The New Storefront
Why physical stores can never die
Shop owners I talk to will lament about how e-commerce sites are eating their profits. Amazon is easier, cheaper, and faster. This is true. But, they’re not in the same game anymore. E-commerce is strictly transactional; physical shops can offer something great: experiences.
You need to give customers a reason to come to your store. Glossier does a remarkable job pushing the envelope of the retail experience. From pop-up shops in fried chicken places to the Glossier canyon, it’s far from traditional. It’s memorable.
Apple has always had beautiful storefronts but even still they noticed that experience is what was needed. Hence their shift to “town squares.”
It needn’t be extravagant. I was in a shop in Bend, Oregon recently, simply browsing. The clerk noticed this but then offered a beer sample from the brewery down the street. This eventually lead to me buying a few things. It was unexpected and fun. That’s all the customers need.
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