Great Experience is Always in Fashion
River Island Launches Style Studio
River Island is one of the UK’s most successful High Street retailers, with over 350 stores across the UK. The chain has expanded internationally to operate in Ireland and throughout Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
The company has been successful in business for a long time thanks to its ability to anticipate and adapt to trends in consumer behaviour, culture and technology. Whether through collaboration with celebrities, high-end designers, famous style bloggers or by integrating augmented and virtual reality to showcase its campaigns, the brand knows a thing or two about staying relevant in shoppers minds.
And while the connected high street and digitising stores have been on the agenda for a while now, River Island’s latest strategy focuses on enhancing the physical retail experience through its Style Studio initiative.
The brand is rolling out a free, one-to-one styling service called River Island Style Studio in its London Oxford Street flagship and Birmingham Bullring stores.
The studios will have a dedicated space in the stores where personal stylists will show shoppers the latest collections and share style tips for the new season’s must-have looks. Interested customers can book an appointment online or by calling the retailer and choosing the personal stylist they want to interact with. The appointments range from 30 minutes up to 2 hours, depending on the level of service you want — anything form a quick style fix to a complete styling service covering all trends and styles your heart desires.
Don’t let this trick you into thinking tech is not making an appearance here. The Style Studios will have fitted ‘magic mirrors’, enabling customers to take selfies and see themselves in 360 degrees. The mirrors will also allow customers to compare outfit photos.
All of this comes to show that even though the way we shop is changing, the benefits of physical, real-world experiences can’t be ignored. The store might be the last place brands gain the undivided attention of today’s distracted customer. And although even in stores we tend to shop with our phones in hand, once we’ve got another person in front of us, we’re less likely to shift our attention to something else.
Brands can create more permanent memories by elevating the store’s offering beyond just a place for buying products and turn it into an experience or destination consumers are excited about. Sure, you can chat with stylists online too, but can you do that in a fancy setting, with a complimentary drink in hand and be treated to some special offers?
And who knows? You might even make a new shopping friend.
