If we’ve learned anything over the last year, it’s that peril breeds innovation. Everyone from sporting equipment companies to car companies began creating PPE and other much-needed equipment to help fight the novel coronavirus. The pandemic forced a technological and digital reckoning that experts weren’t anticipating for another 5-7 years. Retail has been no exception. Brands large and small pivoted to ‘buy online and pick up in store’ (BOPIS) solutions. In contrast, some direct-to-consumer (DTC) stores began experimenting with brick-and-mortar stores with experiential retail at the forefront of their expansion strategy.

What is Experiential Retail?

Experiential retail is an immersive, omnichannel environment that enhances customer engagement with a brand. Experiential retail creates a sensory connection between a brand and its customer, bringing the brand to life while also delivering actionable information about consumer interactions.

As technology continues to improve, expectations surrounding the shopping experience continue to rise. For some, it is no longer enough to simply visit a store and conduct a transaction. Shopping for a product must be an experience. Otherwise, what would compel them to physically visit a store if they could purchase that product online?

Types of Experiential Retail

Community-Based Experiences Community-focused retail experiences continue to pop up across the country, as retailers combine human connection and a sense of community with product launches. One of the strongest examples of community-based experiential retail is Lululemon. Lululemon began leveraging community retail a few years ago to astounding results, opening new membership-based loyalty programs in several markets and opening two experimental stores in Chicago and at the Mall of America. Lululemon’s experiential stores combine traditional retail stores with a “sweat studio” and a “fuel bar” for consumers to not only shop the store but catch a yoga class and then relax with a healthy refreshment.

Lululemon’s Sweat Studio at the Mall of America Credit: Lululemon

Another brand embracing experiences is Vans, who took their motto “off the wall” literally when creating the House of Vans in London. ‘House of Vans’ includes an art gallery, a VansLab artist incubator space, a concert hall, a movie theatre, a skater-designed concrete bowl, a mini-ramp, and a street course designed for skaters and Vans-fans alike to experience the skate world in a new way.

Sensory Experiences While the pandemic has undoubtedly put a damper on interactive sensory experiences, it stands to reason that interactive experiences that incorporate sensory, auditory, or tactile experiences will remain a fixture in experiential marketing. Nespresso, a brand that creates a coffee-shop type experience at home, elevates the traditional retail experience by letting customers smell, taste, and enjoy their coffee with an in-store barista, sampling kiosk, and coffee wall. While Casper, the former DTC store turned brick-and-mortar fixture, allows guests at their store in NYC to book a 20-minute trial appointment to experience a Casper mattress in a ‘tiny home’. Each tiny home is designed to mimic a home environment, complete with sunrises, sunsets, and birds chirping.

Fixtures and Displays Made for Instagram and Tik-Tok Human-scaled displays attract attention and encourage engagement among consumers. In short, the shopping experience is heightened by an ‘Instagrammable’ experience. Think brands like Glossier, whose flagship store in New York’s SoHo neighborhood is an Instagrammers paradise, with life-size displays of fan-favorite products like Boybrow and aesthetically pleasing fixtures at every turn. Consumers buy more than a product; they walk away with a memorable experience and an enviable story to post and share with their friends (read: followers).

Glossier’s Flagship Store in NYC Credit: The New York Times

What are the Benefits of Experiential Retail?

The benefits of experiential retail are vast. And the faster brands can adapt to their consumer’s growing tastes, the better. After 2020, consumers are hungry for genuine, real-life experiences they can share with friends and family. Brands and retailers should no longer think of their physical locations as ‘stores.’ They should begin thinking of them as marketing opportunities. Bonus points if brands incorporate Instagram or Tik-Tok-worthy elements into their consumer’s experiences. But what are the benefits of experiential retail for brands?

• Consumers have the same experience both physically and online, creating continuity and uniform experiences.
• Consumers can purchase right at the point of inspiration.
• Allows consumers to consult immediately with sales associates on the retail floor.
• Inventory is managed via a cloud-based service, allowing for product and inventory updates in real-time.
• Display content can be created for specific locales, allowing for a tailored experience by region.

The landscape of retail has changed. Modern consumers have adopted modern technology and expect unique, personalized experiences when interacting with and purchasing products from your brand.

What is the ‘Endless Aisle’ in Retail?

The endless aisle. The modern retail solution that puts the consumer in control. The endless aisle allows consumers to have the same experience in-store that they would have online, elevating the retail experience that modern consumers have come to expect. With endless aisle technology, customers have access to your entire catalog at their fingertips in a way that isn’t constricted by the barriers of shopping online. Digital touch-screen technology and interactive displays allow consumers to purchase at the point of inspiration, satisfying the ever-growing need for instant gratification and elevating the shopping experience.

Today’s consumers have embraced technology and the ease in which mobile technology and mobile wallet payments have made everyday tasks like grocery shopping or getting gas to boarding a plane, or even buying a car. According to a new report from Finaria, the mobile wallet industry is expected to grow to an estimated $2.4 trillion in 2021 and amass $3.5 trillion in value by 2023. To attract in-store consumers, retail technology must meet them where they are. Endless aisle technology allows consumers to move away from the catalog era of the 1990s and even the third-party marketplaces sites like Amazon or Walmart and interact with products in real-time.

Benefits of the Endless Aisle

Endless aisle technologies serve many purposes for both consumers and retailers alike. Suppose a consumer can’t find what they are looking for in the store. In that case, they can order what they want with a digital screen, bypassing the traditional avenues of waiting for a salesperson to facilitate the purchase for them, holding up the line, or stopping to answer a phone call from another customer.

Endless Aisle Technology in Action Strategically located digital displays allow customers to search for and purchase items at this Toys”R”Us Store

Endless aisle tech also allows for unique cross-selling opportunities. Retailers with a sales-assisted retail floor can increase their sales volume by easily suggesting additional products or add-on services. Sales are no longer limited to what’s in stock at that time, and customers are less likely to leave empty-handed.

Other benefits of the endless aisle:

• Consumers have the same experience both physically and online, creating continuity and uniform experiences.
• Consumers can purchase right at the point of inspiration.
• Allows consumers to consult immediately with sales associates on the retail floor. Inventory is managed via a cloud-based service, allowing for product and inventory updates in real-time.
• Display content can be created for specific locales, allowing for a tailored experience by region.

The landscape of retail has changed. Modern consumers have adopted modern technology and expect unique, personalized experiences when interacting with and purchasing products from your brand. For more on experiential marketing for retailers and to learn more about immersive retail design and endless aisle technology, we encourage you to get in touch with our team of dedicated retail design experts.