There is reason for hope on the part of traditional retailers. We’ve discussed 5 things that refuse to change in retail reality in another post. Here, we’re going to examine a very interesting trend in the same vein – the fact that digital retailers are opening brick and mortar stores.
Why, for example, has Amazon launched a 4,000-square-foot book store in New York City? While the online retailer has already penetrated the traditional retail market starting in 2015, this new venture combines data with the traditional retail experience. Book placement is dictated by online reviews.
And Amazon is not alone. Vistaprint, Bonobos and a handful of other online retailers are in the vanguard of the trend, present in the market since 2011.
So, what’s driving this market shift?
The truth about traditional retail.
The truth is that shoppers, while enjoying the convenience of online outlets, aren’t willing to sacrifice the brick and mortar model. How many people do you know who eschew the Kindle reading device because they prefer to hold an actual book in their hands?
The downloading of online retail to the physical world is no different. It’s about tactility, to begin with. Consumers want to see and touch the items they’re buying. Even when researching possible purchases online before buying, they still want the 3D experience.
But there’s more to the trend. Why digital retailers are opening brick and mortar stores has a lot to do with customer experience.
Experience. Experience. Experience.
Brick and mortar retailers have responded to the robust challenge from their online counterparts with an equally robust improvement of the customer experience.
There is now an emphasis on personalization, enhanced service and a richer shopping encounter. This signals a profound return to old-fashioned values of putting the customer first and at the center of retail.
Shopping is a form of entertainment for many, so retailers who see the writing on the wall have created value-added, experiential environments which include digital enhancements and more satisfying all around experiences for their customers.
The omnichannel future.
Marketing pundits who’ve predicted doom and gloom on the traditional retail front haven’t factored in the response from the sector. They didn’t foresee the nimble adaptability of forward thinking retailers who were willing to extend their retail grasp into the digital market.
Shoppers are now able to fully research purchases online and then experience them in the brick and mortar sector. This has changed the game, creating the omnichannel future of retail now being recognized and acted upon by online retailers.
The future is, indeed, omnichannel. Consumers want choice, selection, channels to glean more information about the purchases they’re interested in making and a stellar experience in the 3D retail world in which 90% of their purchases are still made. It is, in fact, consumers themselves who have shaped this trend, signaling digital retailers to adapt.
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