Tech features enhance shopper experience
Today’s retailers are increasingly going high tech, embracing the latest technologies to further elevate the in-store shopping experience. This trend is especially evident in the beauty and fashion space — and for good reason. Such technologies enable shoppers to easily “try before they buy” and quickly access product information. Below are examples of some of the latest technologies hitting retail.
(To read the full Beauty Trends report, click here.)
Dove Interactive Display
Intel showcased several innovations at the recent National Retail Federation Big Show, including an interactive merchandising display featuring Unilever’s Dove beauty products.
Features of the four-sided, freestanding display include slots for product placement. A video screen detects when a shopper has removed a product from the display and automatically launches an informational video about that specific product.
This feature is especially key as research has found that as many as half of consumers don’t buy a product in store, even after looking at it, because they believe they don’t have enough information about that product.
The display also enables shoppers to scan their loyalty card to receive Dove offers based on their purchasing behavior.
Memory Mirror
Currently deployed at Neiman Marcus, the Intel Core i7-based Memory Mirror by Memo-Mi offers customers a side-by-side comparison of a current outfit with outfits previously tried on using intuitive hand gestures.
Shoppers also can view photos and videos of previous outfits, digitally change the color of an outfit and share outfits with friends through social media. According to an Intel spokesperson, the technology is easily adapted for application in the beauty department.
Rebecca Minkoff Connected Store
Designer Rebecca Minkoff is catering to next-generation shoppers with the brand’s first flagship location, which debuts an immersive shopping experience and Connected Store developed in partnership with eBay.
The store debuted in November and is located in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood. Highlights of the store include:
A “connected wall”: Shoppers can view and select their preferred looks. Shoppers also can order a beverage directly from the wall to further enjoy the space as they shop.
Interactive fitting rooms: A touchscreen mirror automatically recognizes items in the room through radio-frequency identification, or RFID, and identifies other sizes and colors that are available in the store. If the shopper needs a different size, a touch of the mirror submits the request to a store associate. In addition, shoppers can save their fitting room session for later review in an online Rebecca Minkoff experience.
UGG Concept Store
Deckers Brands recently celebrated the grand opening of its first-ever UGG Australia technology-driven concept store, located in the Washington, D.C., metro area.
The store serves as Deckers’ second “Innovation Lab” — the first is located in the company’s Brand Showcase store in the Santa Barbara, Calif., area — to test the latest omnichannel models, merchandising approaches and other innovations that can be deployed across company-owned retail locations.
By introducing elements of online shopping into the physical brick-and-mortar store, Deckers is giving UGG consumers the opportunity to shop the nearly 230 SKUs on display, as well as Infinite UGG products — an “endless aisle” of merchandise not found in store.
Furthermore, RFID technology allows consumers trying on merchandise to view digitally triggered content on four high-definition touchscreens throughout the store, including product information and options, style tips, videos, related marketing campaigns and suggested complementary products.