Varför gillar man shopping
Once inside, visitors are confronted with fun things to do rather than to buy — brightly-coloured, ice-cream themed installations such as a giant pool full of sugar sprinkles to jump into. Menswear store, Bonobos, has a similar strategy. Traditional brick-and-mortar shops do appear to be disappearing in swathes.
Shoppa klimatsmartare – men undvik “What the hell”-effekten
At menswear store Bonobos you have a guide who is your personal shopper they offer advice but the clothing on the racks stays in the shops Credit: Getty Images. In years to come, the Black Friday spectacle of throngs of shoppers scrambling past each other to ransack shelves of flat screen TVs might look very different. It is estimated that there is currently over million square feet of empty retail space in the US. In the UK the proportion of all shops that have been empty for over two years has risen sharply to about one in Exactly what will fill these spaces remains to be seen, but with digital retail technology likely to continue disrupting the shopping experience, it is safe to assume that Black Friday could become more of an experience than a bargain hunt.
He believes shopping in the future will need to be an amalgamation of both online shopping and physical stores, where customers move seamlessly between the two. Brands that try to appeal too broadly to too many different people are failing spectacularly, according to Dennis. Why shopping is about to become all about the experience. Your product and services, for the most part, cannot be available online and cannot be available on Amazon.
There is certainly no shortage of space for this new form of experiential shopping. Eyewear startup Warby Parker has launched an app that allows eligible customers to give themselves a vision test at home Credit: Getty Images. It is leading them to seek out new ways of reaching consumers. Analysts suggest brands will either pivot towards the Amazon model of convenience and low price or become more specialised and differentiated Credit: Getty Images.
Within the next decade it could change into an activity driven entirely by experiences and interactive technology rather than the act of buying. The idea, says Mick McConnell, who is vice president of design at Samsung Electronics America, is to offer customers a functional workspace, complete with high-end mid-century furniture and video conferencing systems, so people can be productive while they wait for their devices to be repaired.
But this increasingly digital shopping experience means brands have fewer opportunities to meet their customers face-to-face and are getting desperate to connect. In October, it closed its online store , which sold branded coffee mugs, coffee machines and coffee. US Election. Personalised interaction with customers such as intuitive apps and immersive experiences will be fundamental to success. In there will in fact be 4, more shops opening than there are closing, according to a report by the research firm IHL Group.
If you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc. Plans from coffee giant Starbucks show this theory in action. Instead, glasses are mailed to customers. The company already offers prescription services in some of its locations, and in October it launched an app that allows eligible customers to give themselves a vision test at home. Creating a destination. This is connecting with people in a new way, he says.
Technology company, Samsung, is getting into the experience game too, setting up customer care centres that double as well equipped remote work spaces. Skip to content. It is a complicated picture, but thinking of retail as either online or physical spaces misses the point, says Steven Dennis, a brand strategy consultant. Getty Images.
Why We Really Shop
Shopping may be about to undergo a dramatic transformation. To understand how things will look, Dennis says we need to analyse how brands are already interacting with customers rather than just whether they are selling things online or in store. Seven years down the track Warby Parker has more than 60 retail locations across the US and Canada where customers pick stylish frames in strikingly sleek and trendy shops The Portland location doubles as an old school film game arcade with lots of personal assistance from staff on-hand to give advice about the perfect frame for your face.
But confusingly new stores, largely discount and low-end outlets, are opening too. Take the Museum of Ice Cream , for instance. Samsung customers will be able to use phone and video conferencing facilities while their device is being repaired Credit: Getty Images.
To comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Capital, please head over to our Facebook page or meddelande us on Twitter. Even retailers that started out entirely online are moving towards creating locations where customers just try out their products.