Week Live?
It is a packed agenda, and one that seems to capture the most relevant retail issues of the day. I expect a dose of sobriety as we reflect on the recent retail administrations. As a relative newcomer to the UK, I look forward to meeting my peers and learning from the many fine retailers in attendance.
Why do you think Retail Week Live is worth attending?
We are facing a critical time for the retail industry, which is a major source of employment in the UK and an important national institution. The event will address issues that are worthy of our industry’s finest leaders. I suspect it will also be enjoyable.
Seize the moment, advises Gold
At Retail Week Live, Jacqueline Gold will explain how her business capitalised on the publishing phenomenon Fifty Shades of Grey, and the role digital media played in its success.
What are your key priorities for Ann Summers in 2013 and which areas of the business will you be focusing on?
This year will be about building on what we have already achieved with a particular focus on brand and product. We launched our new brand in 2011 and have had a very positive response to this. We are looking at a roll-out of our new store environment, or ‘playground for the curious’, which is currently being trialled in eight of our stores. Our lingerie offer in 2013 will focus on some unique partnerships.
Sex toys are an important part of our business and in many cases are what most people think of when they first think of Ann Summers. Our focus in this category for 2013 will be on our online emporium concept, which will then be streamlined and rolled out to stores. For us, this year will be about innovation across all product areas.
Can you give an overview of the key points you will cover in your presentation?
It will be about seizing the moment, something every retailer should be ready to do.
Fifty Shades of Grey changed the way people think, the way they talk about sex and the products that they are interested in buying to spice up their sex lives.
Previously we defined some really clear customer profiles - nervous, curious and experienced. The phenomenon drove an increase in nervous/curious customers visiting us and more curious customers overall.
The next challenge for us now that we recognise these segments is to ensure our staff and channels serve each of them in the appropriate way.
The phenomenon reminded us that in the retail industry you can never predict where or when opportunities will arise.
What we had to do as a retailer was respond, and quickly. It’s not often moments like this happen and it was important that we grabbed the opportunity, and we absolutely did.
Our social media channels were vital in ensuring we were part of the huge online conversation
that surrounded Fifty Shades of Grey.
Ann Summers has a dedicated in-house social media team that made sure we were part of as many online conversations as possible, and that we were also creating these conversations at every opportunity.
What are you interested in hearing about or discussing at Retail Week Live?
I’m really keen to hear from other retailers about how they are tackling the multichannel challenge.
I’m excited to look to other retailers’ experiences to understand how they have succeeded in this area, and what multichannel really does mean to the customer.
Book your place at Retail Week Live 2013
Attending Retail Week Live at the Hilton London Metropole on March 13 and 14 will give you unprecedented access to the most cutting-edge practices and thinking in the sector, helping you shape your business effectively throughout 2013 and beyond. Book before February 28 to save up to £250.
- Please call 020 3033 2777 to speak with the Retail Week Live 2013 team, or book online quoting VIP code: MAG.
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