thanks wb.
Thursday, 6 August 2009
Monday, 3 August 2009
Luxury Charity Boutique in Paris
A new concept store opened in Paris recently - the likes of which haven’t been seen since Colette's launch 12 years ago.
'Merci' is located Paris’ hip le Marais district. Housed in a former factory, the facade gives no idea of what lies within. It borrows the concept from department stores where people can easily spend a morning or afternoon having coffee in its library of second-hand books, and then move onto its retail floors that stock an eclectic mix of designer pieces (from Stella McCartney to Yves Saint Laurent) alongside vintage and bespoke creations, as well as perfume, discounted Annick Goutal fragrances, home décor, fabrics, buttons, beads, and a flower shop. One’s afternoon can include lunch in the Cantine and a gelato overlooking a beautiful courtyard. The prevailing aesthetic is simple and functional and nothing is terribly pricey.
However, the twist of this concept store is that the profits go to a children’s charity in Madagascar. And the owner and consumers aren’t the only ones contributing: numerous designers donate their product and are acknowledged in a clever way: the word 'Merci' is painted on the wall next to their contributions. Merci is definitely a store for the times, linking fashion with philanthropic ideals - feel good shopping.
New Starbucks concept: 15th Avenue Coffee & Tea
Starbucks have just launched this new concept store in Seattle. It's called 15th Avenue Coffee & Tea and is designed in the spirit of a traditional, local coffeehouse, serving wine and beer, hosting live music and poetry readings and selling espresso from a manual machine rather than the automated type found in most Starbucks stores. Most notably though the Starbucks name is not used.
V Store Copenhagen
A delicious boutique and online store selling my faves Bernhard Willhelm and Henrik Vibskov with delivery through farfetch.com.
Festival boutique in London
Summer music festivals, with their huge and more or less captive audiences, have proven to be fertile ground for business and marketing ideas, from sponsored showers to recyclable tents.
The latest to join the flock is a retailer that offers just about everything a festival-goer might need or want.
Based in London's Spitalfields market, the Marsh Mellow Festival Boutique sells rubber boots, water bottles, hats, tents, sleeping bags and other stylish and useful camping and outdoor gear.
Targeting consumers nationwide, Marsh Mellow also sells many of its products through an online store, as well as tickets to most music festivals.
Research: Social media key driver of online retail
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The future of e-commerce is "social commerce" as online shoppers, particularly younger generations, are heavily influenced by social media and Web 2.0 technologies, according to Hill & Knowlton's Future of Commerce report.
The report, which surveyed 600 US adults, found social media is "Word of Mouth 2.0" for younger generations, with youths predominately influenced by social media channels.
Twenty seven per cent of Gen Y said they were influenced by online or community blogs, compared to 19 per cent of Gen X participants and nine per cent of Baby Boomers.
Joshua Reynolds, worldwide technology practice director at Hill & Knowlton (H&K) and co-author of the report, said online retailing was being profoundly impacted by the integration of social media into what historically has been a transactional experience.
When asked of the impart of the economy on their shopping habits, around 46 per cent said they shopped less overall, both online and offline, however 50 per cent said they were shopping online more to look for better bargains.
Friday, 10 July 2009
New convenience concept: Chez Jean, Paris
A prototype convenience concept in Paris, Chez Jean is a partnership between Casino, the French supermarket retailer, and Relay, the newspaper chain.
Chez Jean offers eat in food and drink, free wi fi, meal solutions and fresh food, as well as news and magazines.
The design is deliberately contemporary, friendly and welcoming, designed to replicate the home with a big communal table and a help yourself area with microwave and condiments that is dressed like a kitchen.
The old model of quick in out convenience - selling limited ranges, has morphed into an offer that slows customers down, giving them somewhere to sit and relax, as well as better fresh food options.
The aim is to create a place that customers can visit several times throughout the day.
Win your own shop
Grand Avenue; a mall in Milwaukee is holding a competition in which the winner is awarded free rent on a store for a year including free interior design to their specification, an advertising package, logo design, launch kit etc. Entrants have to submit a business plan for a ground-breaking retail idea to the mall directors. A really interesting way to get some excitement into the retail sector; targeting potential retailers rather than the usual consumer competitions.http://www.grandavenueshops.com/retailTherapy.php
Skipping the sale and outlet part of the business
Wunderkind Vintage overturns a widespread convention in retail and removes the inconvenience of old, surplus stock — in their Berlin Mitte shop, they eliminate musky closets common in other vintage outlets, they rather bring in the best of last season directly from Wunderkind boutiques around the world. Skipping the sale and outlet part of retail. Last season’s gowns and costumes are celebrated under the vintage crown.
The spacious, light-filled space on Auguststrasse has just the right amount of high-end interior to make shopping there a pleasurable experience.
Thursday, 9 July 2009
Energy Dictator (Part 2)
Grabbed one of their new leaflets today. Had to share as it's even better than I could have hoped.
The eye-catching front has a picture of the owner... on first glance i thought he was holding a huge bottle of coke but alas no. It's still a great stance he's got though. On the back it gives a list of things the Energy Dictator gives you. It's nice how ... for Amsterdammers is their USP... but that's not the best of it... its the promise of 'exclusive membership of his Energy Dictator Party' that does it for me with a list of supporting brands' including that well known brand 'And of course all kinds of alcohol and soft drinks'.... but no, that's not the end of my amusement; the website that doesn't even exist is a special treat. Just looking like you have a website is enough for them. Who ever really looks at that stuff anyway? It's all about image. I like that Energy Dictator know that.
Here's the link though... just for professionalism.
www.energydictator.com
Wednesday, 8 July 2009
Research: In-Store Triggers
According to a new research report from US retail consultancy Miller Zell, shoppers are finding in store communications more effective than out of store, 2/3rds are now likely to make shopping lists before convenience shopping and Gen X and Y want more product comparison information in store. For more stats and information on the study see this quick 2 page pdf.http://insidetheaisle.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/hand-out-shopper-media-final.pdf
And here's an in depth report on US shopper behaviour from the same company. It also highlights the interesting rise in pre-planning and research across shopper categories.
http://insidetheaisle.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/shopper-behavior-study-2009-full-report.pdf
Energy Dictator
My most frequented store a few doors down the canal has a name you can't fail to notice. Sitting above the rows of not-so-fresh food, wine and other daily 'necessities' are graphic interpretations of great dictators from history painted on black and yellow on the walls.... it's an errrm interesting concept. Taking the idea one step further i noticed yesterday they've made little flyers that launch a new tag line 'Vitamins for the mind and body'... a nice way to wrap up an offering that includes porn, cigarettes, condoms, crisps, Haribo mixes, redbull, fireworks, and sink plungers.I just found this little clip thanking the artist for their work on a store in Amsterdam West... wow, i never knew Energy Dictator was a chain!! Where next?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S81i2nx86Q
Tuesday, 7 July 2009
DDI Magazine's 'visual moments' in retail
DDI Magazine collate their list of the best visual moments in retail in this months issue - highlights include adidas Impossible Wall at the Flora Marathon Expo and the red carpet staircase making shoppers feel special in Christian Lacroix's NYC store.
To see the full article...
http://www.ddimagazine.com/displayanddesignideas/photos/stylus/95718-VisualMoments.pdf
Second hand opportunity
It's no suprise that charity shops and second hand stores are doing well in the recession. Stockholm's fashion store Filippa K opened a second hand outlet last year, selling past season pre-owned items on commission. It's apparently going down a storm so perhaps the suprising thing here is that more brands haven't tried to cash in on the action by keeping second hand sales of their brand in house. There seem to be so many benefits to doing it - from sustaining customer relationships, protecting the brand image (i.e. stopping everyone selling your brand on eBay), building your 'green' image and of course making some extra cash.
http://www.filippa-k.com/stores/press-second-hand.html
Buy household goods direct from the manufacturer
Launched last week, Wisconsin-based Alice offers more than 6,000 unique products from hundreds of different manufacturers in the US. Its prices are 20 percent to 30 percent lower than those at other online stores, and shipping is free. Consumers begin by creating a free account and then selecting a list of all their favourite products, ordering only the items they need right then. Each shipment is bundled together in a single "Alice" box and delivered directly to the consumer’s door. Meanwhile, Alice organizes all the products on the member's list, finds coupons and deals for them, and reminds them to reorder when they are likely to be running low.
Although Alice works much like any other online retailer from the consumer's perspective, behind the scenes it is more like a marketplace, allowing manufacturers to sell directly to US consumers. Because no retail middleman is involved, significant cost savings can be passed on to shoppers, the company says. In addition, Alice's model allows brands to form a direct relationship with consumers, enabling personalized coupons, sampling and loyalty programs.
Condoms and donuts
According to Time Magazine's 'cheapskate blog' people are going out less for splashy nights on the town and spending less on 'luxuries' like organic food due to the recession.. Instead they're staying in for romantic nights at home instead. Hence, condom sales are up.
And so are donuts apparently... makes you wonder if they're connected. mm hmm.
Read more here...
http://cheapskate.blogs.time.com/2009/07/01/what-we-buy-more-of-during-a-recession/
Research: Store of the Future
The Centre for Retail Research has been commissioned by Visa Europe to investigate the Store of the Future 2012-15 by interviewing 300 retailers (27,000 stores and €308bn sales) in seven European countries and 1,000 shoppers.
The Report itself has not been published and is confidential to Visa. It deals with the use of technology by customers, shopping by mobile/cellphone, virtual shopping for fashion, changes in payment systems, green retailing, the use of physical stores for Internet shopping and many other topics of customer and retail interest.
There are two briefing papers, which can be downloaded here www.retailresearch.org/latest_research/index.php
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