Showrooming has become a growing point of contention in our industry. As consumer behavior becomes more and more accustomed to using the in-store experience as a point of research and brand experience, only to then purchase online, brands and retailers must pivot their in-store and digital strategies.
3 Factors Every Brand Should Evaluate When Bringing Technology to the Retail Environment
Today’s article comes from Charlie Miller, Associate Partner at Control Group, the leading innovation, technology and design company we selected to be featured in our conversations & cocktails series, which will be held on May 15th in New York City’s meatpacking district. Access is complimentary and by-invitation only. You can request an invitation here.
Platform Spotlight: Hukkster
As a customer, knowing the moment an item goes on sale, without having to do the legwork, is an extremely valuable service. Equally valuable, as a retailer, it could be the final trigger toward completing a transaction. Welcome Hukkster, a platform and technology that allows users to “Hukk” items from around the web, and then automatically receive notifications when the item goes on sale.
Redefining Luxury for the Millennial Market
Gone are the days of “prestige” and “social status” as indicators of desirability in luxury brands—millennials want authenticity, singularity, and social value from the brands we choose to champion. Everlane, along with brands like Warby Parker, Indochino and even the newly launched ‘How About We’ (a dating site that provides members with a complimentary concierge service) are doing something compelling in the prestige space. They offer all the consideration and it-factor of a luxury experience, but with a sense of innovation and transparency a lot of the ‘traditional luxury’ brands find hard to achieve.
Bringing Technology In-Store
To say today’s consumer is connected is a vast understatement. Technology enables people to be instantly and constantly connected to experiences, information, other people, to brand stories, and to products. What’s more, their expectations of how businesses and brands can, and should, leverage technology are dramatically rising. Clearly, this is impacting the retail environment and we have already seen multiple brands respond by incorporating digital to the store experience in various ways (some successfully, others less so).
SxSW is Just the Beginning…
Internally at FC, we are closing out SxSW. The preparation is over; the event has come and gone. Our Fashion Brain Bar is in the past, as are all of the panels and presentations attended. Our inner circle dinner party in Austin, which took place for a small group of industry friends and leaders at our beautiful rental house, is now but a memory of great fun, great wine and great dialogue. We even brought the lessons of SxSW back to NYC and taught a workshop last week on the most critical insights, some of which are presented below in this article. However, as much as we may have SxSW fatigue, and are closing the chapter on this year’s festival, we can’t help but feel that the opposite is more attuned with reality; much more than an ending, this represents many beginnings. What will our industry do with the knowledge and insights that were presented? How will new advances in technology impact our culture over the next year or few years?
