2010 Retail Look Back Part 6: The View Ahead

This year, like any year, consumers wanted what they have always wanted: engaging experiences, good prices, and interesting products and services. We’ve started to buy again, but this time around we are taking a moment to consider− and that moment is when retailers and consumers really get to know each other. 

 

While technically the recession is over, there are many still feeling the aftermath.  In the "New Normal" consumers in general are being more cautious with their money, but things are loosening up in particular consumer segments and product categories.  There is pent up demand: from a practical and pragmatic perspective, household spending on things like minor repairs, updates and clothing is starting to happen again.  From a more emotional side, consumers are meeting their pent up desire for fresh, new things by being creative with their money and demanding more meaningful experiences from those transactions.  This can take the form of using a Groupon discount for a manicure or cashing in loyalty points from their credit card or airline for a new camera or MP3 player.

In the coming year, consumers will regularly use their social networks to consider friends’ thoughts and opinions as they buy. Local retailers will become more important as big retailers work harder to “localize” their stores and assortments. Look for fun to return to store shelves and dining tables as the gray clouds dissipate.

Have a happy and prosperous New Year!

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

2010 Retail Look Back Part 5: Creative Alliances

Retail brands are aligning themselves with non-retail brands to add unexpected value for their consumers.

Like-minded brands who share core values find ways to work together to create unique offers.

In 2010, we saw innovative companies mashing up their offerings to create unique, new products. West Elm −the modern furniture arm of Williams-Sonoma− partnered with Pratt Institute −the renowned design school− to create a line of furniture designed by students and distributed through West Elm stores, catalogs, and websites. Here’s a LINK to our post about the program: http://www.consumerxretail.com/2010/12/creative-collab-west-elm-pratt.html.  Locally, the tastiest partnership –between Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams and Middle West Spirits− birthed a new ice cream flavor: Oakvale Young Gouda with OYO Vodka-Plumped Cranberries.

Next: Part 5: The View Ahead

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

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2010 Retail Look Back Part 4: The Engagment Stream

Consumers are relying on their “streams” more and more to edit and articulate the information they want and need.

The Home Depot sold 250,000 Turkey Fryers leading up to Thanksgiving 2010 through their Facebook wall.

While you are hunting for deals on Facebook, you’ll get both direct and indirect valuable offers and information from all the brands you’ve “liked” there.  The email newsletters in your inbox provide exclusive offers and information you have opted to receive. 

 

Facebook and email remain two of the most important channels for receiving information, and small and large retailers use those tools to stay in touch.  We see things in a continual stream that we can edit and control. We can pick and delete the messages we want and begin to understand how that information influences our purchase decisions.

 

Many of us willingly conduct constant conversations with the products and services, retailers, and restaurants we like. Here in Columbus, Dirty Franks Hot Dog Palace, Surly Girl Saloon, and The Wexner Center do a great job of using Facebook and Twitter to keep the conversation going, give us valuable information, and keep us coming back.

Next: Part 5: Creative Alliances

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

2010 Retail Look Back Part 3: The New Blue Light Special

This year, we’ve seen the advent and experimental use of new mobile services, like Groupon and Facebook’s Places & Deals. Goupon offers 50 percent off deals from retailers of all sizes for a limited time to a limited number of people. This creates a strong sense of urgency and guarantees a win for retailer and customer alike. 

 

Location-based services that meld check-in games, like Foursquare or Gowalla, with deals allow customers to determine whether there are good deals nearby or at the store they are already in. 

Facebook’s version, which incorporates its Places check-in service with an open incentive platform called Deals, is poised for growth. The sheer volume and scale of Facebook is an advantage, but the consumer behavior that already exists will be crucial to helping it thrive. Those most likely to utilize Places & Deals are regular and loyal Facebook users.

 

The 2010 holiday shopping season is the first real testing ground for such services and the results will shape how retailers alter their use in the short term.

Next: Part 4: The Engagement Stream

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

2010 Retail Look Back Part 2: It's the Experience, Stupid

We still love events like Independent’s Day and Gallery Hop, hanging out, dining, and maybe buying a thing or two.  This year, we’ve really embraced mobile and/or event-based retail options, like food carts and pop-up stores. Foodie Cart Locator, Ray Ray's Hog Pit, and MoJo Tago go where the action is and oftentimes make the action. We saw the first sparks of innovative experiences, like the one offered at Wonderland Columbus’s Food Cart Food Court.  It reflects a national trend not only in food carts, but bringing products and services where people are and want to be. Check out the Marc by Marc Jacobs jewelry truck that went to the people for Fashion’s Night Out 2010.

Next: Part 3: The New Blue Light Special

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

2010 Retail Look Back Part 1: Girded Loins, Consolidation & More Consumer Power

 

A year ago, when we were thinking about retail in 2010, we looked for glimmers of uptick, worried that some businesses might not make it, and girded our loins for more of the same.

 

Well, 2010 wasn’t as bad as we thought and in some sectors it was pretty good. As a matter of fact, the numbers coming in −both in sales and consumer confidence− seem promising, with the expected amount of post-recession caution. November was one of the best months for retailers and December is looking very good. It’s likely the result of pent up demand −the desire to shop without a gray cloud over our heads− combined with retailers/brands aligning their inventory and deals with consumer attitudes.

 

The last year has taught retailers big and small more about how and why we shop than ever before. Paying attention to how consumers −all of us− react to adversity, what drives our purchase decisions, and our rational and emotional needs has been as important as new products and services. 

 

We saw consolidation and retreat (Borders Books made a bid for Barnes & Noble and Google tried to buy Groupon), tighter stock levels, as well as new, exciting takes on tried and true incentives like coupons, loyalty points, and limited-time-only offers that bring to mind Kmart’s classic Blue Light Special. 

 

All in all, we consumers have more control than ever before. We are more thoughtful about everyday purchases. We have new considerations to go along with the old: local and “green” are as important to us as selection and value. We have tools in our hands, literally, that give us information and incentives when we want and need them.

Next: Part 2: It’s the Experience, Stupid

Originally published: Retail 2010: The Year in Review | The Metropreneur Columbus http://bit.ly/f2LPuA

 

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Experience Audit: Radish Underground

Check out this great store in Portland Oregon.  We found it, among many other amazing small shops—on a recent trip.

Here’s a link to their Web site: http://shop.radishunderground.com/.

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What Constitutes In-Store Shopper Marketing Compliance?

In James Tenser's role as director of the In-Store Implementation Network, the challenge of merchandising compliance is frequently addressed, from a variety of perspectives -- both theoretical and solution-oriented. What criteria define planogram or schematic compliance?

MY COMMENTARY:
Goggle Goggles and Localization.

This brings to mind my early training at Macy's. As a floor manager, it was my job to interpret the planograms and make them work for my business. As a buyer, I visited every store (I know, those were the days) and worked with the floor manager to make sure my merchandise "complied."

I know department stores are not grocery, but more and more we are moving toward localization. That is, tailoring assortments to the customer of that store or region. The idea of a singular planogram that needs compliance seems antiquated albeit operationally necessary.

I've been playing with Google Goggles--the visual search application. I wonder if there isn't a way to develop an algorithm that measures the installed floor set against the ideal. This could be centrally managed but locally connected.

At ConsumerX, we look at everything from the consumers' perspective. They (we) expect basics--in stock, engaging value propositions, ease of purchase. Centralized planning is powerful, but it may be time to train in-store staff to interpret, know their customers and, yes, be creative.

From RetailWire: BrainTrust Query: What Constitutes Compliance? - Chuck Palmer's RetailWire Blog http://bit.ly/gTq4Sx

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Borders Bid for Barnes & Noble? What the...?

FROM RETAILWIRE:
Usually in business, it's the bigger company acquiring the smaller one. But sometimes the normal rules no longer apply. What do you think of the proposed merger between Borders and Barnes & Noble?

MY COMMENTARY:
Let's look at this from the consumer's point of view. Do they care about the near-term strategy of Border's stockholders? No.

The future of this business is probably consolidation and reduction. While it's great to browse metropolitan-library-sized stores, is this a sustainable model in a future that needs innovation, flexibility and continual responsiveness to consumers?

I think we will always crave physical books and magazines (not so sure about the next generation) but they will be special, intimate experiences apart from our daily engagement streams.

The "4-wallers" (love that term) have a special place in consumers' hearts and minds--look at the innovation coming from Library systems--they have an opportunity to be newly relevant by helping us manage not just the information at our disposal, but the inspiration, too.

That just might make a proposed deal like this make long-term sense.

-----------

Here’s the RetailWire piece: Ackman Pushes Borders Bid for Barnes & Noble - Chuck Palmer's RetailWire Blog http://bit.ly/h4QVav

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Creative Collab: West Elm + Pratt

Here’s another example of a major retailer hooking up with a design school to create new products.  These programs are a win for all—students, retailers/brands, and consumers—as they provide fresh new products for consumers and brands to offer, but for students and their schools they provide rich learning experiences and marketing and positioning opportunities.

Take a look at this line at West Elm.  It is seriously different than most of the other products, not just at West Elm, but in the category.  It’s a nice mix of metal and wood, with clean lines without being too boxy or hard-edged.

Here’s a quote from the West Elm site:

The Pratt home office was developed in collaboration between west elm and students at the Pratt Design Incubator, part of the renowned Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. It all began with a competition. We challenged students to create a line of office furniture using FSC–certified materials. Two teams presented proposals (both of which were quite ingenious), and after much deliberation judges from the west elm design group selected designs from both. The teams then developed their concept, creating scale models and full–size prototypes of pieces including a desk, chair, filing system, and LED lamp. The finished collection is thoughtfully designed, responsibly made, and effortlessly chic.

Shop Pratt Home Office Collection  Visit Pratt @ www..pratt.edu  
Visit Pratt Incubator @ incubator.pratt.edu  

You can see more here: http://bit.ly/hUrZgv

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

The Urban Consumer Experience: New York Reinvents Street Life

If you haven't been in New York lately, imagine crazy-busy streets calmed down to a more human rhythm with some simple paint, street furniture and cooperation. On my last trip I was stunned at the difference these plazas made in the urban street experience.  As a matter of fact, I was halfway through an email response before I realized that I was sitting in the middle of the street.  I looked around, really studied it and ended up having a few very cordial conversations with my fellow loungers.

The parks serve as normal parks do—providing respite and relaxation, but because there embedded in the normal urban street fabric, they also serve as economic and social catalysts.   During my lunchtime visit, most tables and chairs were filled with diners eating both brownbag and store-bought lunches from all over the area.  I chatted with two people who use the park for a weekly catch up session because it was close to both of their offices and they got to pick up different lunches along the way.

The woman behind the city wide program is Janette Sadik-Khan featured in Esquire’s December 2010 Best & Brightest issue.  I couldn’t agree more.

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Converse Blank Canvas: Principles of Consumer Centricity #10: Write the Shared Story Together

People have been doodling on and customizing their apparel for ever.  Fashion dictates, in some circles, that you make it your own.

Converse is doing some pretty cool stuff.  Chuck Taylors have been a wardrobe staple of rock n roll, youth and old guys like me for ever.  In recent years they have really hit their stride and opened up their brand.  (For a glimpse of what they’re doing click the link below —be sure to click “MUSIC”.)

Their Blank Canvas program which has been event based is popping up in Utrect Art Supply Stores.  It’s such a simple and beautiful idea: plain white Chucks and the means to make them you own (with Molotow ONE4ALL Paint Markers).  They’ve been doing this as event/promotion for years.  Now they’re bringing it to retail. 

Source: http://www.leyp.com/2009/08/lowlands-leyp-converse/

This is a perfect example of Principle #10 of the Principles of Consumer Centricity. Write the shared story of the brand & consumer together.  Let your customer choose how to converse (that’s conVERSE, not CONverse) with the brand and allow the experience with the brand to be personalized and customized to develop deep emotional ties.

Converse Chuck Taylor: http://www.converse.com/#/

Utrect Art Supply Stores http://www.utrechtart.com/Brands/Converse-All-Star.cfm

See and download the full gallery on posterous

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Dieter Rams' 10 Principles of Good Design

I subscribe to a lot of stuff.  It’s amazing how much one needs to know.  I have always had an affinity for design.  I love and respect what designers do.  ConsumerX collaborates with designers everyday.  Our consumer-centric strategy informs the design and execution of products and spaces and all the digital ways people interact with stores and brands.

So as I was reviewing my “intelligence inbox” this afternoon I came across this little item from a site called Charles & Marie http://bit.ly/9LSuCF .  I have always loved Braun products and to see the AB1 available gave me pause.  Even better is their sharing of Rams’ thoughts on good design.  I had to share them too.  Here’s an excerpt from their site.  Thanks Charles & Marie.

The seventies, the decade when cars were too big, pants too wide and side burns too long. But also the decade of Braun, the design powerhouse led by Dieter Rams that created some of the most iconic pieces of consumer electronics ever designed. Unfortunately that design sensibility is long gone and since it was purchased by P&G it has joined the rank of many other dull consumer brands, churning out bland and dull design. Not ‘good design’ as Dieter Rams called it.

Ten principles defined Dieter Rams’ approach to “good design”:


Good design is innovative

Good design makes a product useful


Good design is aesthetic


Good design helps us to understand a product


Good design is unobtrusive


Good design is honest


Good design is durable


Good design is consequent to the last detail


Good design is concerned with the environment


Good design is as little design as possible



Back to purity, back to simplicity In 1971 Braun introduced the AB1 Alarm Clock, designed to do what is required — keep accurate time and wake you up in the morning — no more no less. By adhering to design principles, Dieter Rams and Dietrich Lubs, created an icon of modern design.

For nearly 30 years Dieter Rams served as head of design for Braun until his retirement in 1998. He continues to be a legend in design circles and most recently designed a cover for Wallpaper* magazine. Many of his designs — clocks, coffee makers, calculators, radios, audio/visual equipment and office products — have found a permanent home at many museums over the world, including MoMA in New York.

Now the last batch of the AB1 was recently sold and we got our hands on a good chunk of them. If you want to get your hands on what is undoubtedly the most quintessential alarm clock ever designed before they are all gone – forever – then act fast, those won’t last long.

If you even remotely appreciate good design go buy one of these.  But get in line behind me.

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Was Kodak as Consumer-Centric as Don Draper Asked Them To Be?

I finally got to see the first season of Mad Men.  In season finale our (anti) hero Don Draper knocks their socks off with a complete re-think of what could have been a pedantic, feature-focused advertising campaign.



Kodak has a rich history of understanding and communicating its rational and emotional place in its customer’s lives.  Was it their ad agency that first pointed this out?  I’m sure the facts are not as dramatic and rich in poetry, but this my friends is one well-written and produced piece of entertainment.  It works on so many levels, not the least of which serves to inspire professionals to be this passionate and engaged in our work.  It’s worth another view.

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Wondering about Wonderland

The word “Wonderland” evokes many things.  Alice comes to mind for most. I'm involved in a project here in central Ohio called Wonderland Columbus. It’s a not-for-profit (’m on the board) that is operating the building and programming. 

Wonderland is a catalyst of economic and cultural development for the creative community.  In the great tradition of things like KEXP (www.KEXP.org) it’s a place for the creative community to work, grow their businesses and for all to experience the results.

We are doing this in the old Wonder Bread factory in the Short North.  The space will have artist studios and production space, a recording studio and rehearsal space, performance space, exhibition space, retail, restaurant and office space. 

We are developing programming that will inform, enhance and encourage cross-disciplinary collaborations.  We believe that working interdependently yields things none of us can imagine.

We have received up to $800,000 in federal and state historic tax credits, hired our executive director, Columbus College of Art & Design alum Adam Brouillette and established a solid board of directors.

This is and will be a multi-million dollar project that will be self-funded and self-sustaining.  It is our business model.  In order to make this a reality we are developing a diverse portfolio of revenue and funding streams.

For example, we are up for a Pepsi Refresh Grant of $250,000.  That money will help with making the building what we need it to be.  We need you to VOTE TWICE each day--online and via text.  Go here now: http://www.refresheverything.com/wonderland .

To learn more about Wonderland go here: http://www.wonderlandcolumbus.com/  or http://www.facebook.com/#!/WonderlandColumbus .

Thanks for wondering about Wonderland.

Chuck Palmer

ConsumerX

customer-centric retail strategy

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Wonderland Food Cart Food Court

<p>Wonderland Food Truck Food Court from Mike Beaumont on Vimeo.</p>

I heart Wonderland.  Wonderland Columbus (www.WonderlandColumbus.com) is a mixed use place for the creative community to work and grow their businesses.  It’s a place for all to gather to experience great stuff and meet up.  Check out this video from SpaceJunk Media’s Mike Beaumont.   It perfectly captures what we are building Wonderland to be.

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

The Customization Experience: Industrial Design in Everyone's Hands

http://youtu.be/oSc8IDgCoTI?hd=1

Frank Tyneski, vice president of design strategy and new product development for San Diego-based Skinit, admits to having "almost a perverse fascination with buying behavior...why people buy products and what draws them in." Tyneski is a superstar designer with an award-winning track record.  He talks about the movement of design becoming a baseline expectation in consumer products and how important customization is to building the consumer’s experience with your brand.

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Culture Junk: The Experience of AndrewAndrew

The closing night of the Portland Institute of Contemporary Art’s Time Based Arts festival—TBA:10—featured iPad DJs AndrewAndrew. To call them DJs or even iPad DJs doesn’t begin to describe the experience. They crafted a crazy mix of social commentary, music from all over the spectrum and technology that wow’ed us.



These guys are smart, funny and pretty snappy dressers.  Learn more about their multi-talented, multi-faceted lives here: http://www.andrewandrewdotcom.com/.  Be sure to check out the iPad interface and the Neil Diamond and Beyonce cuts they use and of course the parallels they draw between 1970s German terrorism and the current state of the world. 

It was the best time we’ve had in a long time.

(Special thanks to our friend Kim W who curated our weekend in Portland O.)

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Introducing Culture Junk: Inspiration Anywhere

Inspiration is up to you.  Are you curious?  Do you seek new ideas?  How do you do that?  Do you allow yourself to be inspired by things, places, experiences you wouldn’t normally engage in?

When ever I travel, I take lots of pictures (and now video).  I refer these images to provoke memory.  I do this for my clients in order to indicate and communicate strategic points or encourage action.  While at some level it is a creative influence, it is more significantly, a specific tool that I use to deliver on my promises.  I have tons of this stuff and I’ve compiled my first Culture Junk video.

The idea of Culture Junk is to collect and share inspiration and influence.  From Anywhere.

Walking through Brooklyn, I saw and experienced lots of great stuff.  I know there’s more, but this is what made it through.  I hope you enjoy it.

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Problem/Solution? No. Opportunities + Pathways? YES

You may or may not be familiar with the idea of ‘open source’.  Its one of those things (like design thinking) that came from somewhere else and is picked up and embraced.  The trouble is that the original idea can be muddied or watered down.

Not to get too “meta-idea” but THAT IS the idea of open source.  Concepts, structures, ideas are picked up and run with and made into something new.  It is a fascinating cultural and psychological phenomenon. 

In the article “Forking is a Feature” by Anil Dash http://bit.ly/9LY4PT we learn of the idea of developing many responses to particular situations.  Linus Tovalds, in developing an open source operating system—dubbed Linux, not by Mr. Tovalds, but by its users—created what Dash believes is his most lasting legacy.  That is plurality trumps duality.  We are more and more, embracing and/both thinking rather than just either/or. 

Dash’s opening point about Torvalds legacy it true, I believe. I know little of the world Mr. Torvalds has built, but the idea of open-source and the use of what comes of it pervades my world. 

At ConsumerX we work with retailers and consumer products companies to build "culture" around their brands.  The idea of "forking" (if I understand it correctly) makes a great deal of success in my work.

You see, much of my world has been consultants (designers, architects, advisors) like me developing a solution to a problem when the reality has been a that a complex situation warrants a set of responses, often times, each with a significant investment necessary to execute.

When we allow ourselves to be inspired by ideas such as open-source we develop structures akin to language.  (And subsequently, grammar, and perhaps even poetry.)  Just because the words are out there, don't mean nobody knows how to use 'em right.

So, yes the legacy is there.  We see it today with the most sophisticated (big and small) companies being open with their culture (that means they need to nail down their purpose) and allowing their customers to make new things.  Facebook is the best example of everyday people taking bits and pieces and making new value for themselves and those in their orbits.

This construct actually liberates us from the duality of problem/solution and gives us a plurality of opportunities/pathways.  The trick is and always has been, deciding what to do then.

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Observation vs. Inference

There’s a lot we can learn from basic science.  Be certain you know the difference between an observation and what you think it means.

Thanks to my eighth-grade daughter’s science class.

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

More Tech in Stores! Better Consumer Experience or More Clutter?

Product. Price. People. Place.  In that order.

Maybe it's the "Back To" season that's gotten me thinking this way, but let's look at the basics.  Each purchase decision has it's own set of criteria; various points along the rational-emotional continuum. 

Consumers don't like shopping in stores as much as they once did and that's a problem for retailers with most of their dollars invested in brick and mortar outlets.  According to The Wall Street Journal, shopper satisfaction at retail stores is declining upwards of 15 percent a year, based on ongoing research by Interpublic Group (IPG) of more than 10,000 North American shoppers.

Why do we find in-store shopping increasingly dissatisfying?  Because we are emotional beings and seldom is the shopping experience (In line OR online--online is mostly about procurement, after all.) engaging or compelling or lasting.

IF these technologies enhance the shopping experience AND help move more merchandise then they may make sense.  Right now it seems like a lot more clutter and confusion. 

Big Win: Sunglass Hut’s in-store/social media mash-up makes shopping fun and plays on the emotional drivers of the product.

I love contemplating the possibilities for company and consumer alike. One of my favorites to date is Sunglass Hut's in-store/social media mash-up. http://bit.ly/dcSidM

Is it moving more sunglasses?  That remains to be seen.

More retail experts’ opinions at RetailWire: http://bit.ly/aVWzmO.

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Sears & Kmart: Time to Clean Up the Subways

Today’s RetailWire discussion is about Sears Holding’s hiring of David Friedman, most recently president-Americas at Razorfish, to run marketing at the company's Kmart and Sears units.  While I don’t usually comment on breaking news here, the saga of Sears & Kmart is a significant American business story.  Here’s a link to the original piece http://bit.ly/a64YvI.



Mr Friedman has a significant opportunity for innovation here.  He needs to send clear and authentic signals that he's doing something compelling; "cleaning up the subways" from "The Tipping Point http://amzn.to/bPFcRz by Malcolm Gladwell. 

He has heritage (which SH unfortunately ignores) established platforms (in line and online)and lot's of experiments & failures in recent years he can leverage.   


While SH has a track record of rapid prototyping, it has shown little evidence of learning from and leveraging their innovation process (if you can call it a process-see above).

By now, we should have seen significant and relevant reasons to believe from MyGopher and Layaway or the multitude of store format, in-store web kiosk, or web experiments.

At the end of the day, it's about moving the merchandise.  Have you shopped their stores or websites lately?  Yikes.  Have you bought anything?  At all?

My advice: spend the first year shopping the stores (in line and online), getting to know the customers and staff and explore what has worked and what hasn't.  Then throw it all away and develop fresh new reasons for us to pay attention again.

Experience Audit: PacSun BTS 2010

PacSun

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

While it seems no two of their stores are alike, they seem to have gotten away from the racks and racks approach and matured into a real specialty shop.  Hurley, Billabong, Roxy, Zoo York all have their own brand presence but work well together.  A refreshing alternative to the others in this category.

http://shop.pacsun.com/brands/ (Sorry, no video, we were too busy shopping!)

Product: Well mixed range of brands.  Nice balance of trend and basic pieces.

Price: Higher than competitors, but quality of brands and BOGO offers made it ok somehow.

Place: Sophisticated California modern.  The store design is mature and authentic without it being contrived.

People: Eager to engage and help; asked, listened and directed.  Attentive without being hover-y.  Fun, nice, accessible.  Very on-brand while still attending to shopping needs—selection and speedy checkout.

Experience: Loved it.  Key pieces from Pac Sun made into the First Day of School Ensemble (caps intentional)

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Experience Audit: PacSun BTS 2010

PacSun

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

While it seems no two of their stores are alike, they seem to have gotten away from the racks and racks approach and matured into a real specialty shop.  Hurley, Billabong, Roxy, Zoo York all have their own brand presence but work well together.  A refreshing alternative to the others in this category.

http://shop.pacsun.com/brands/ (Sorry, no video, we were too busy shopping!)

Product: Well mixed range of brands.  Nice balance of trend and basic pieces.

Price: Higher than competitors, but quality of brands and BOGO offers made it ok somehow.

Place: Sophisticated California modern.  The store design is mature and authentic without it being contrived.

People: Eager to engage and help; asked, listened and directed.  Attentive without being hover-y.  Fun, nice, accessible.  Very on-brand while still attending to shopping needs—selection and speedy checkout.

Experience: Loved it.  Key pieces from Pac Sun made into the First Day of School Ensemble (caps intentional)

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Experience Audit: American Eagle BTS 2010

American Eagle

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

American Eagle, the also-ran that came out of the teen-apparel outdoor wars of finds its own voice in the new normal.  The place was abuzz.

Product: Nice assortment; deep, not too broad.

Price: Thoughful pricing with engaging promos.

Place: Energetic without being off-putting; “College Radio” with accompanying video support deepened the experience.  Who can resist Salt-n-Peppa’s Push It?

People: Nice enough, but didn’t really help with selection or purchase, lots of maintenance and discussions about schedules.

Experience: Found some good stuff and enjoyed our time there.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Experience Audit: American Eagle BTS 2010

American Eagle

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

American Eagle, the also-ran that came out of the teen-apparel outdoor wars of finds its own voice in the new normal.  The place was abuzz.

Product: Nice assortment; deep, not too broad.

Price: Thoughful pricing with engaging promos.

Place: Energetic without being off-putting; “College Radio” with accompanying video support deepened the experience.  Who can resist Salt-n-Peppa’s Push It?

People: Nice enough, but didn’t really help with selection or purchase, lots of maintenance and discussions about schedules.

Experience: Found some good stuff and enjoyed our time there.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Experience Audit: H&M BTS 2010

H&M

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

Product: Rather ordinary, a bit of fashion.

Price: On the mark.

Place: Devoid of interest or even branding.

People: Didn't engage.

Experience: Left us flat.

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Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

Experience Audit: H&M BTS 2010

H&M

Tuttle Mall Columbus Ohio

August 24, 2010

Product: Rather ordinary, a bit of fashion.

Price: On the mark.

Place: Devoid of interest or even branding.

People: Didn't engage.

Experience: Left us flat.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

What is Your Favorite New York City Experience?

What’s your favorite New York experience?  I’m always on the lookout for those really great, off-the-grid experiences that haven’t made it to the “it” lists yet.  Be it retail, dining, hospitality, cultural what is memorable for you? What’s the first thing that comes to mind?

I still love the energy of 5^th Avenue and Times Square, and a friend recently reminded me of the fun of Canal Street, but  Matise’s “The Dance (1)” at MoMA (http://bit.ly/96OzCk) and Cucina Di Pesce  http://bit.ly/aQw7Nx both hold very special memories.

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Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff

The Double Bottom Line: "Unbanked" Consumer Experience worth $106 Billion

In one of the best retail-izations of a marketplace opportunity I’ve seen in a long, long time, mPower Labs Inc. of Austin Texas debuts the Mango Money Center.  According to the Brookings Institute, one fourth of American households are “unbanked”.  These consumers do not use traditional deposit accounts at traditional banks. The market amounts to an estimated $106 billion.

I was fortunate to work with mPower Labs on the initial consumer experience strategy and concept designs for the first store.  We worked with their very dedicated team to understand the opportunity and embed the key consumer drivers in the design of the experience.  The idea of the “double bottom line” permeated everything we did.  The double bottom line posits that in addition to creating new financial value, a company can—and should—create new social value.  When executed properly the two are interdependent and make each other grow.

Early concepts developed under contract with Fitch.

We came to understand the distrust the unbanked have for the financial system, mostly because their experiences have been riddled with inflated fees and prison-like architecture.  They have been treated poorly and mPower Labs set out to create an ideal experience for these people while making a healthy profit over time. 

We found when these consumers felt a company was loyal to them, they stayed loyal to the company.  We looked at world-class retailers to benchmark the elements that signaled to the consumer that Mango respects them as much as Apple or Starbucks does their customers.  We shopped and spent time in the places they did in order to develop the right sense of place.

The main idea of the engagement strategy was to encourage Mango customers to “Learn, Do, Be”.  This emphasized the prime directive of consumer-centricity: shared responsibility.  The experience of the brand across all the touchpoints needs to create pathways to possibilities by providing transparency, education and empowered self-service in a safe, community-dependent environment.

Mango is the brainchild of mPower Labs led by Roy and Bertrand Sosa who founded NetSpend, Inc, one of the first reloadable debit card providers.  You can hear about Mango and their approach in their own words in this clip.

Mango reportedly plans to open more stores in Austin and then expand to every major U.S. city within three years.

Related Links

Mango: The Prepaid Card That Works With Your Mobile. http://bit.ly/cfka7g

MPOWER Labs - New Businesses Helping The World's Underserved http://bit.ly/bdkFO3

Mango Financial, Inc. Debuts First U.S. Store in Austin, TX /PRNewswire/ -- http://bit.ly/bmwNVr

Bringing Unbanked Households Into the Banking System - Brookings Institution http://bit.ly/b5Ku9s

The Mango Store Lets You Bank Without Commitment | Fast Company http://bit.ly/csaF2A

Mango Financial @ Bercy Chen Studio: Architecture + Construction http://bit.ly/9MR1SZ

MPower Ventures throws Mango Financial to public - Austin Business Journal http://bit.ly/aP7eNM

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Posted via email from ConsumerX: cXChuck's Stuff