Who really needs to go to a store today?
Experiences
Let’s face it, it might sound crazy, dystopian or too far fetched futuristic, but it is also a reality every day getting closer and closer to fully materialise; brick and mortar retail is over… At least how we know it, and that’s what we now refer to as “traditional”.
By traditional I mean, going out to find what is available, see what we like, touch it and try it on if necessary. Those days are gone.
Unless you are adding value or there is a true experiencial element, why on earth do we actually need to go to a store?
In the past, it was a matter of availability and discovery, searching for something and finding out what was offered on the market; now we have the entire market at our finger tips, and t is the market the one looking to offer us things, everywhere we go, 24/7.
Then, we moved to a “I saw it online and will buy it, but want like to see it and try it first” or a “I saw it at the store, I’ll get it online when I get home”. This also started mainly with garments and then extended to everything else.
Now, it doesn’t matter, we order it and see if we like it once it arrives. If it doesn’t work, doesn’t fit, or just don’t like it, we return it; but most importantly, everything is done in the comfort and privacy of your homes. You do it when you want and on your own terms. No one sees you, no one to deal with, no closing times.
Why would we ever go to store?
Experiences
Finally we got into experiences, the goods are secondary and ubiquitous, we can get anything, anytime, from almost anywhere with one tap in our phones, so, going to a store truly needs to be justified, for as customers, but also for a company regarding its existence.
- They don’t have it online (size, colour, etc)
- It won’t arrive on time if I buy it online
- I won’t be home for the delivery and can’t miss it
- Click & Collect — It’s faster or easier for me to collect at the store
These, are just a few of the possible justifications that come to mind about why a person would consider going into a store today. None of them are related to the goods or the brand itself, it is only a matter of convenience, preference and/or circumstances. They are also eventually going to be addressed one way or another by new technologies or services, so it is a matter of time for them to stop been an inconvenient.
For those business that have a physical presence, the physical store, in the past the main and sometimes only point of contact with their customers, has now become a complementary element. It became the point of the experience, the added value. We only go and touch if extremely necessary or justified, the purchase decision might be dependant, but also does not represent a waste of time.
Sport brands like Nike and other independent stores, add value trough professional assistance that can be only given in their store, helping you chose the right pair of shoes according to your type if gait and running needs and level.
Apple, does something similar where they help setup their brand new computers for their customers, transferring their files from and old machine, as well as offering free training courses, workshops and even cultural and art events, as a way to exploit and maximise the use of the physical space while extending the brand and tighten the bond with their already loyal user-base.
With news of struggling big retailer chains circulating everyday, brands need to start asking themselves the question of what is the real future of their physical stores and which direction are they are going to be taking.
The usual conversation goes around about, how much terrain Amazon has taken from them, something severely intensified over the last 5 years. However, is not their lack of innovation and no reaction to the competition two of the main factors that need to also be taken under consideration?
Because, despite Amazon’s size, it is in reality every single company that have understood that the importance of the cultural and experiential shift online and mobile have brought to us, treating it with respect, exploring new territories and taking great advantage, delivering upon the shifting needs of their customers.
People change, needs change, everything change; so why “traditional” retailers and any other company on the planet about to be disrupted continue to think that, in the verge of the technological, experiential, and innovation explosion of the 21st century, they can still do exactly the same and face no consequences, not be impacted, that people will still willing to buy from them?
Amazon was not big when they launched, and unless you are a bookstore they were not even in your vertical when that happened, yet no one acted accordingly, no one experimented with the new trends. Also, probably no one listened when someone said they were coming.
Now it’s to late and no one want to go to their stores, that also in the case they would even have a reason to actually go in the first place.
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