Business opportunities


Retail technology adoption favours AV


According to Which?, online sales increased by 14% year-on- year between 2016 and 2017, with the online sector account- ing for some 17% of all retail spending. Does this trend sound the death knell for in-store re- tail? Over the past two and a half decades, retail has been fundamentally changed by on- line shopping, combined with a very serious credit crunch. Some commentators were quick to pre- dict the demise of retail as we know it – but it seems that they were wrong!


UK retail has a tradition of rap- id evolution in line with chang- ing consumer behaviours. The UK was the first country in Eu- rope to adopt retail innovations like the department store and female friendly shopping facil- ities. Current retail challenges and


opportunities presented


online and identified by the recent Future of Retail Report, are provoking a reaction from the bricks-and-mortar sector: The report concludes: “Over the past two and a half de- cades, retail has been forever changed by online, and other factors. Some of the challeng- es, have proven too much for even some of the UK’s very biggest retailers, leading to the disappearance of some of its


encompassing both possibili- ties, rather than seeing it as an ‘either/or’ situation. In reality, shoppers now often start shop- ping on one device, continue with another device and then may complete the process in-store. High street fashion names and others have invest- ed significantly around in-store digital technology, and it’s not uncommon to see sales teams equipped with iPads to check product


availability touch of a button.


While mobile devices and technology play a significant role in their lives, millennial shoppers do value traditional experiences – and this often translates


into offline experi- ences going online, with shop- at the


customers surveyed said they were more likely to buy in- store when they’re helped by a knowledgeable member of staff. To this end, many retailers have realised that it’s no longer acceptable to customers to see staff stationed behind tills all day. Apple was the most obvi- ous pioneer of abolishing the traditional till system in favour of


floor-walking bers’


placing an even greater em- phasis on customer service. In-store digital advertising is also breaking through, with re- tailers choosing moving adverts to catch shoppers’ attention rather than static point-of-sale techniques.


‘team mem-


touch screens in-store are also much more common now than even 12 months ago, being used to showcase product rang- es, styles or even recipe ideas and customer reviews.


Social investment


While there has certainly been an element of recovery since the darkest days of the recession, the most recent fig- ures from the Office of National Statistics show that the under- lying pattern in the retail sec- tor is currently one of growth. While this seems counter-intui- tive, M&S, House of Fraser and Waitrose, recently announcing store closures, and others going into administration.


games and entertainment cen- tres; nail salons: restaurants and bars; card and gift shops; barbers; and tattoo parlours. The high street it seems, is becoming a social hub, where people go to catch up and chat rather than shop. Dr Cathy Hart, a senior lecturer in retailing at the University of Loughborough; says: ‘There is an assumption that shoppers have deserted the high street,’ she says, ‘but you have to look at the broader picture.’ Experts believe towns should be invest- ing in community and leisure centres to draw people back to the high street. While we may see less traditional shops in the future, we’re likely to see more places to socialise.


AV friendly


Burberry, again, has opened a Beauty Boutique in London's Cov- ent Garden. It features the Digital Runway Nail Bar which is said to offer a playful virtual experience for trying on the latest Burberry runway nail shades. By placing a Burberry Nail Polish onto an RFID-enabled platform, custom- ers can choose their skin tone and “virtually” experience the selected nail shade.


best-known names. Tech-sav- vy millennial consumers have meanwhile come of age, with their specific shopping needs re-writing the rules of both mar- keting and retailing. Change can be a frightening prospect, but


these changes have led


some of our retailers – and not necessarily the biggest – into really transforming their bricks- and-mortar stores into very compelling shopping destina- tions that complement their on- line offering in ways we’d never even dreamed about.”


Shopping as an experience


Today’s customers no longer see shopping as one experi- ence, that’s either online or in-store, on a mutually exclu- sive basis. Consumers today demand a seamless transition


ping whereabouts and images of purchases posted on social media. Immediately, there’s great social traction here for savvy retailers in terms of re- al-time word-of-mouth market- ing. To this end, some stores are morphing into entertain- ment hubs that facilitate mil- lennials spending time together while engaging with the brand. The new generation of shop-


pers fully expect retailers to not only understand their


prefer-


ences, but also to make recom- mendations that are uniquely tailored to those preferences. Here, customer data can be utilized to deliver more per- sonalized in-store experiences, which helps customers feel better understood and more valued.


One recent study, for exam- ple, found that 90% of 1,000


Mulberry has announced its intention to implement new re- tail tech in its flagship London store, becoming another big player to recognise the impor- tance of innovative technology to further bricks and mortar retail. Will Broome, CEO of Ubamarket, the supermarket shopping app is of the opinion that, while larger stores may have the capital to invest in in- house tech developments that facilitate in-app payment, it is important that smaller stores are not left behind. By pro- viding white-labelled solutions within the market, the tech rev- olution on the high street will be accessible for all.


Linked to interactive displays, app technologies have the advantage of flexibility, right down to changing according to the weather outside. Interactive


Not only is the nature of the shopping experience chang- ing, so too is the composition of the high street. According to Which?, town centre spend- ing is set to increase by 4.9% (£5.3bn) in the next five years, according to retail research company GlobalData, with food and grocery spending set to rise the most. But how is that possi- ble with so many gloomy stories about shop closures hitting the headlines?


The emergence of concept stores, an increase in automat- ed shopping and the growth in coffee shops – our research has found that there are now around 22,000 coffee shops in the UK – could help revive our tired high streets.


Also new to the high street, are more: fashion and clothing outlets; beauty salons; music,


The emergence of more social, entertainment and concept stores is a definite plus for the AV sector. Integration with mo- bile, interactive touchscreens and other forms of digital sig- nage is likely to see a signifi- cant growth in high street tech spending for branding, creating ambience and service delivery. Burberry, again, has opened a Beauty Boutique in London's Covent Garden. The boutique will stock the company's ex- tensive fragrance collections and make-up line. It features the Digital Runway Nail Bar which is said to offer a playful virtual experience for trying on the latest Burberry runway nail shades. By placing a Burberry Nail Polish onto an RFID-en- abled platform, customers can choose their skin tone and “vir- tually” experience the selected nail shade.


The Burberry Beauty Box is also the brand's first till-free retail environment. Payments are taken using a mobile point of sale system on iPads and iPhones, which also offer the option of digital receipts. Ac- cording to Burberry, the space is designed to blur the phys- ical and digital, encouraging customers to interact with the world of Burberry Beauty. The store


features a custom-built digital screen in the shape of the iconic Burberry check showcasing bespoke content on the exterior façade. In ad- dition, there is a 16 ft 'digital chandelier' showcasing month- ly beauty content over multiple screens, with the aim of bring- ing new looks and products to life.


Mainstream adoption


Adoption of new AV solutions is not just limited to special- ist high street brands. UK su- permarket shopping Tesco has announced that it is trialling


P12 AV News October 2018


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