I read an interesting post today from Retail Futurist Matthew Brown featuring his top 10 global stores of 2021. These included some great examples of innovation, accelerated trends and wonderful store theatre.

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TRENDS STILL MATTER! 2020 is the year that the Retail Apocalypse finally happened. As we head into 2021, retail is still confronting a global crisis and many businesses are unlikely to survive. And yet the next few years will also see an exciting evolution of retail. The pandemic hasn’t put an end to innovation, instead it is accelerating existing trends, speeding up the inexorable rise of online, but also cementing the importance of local, ethical and responsive retail.

Here is a round up of my ten favourite new concepts from around the world from 2020. Featuring amazing innovation in every sector, it points to a vibrant and creative future for retail.

In the next few years we can expect to see many more exciting pop ups and sculpted new lifestyle community destinations, buzzing with the events and hospitality we have all missed so much. Direct to consumer brands will increasingly use retail as a tactile way of introducing customers to their brands. At the same time, innovative physical retailers will experiment with new mission-driven ways to combine the analogue and digital to create seamless brand experiences; with gamified loyalty, more attentive service and personalised products. Powered by technology, but delivered by humans, this will give them an edge over online-only retail. At the same time, store design and creative visual merchandising will continue to be vital tools that successful retailers, big and small, will use to surprise and delight.

10. Food Central, City Centre Deira, Dubai

The covid crisis may have precipitated the final collapse of Debenhams, however its failure is really an acceleration of the long-term, existential crisis at the heart of the entire global department store sector. Nevertheless, its collapse leaves gaping holes in high streets and malls across the UK and beyond. The big question, of course, is what to do with all the space?

Majid Al Futtaim; the mall operators behind the innovative Mall of the Emirates, have turned the empty Debenhams unit at City Centre Deira into a unique foodcourt featuring sustainability, street food and retail theatre. This space is the anchor for a major redevelopment of the mall.

Food Central is its first ‘culinary experience destination’ in the UAE and its all about authentic, fresh dining from small, local operators. With gorgeous biophilic design, our favourite feature is the live beehive where bees make honey that is used by the food stands.

9. H Beauty by Harrods, Intu Lakeside, UK

Whilst times are undoubtedly tough in the department store sector, luxury name Harrods has actually used the crisis as a time to expand the brand and develop new store formats.

Taking the old Debenhams unit at Westfield London, they opened a new discount fashion format, called Harrods Outlet in July 2020, followed by this glamorous new standalone Beauty concept called H Beauty, at Intu Lakeside in September 2020.

A bold move, in a bold location, Harrods plans to roll out a second store in Milton Keynes in Spring 2021.

At 23,000 sq ft, this new beauty hall concept is no standard white box. Designed by luxury specialists Virgile & Partners, it offers 90 brands across makeup skincare and fragrance, with instore masterclasses and treatment zones. The offer is also available online. Our favourite feature is the champagne bar that sits at the heart of the space.

8. House of Rituals, Amsterdam

Rituals proves the power of flagship experiences with its gorgeous new ‘House of Rituals’, which opened in its home town of Amsterdam to celebrate the brand’s 20th anniversary. At 1,900m² it is Rituals’ largest store worldwide.

In keeping with the brand’s ‘Art of Soulful living’ philosophy, House of Rituals is designed as an escape from the hectic city life, and a holistic haven for the mind, body and soul.

It features a number of firsts for the brand, including exclusive new co-created products, a new homewares collection, as well various opportunities to personalise items. This is in addition to an Arabian-Asian inspired restaurant called Routhi.

Due to COVID-19, the four storey store will have a phased opening, the ground and first floor featuring Ritual’s retail and restaurant offer have opened first. The Body Spa and Mind Spa will open in the summer of 2021, offering pampering, mediation and community events.

7. Zongshuge Books, China

Zhongshuge is now the most exciting book retailer on the planet. Its latest stores in Beijing, Dujiangyan, Guangzhou & Ningbo confirm that the bookstore is not only alive, but a place of wonder, surprise and delight, where design and creativity are vital tools.

Zongshuge taps into Chinese literary culture by creating unique designs for each store, based on local history and architecture. Their strategy actively avoids cookie cutter roll outs.

X+Living’s amazing design transports visitors to somewhere magical. Zongshuge stores offer community spaces and cafés and feature lots of reading nooks. There is a strong focus on special spaces for children.

While there are similarities in the design approach of the Zhongshuge stores, each has distinct theme, that makes it unique to the location, with each one setting visitors on a voyage of discovery. This is true destination retail.

6. H&M Looop, Stockholm

Sustainability continues to expand into the mainstream, as innovative brands find new ways to communicate solutions.

Looop by H&M is the world’s first in-store recycling system, turning old garments into new ones. In just eight steps, Looop shreds your old garment and knits a new one from the old fibres. No water, no dye.

This theatrical piece of sustainable manufacturing has been installed into the basement of H&M’s Drottninggatan store in Stockholm.

The technology behind Looop has been developed by The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA) in collaboration with the non-profit H&M Foundation.

For 100 Swedish kronor (€10), members of H&M’s loyalty club can use the garment recycling service to transform a pre-loved item into something new. For non-members, the fee is 150 Swedish kronor (€15). A nice member benefit.

5. Asda Sustainability Store, Leeds, UK

UK value grocer ASDA’s sustainable concept in Middleton is designed to help shoppers reduce, reuse and recycle. Asda estimates its initiatives will save one million pieces of plastic per year.

‘Greener at Asda Price’ is a new national price promise that loose and unwrapped will not cost more than wrapped equivalents.

Their fashion offer includes sustainable lines from George, as well as a selection of pre-loved clothing and a charity pop-up in collaboration with The Salvation Arm.

Asda has partnered with Unilever, Kelloggs and other suppliers to test out new ‘unwrapped’ concepts. The store features a large scale ‘Refill Zone’ that offers more than 30 household staples including dry goods, detergents and beauty products. Asda will use this site to test and learn which elements they will roll out to other stores in 2021.

4. Box by Posti, Helsinki

As online retail becomes a vital part of our everyday lives, so developing new solutions to solve the pain points of delivery, storage and returns are going become more important to us all.

Finland’s state owned postal service Posti, has opened a new type of high street click and collect concept called Box, in the heart of Helsinki. Designed by Fyra and with strategy from Motley, Box by Posti is where e-commerce meets the physical space.

It’s the missing link between customers’ home and online stores. In addition to parcel collection, there are dedicated spaces for customers to unpack goods, fitting rooms to try on clothing, facilities to repackage returns and even recycle packaging.

The ‘Spotlight’ area showcases up and coming DTC brands and gives them a space to sell their products in a physical store. Who said Post offices have to be boring?

3. Kit Kat Chocolatory, Sydney

FMCGs such as Nestle are continuing to invest in innovative retail concepts, to bring their brands direct to the consumer with exciting, sensory and personalised experiences.

Kit Kat has opened its first permanent Chocolatory in Sydney; an innovation incubator for future stores and product testing for new flavour releases.

The ‘Create your Break’ concept is a play on Kit Kat’s famous ‘Have a Break’ tagline. Customers can design their very own eight finger Kit Kat, made fresh while you wait, with up to 30,000 possible flavour combinations, or they can dine in-store using the sushi style dessert-train.

The concept centres around the theatre and craftsmanship of Kit Kat. By including hospitality dining it makes the experience longer and richer. Designed by Sydney based McCartney Design, the Chocolatory has been so popular that Kit Kat has even had to introduce a timed ticketing system for entry.

2. Nike House of Innovation, Paris

Nike is reaping the rewards of the ‘New Retail’ strategy it pioneered five years ago. Alongside streamlining its wholesale accounts, Nike is also investing in local, community stores alongside innovative flagship experiences. Everything is powered by the digital ecosystem that Nike has carefully sculpted.

Summer of 2020 saw the opening of its third House of Innovation, on the historic Champ Élysées in Paris. This 2,200m² flagship combines hero merchandising with immersive, digitally powered services.

The Nike app is central to enriching the experience, allowing touch free browsing and purchasing, AI fitting, personalisation and expert services that are unlocked when you become a member.

Powered entirely by clean energy and using sustainable materials in its design, the brand highlights its ‘Move to Zero’ initiative throughout the store, sending a positive message the growing number of ‘conscious consumers’.

1. Burberry Social Store, Shenzen, China

Burberry are trailblazers in digital retail, continuing to innovate even in the middle of a global crisis. Burberry has teamed up with technology giant Tencent to launch a new concept in Shenzhen, the tech capital of China.

Dubbed Burberry Social, customers use a WeChat mini program as a gamified shopping experience to book in-store tours, appointments, reserve fitting rooms and book a table at the store’s café. All products are labelled with QR codes, allowing customers to access in-depth product information via their own devices.

Customers are given a digital ‘egg’ when they start, which hatches into a unique animal avatar. This evolves and changes as you explore the store and allows you to unlock experiences, such as the Trench room, which you get a special tour when you reach ‘Panda level.’

This gamified approach to the instore experience is a clever way to reinvent loyalty in the digital age.

Via Linkedin

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Snapchat has revealed its most inspiring augmented reality campaigns of 2020.

In a blog post, the social platform described 2020 as “a year of the unexpected and the unprecedented, from stay-at-home orders to major shifts in consumer behaviour and in how brands, businesses and organisations operate. … This year more than ever, Snapchatters and brands have used the camera to connect with friends and loved ones all over the world in new, creative ways.”

Snapchat added, “AR has played a massive role in creating those connections and experiences. Brands and organisations around the world have leveraged our technology to engage with the Snapchat Generation in innovative ways never before possible.”

The campaigns chosen by Snapchat were:

 Biden-Harris campaign and U.S. Postal Service: The campaign sought to encourage Snapchatters to vote early for the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris ticket by creating an experience where scanning the USPS logo showed users in a Biden hat and shirt, wearing his iconic aviators.

Gucci AR shoe try-on: SnapML technology was used to enable Snapchatters to virtually try on Gucci shoes and purchase them directly through the lens via a ‘Shop Now” button, which generated positive return on ad spend.

Hershey’s Canada Reeseter Egg Hunt: The classic Easter egg hunt went AR, as Snapchatters in Canada were able to hunt around their real-world environments for “Reeseter” eggs. After collecting 10, they could swipe up to an instant-win microsite for a change to win a Reese Easter Egg prize pack.

National Saudi Day: Brands in Saudi Arabia kicked off several campaigns dedicated to the 90th Saudi National Day, with 12 lenses activated by different partners.

NYX Professional Makeup virtual store and try-on experience: The first-ever virtual beauty product drop on Snapchat’s platform featured an end-to-end shopping experience powered by AR, including virtual try-on and gaming via both Snapchat and Triller.

OnePlus Diwali Festival of Lights: Snapchatters in India were enabled to send custom Diwali greetings from their own balconies, releasing them to the sky and watching them transform.

Ralph Lauren AR retail: The apparel brand and Snapchat worked with Bitmoji to roll out a global Bitmoji fashion collection featuring Ralph Lauren’s iconic outfits, and then brought the Ralph Lauren pony logo to life via Snapchat Scan.

Rebuild Foundation “Raise Your Voice”: An artist collaboration and application takeover inspired by Black Lives Matter and the pandemic enabled Snapchatters to don custom AR masks, accessorize their Bitmoji avatars and buy real-life masks through the platform’s integration with Shopify.

Trolls World Tour takes over the Snap Camera desktop app: Universal Pictures released Trolls World Tour on-demand, rather than in theaters, due to the pandemic, and Snapchat brought the animated characters to life, extending the experience to its then-new desktop app for video calls and virtual meetings.

Verizon Black Pumas 5G concert: Verizon and Snapchat debuted the first-ever 5G-enabled Snapchat landmarker lens, featuring a full-length AR performance by Grammy Award-nominated artists Black Pumas. The two companies said the experience was 10 times more powerful than any lens Snapchat had created previously.

World Health Organization global donation lens: The United Nations Foundation and the WHO teamed up on the first ever global donation AR lens to raise awareness about critical resources that were needed in the early stages of the pandemic. The experience was triggered by scanning international currency notes.

Via Adweek

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Department store chain Kohl’s teamed up with Snapchat on an augmented reality virtual closet earlier this spring, enabling Snapchatters to browse clothes from home via the messaging application.

Snapchat has updated Kohl’s digital showroom to include ath-leisure pieces, allowing Snapchatters to browse Kohl’s loungewear as they shelter-in-place and purchase items without leaving the app.

Like other social media platforms, Snapchat has experienced a spike in usage during COVID-19. From February to March, Snap Inc. saw a 36 percent increase in Snaps sent with a Lens, an 18 percent increase in playtime with Sponsored Lenses and a 22 percent click-through rate with Sponsored Lenses.

Snap Inc. is seeing increased interest in its AR features from brands during the pandemic. WWD previously reported on L’Oréal becoming the first beauty company to partner with Snap Camera.

Via WWD

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In its aim to stay competitive among social platforms, Snapchat has launched a new string of high profile-fashion partnerships.

Snapchat worked with Ralph Lauren in November and Jordan Brand in September on a number of initiatives, both on the main Snapchat app and on the Bitmoji app, the platform’s subsidiary company. And on Thursday afternoon, Snapchat will roll out a third fashion partnership in three months with Levi’s, which includes releasing a collection of Levi’s products that people can use to dress their virtual Bitmoji avatars or buy in real life to dress themselves. Snap is aiming to link with fashion partners using both time-tested tactics and new ones — last week with Ralph Lauren, it introduced the ability to scan a fabric logo on clothing using its app and be directed to online content.

The post Why Fashion Brands Are Partnering With Bitmoji appeared first on This Is Retail.

Snap’s Partner Summit event in June, in which the company shows off its latest product updates and media partnerships, produced such a flurry of new innovations.

Some of Snapchat’s newer features, like the machine-learning based SnapML, are already being used by brands like Gucci for augmented reality try-on features for clothing products. Not a bad innovation for brands whose brick-and-mortar operations have been shuttered by a global pandemic.

Others, such as the Story and Lens formats (see Adidas and Tommy Hilfiger), are now so recognisable that you may have seen similar versions launched on other social media products.

In any case, Snapchat remains an important source of creativity in digital media.

1 Paramount Pictures ‘Sonic The Hedgehog’ by Wavemaker

To promote the release of the Sonic the Hedgehog movie in January, the eponymous blue hedgehog came to life in digital form on a number of landmarks across the UK, including Tower Bridge and the Natural History Museum, using augmented reality.

The creative even portrays Sonic as collecting rings, a major objective of the video game on which the character is based. Snapchat said the campaign had more than 27 million impressions with a unique reach of 10.5 million.

2 Lego ‘And I think to myself’ by Engine Mischief, The Producers and Initiative Junior

Lego is running a Christmas pop-up in London’s Covent Garden this month that features a variety of brick-built installations to bring to life its “And I think to myself” campaign, inspired by the lyrics in its Christmas creative.

Snapchat users can access a karaoke AR lens that will not only help them learn the lyrics to the song but be able to see the lyrics like “I see sausage trees”, “My horse is blue” and “Don’t seem to give a duck”.

3 Adidas ‘#HomeTeam’ by Adidas

To help people stay active while staying at home, the sportswear giant launched a series of filters and an AR Lens to encourage Snapchatters to stay home and to offer them creative, fit and fun ways to celebrate how they were staying active, with the people closest to them. Snapchat said it was viewed more than 14 million times.

4 Public Health England ‘Better Health – Every Mind Matters’ by OmniGov and Wavemaker

This campaign, which ran from September to November, focused on encouraging children and young people to take positive actions towards better mental health. The campaign targeted 13- to 18-year-olds on Snapchat, and included both AR Lenses and a bespoke three-part content series called “In My Head”, produced in partnership with Barcroft Studios.

5 Gucci ‘Try-on sneaker’ by Gucci

To create excitement around the launch of its new sneaker collection in June, Gucci partnered with Snapchat to launch an AR shoe try-on. Leveraging the recently launched SnapML feature in Lens Studio, Gucci offered Snapchatters a try-on experience for four different pairs of sneakers and a route to purchase via a dedicated “Shop Now” button located inside the Lens.

6 Tommy Hilfiger ‘Looney Tunes’ by Tommy Hilfiger

Marking the launch of its Looney Tunes collection in April, Tommy Jeans launched its first-ever AR portal Lens on Snapchat. The Lens opened with the iconic Bugs Bunny look in selfie mode and when flipping the camera, Snapchatters were invited to step into the fashion world of Tommy Jeans x Looney Tunes.

Inside the Portal Lens people could explore the collection, interact with the space and also use the“Shop Now” button, giving Snapchatters the opportunity to buy the limited edition collection instantly wherever they were.

7 Tate Britain, The National Gallery and the Bank of England ‘£20 note campaign’

Anyone in possession of the new £20 note (or a picture of it) was able to see their cash in a new dimension, interact and learn about JMW Turner’s artwork which adorns the new note. This campaign launched in February.

8 DJ Mag ‘David Guetta – world’s best DJ’ by GoSpooky

DJ Mag turned to Snapchat to put on an AR concert to celebrate David Guetta being announced as number one in its World’s Top 100 DJs list in November. Snapchatters around the world could use the lens, point their phones at the sky and unlock an exclusive David Guetta set – the biggest of his life.

9 Sky Q ‘Everything you love in one place, easy’ by Sky Creative

This campaign sought to bring the SkyQ Portal to life, having launched in October. Working closely with Sky Creative Agency, Snap’s in-house design team crafted Story ads to play into the Sky Q “Portal” seen across the integrated campaign.

The Story Ad was meant to surprise Snapchatters as the creative seemingly consumed the User Interface within the Stories tab. Snapchat said this was viewed by more than 6.8 million UK Snapchatters.

10 Samsung ‘A-Series’ by Rapp and Atomic Digital

This campaign was adapted from the TV ad in July to create a bespoke AR Lens that lets the Snapchatter control different elements of the creative.

The post Snapchat’s favourite UK campaigns of 2020 appeared first on This Is Retail.

• Walmart will run a first-of-its-kind shoppable livestream on TikTok in the U.S., part of the retailer’s holiday marketing, the company announced via blog post.
• On Dec. 18, 10 of TikTok’s top creators will participate in a one-hour variety show program called the “Holiday Shop-Along Spectacular.” Social media personalities, including Michael Le — who has attracted over 43 million followers on the app through his dance videos — will showcase both private-label and national brands at Walmart, with an emphasis on apparel.
• Viewers can tap the videos to learn more about the products displayed and complete their purchases without leaving TikTok. The ability to link creator-driven video content to sales illustrates why Walmart moved to acquire a stake in TikTok earlier this year, a deal that is still in the works but squares with the retailer’s broader push into e-commerce.

Walmart is bringing together several channels with its shoppable livestream on TikTok. The big-box retailer has put a strong emphasis on e-commerce as the pandemic drives more people to buy online. At the same time, livestreaming viewership and engagement with social media have skyrocketed as people look to stay connected and entertained while stuck at home.

TikTok has benefited from these trends — it is the most-downloaded app this year and stands out as a favourite among Gen Zers — and steadily built out advertising and commerce tools to capitalize on explosive user growth. The app, which is owned by Chinese tech firm ByteDance, partnered with the e-commerce platform Shopify in October to help brands and retailers better advertise their products through shoppable videos and measure campaign performance. TikTok also recently teamed up with companies like Teespring to help its creators sell merchandise to their followers.

Walmart is spotlighting fashion and apparel as part of the one-hour variety program that aired on Dec. 18 at 8 p.m. ET through the retailer’s official TikTok page. Creators showcased brands like Champion, Jordache and Kendall + Kylie, along with Walmart-owned labels, including Free Assembly, Scoop and Sofia Jeans.

This event isn’t the first time TikTok has run shoppable livestreams. In August, it hosted a collaboration with Ntwrk, a home shopping network aimed at Gen Z. The livestream showed a pop-up window that lets users buy products directly without leaving the app. The distinction of Walmart’s promotion now is that users can tap products in the live video feed and check out directly from the brand’s product page, a TikTok spokesperson explained over email.

“Creators and brands have found a creative outlet to connect with audiences through TikTok LIVE, and we’re excited to further innovate on this interactive experience to enable our community to discover and engage with the brands they love,” Blake Chandlee, VP of global business solutions at TikTok, said in a statement to Marketing Dive. “Brands have had an incredible impact on the community throughout this year, and we’re thrilled to see Walmart embrace the creativity of TikTok and this first-of-a-kind experience to meaningfully engage with their community.”

Drawing more consumers to online sales channels could be essential for retailers during a grim holiday season where many people are avoiding stores. Retail sales dipped 1.1% in November in the US from the prior month when factoring in seasonal adjustments, the Commerce Department said in a report Wednesday — a sign that the pandemic and its economic impact could further disrupt the crucial sales period.

Walmart is advancing other bets on e-commerce as consumer habits driven by the health crisis will likely stick even after the pandemic abates. The retailer launched its long-anticipated subscription membership program Walmart+ in the fall, its biggest bet yet to compete with Amazon. The company is also in negotiations to acquire a stake in TikTok, which has scrambled to iron out a new ownership structure after facing a potential ban by the Trump administration. While an outright ban seems less likely now after several court challenges, ByteDance and TikTok are still negotiating a deal that could see Oracle and Walmart receive some ownership in the app.

In September, Walmart announced it had tentatively agreed to purchase 7.5% of TikTok Global, a new entity that would seek to please regulators concerned over the platform’s ties to China. A Walmart spokesperson reached via email said the holiday activation is unrelated to the ownership negotiations and pointed Marketing Dive to the September statement.

Via RetailDive

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The Drum have summed up such a wonderful list that I needn’t compile my own this year, although I have added a few notable Aussie ads in there for your viewing pleasure.

Whatever happens in the next month or two, Christmas 2020 will be like no other before it. As advertisers grapple with how to stand out during the festive season, you can keep up to date with the best seasonal creative right here.

It might be November but it’s already beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Mince pies have tentatively started to appear on the supermarket shelves, as of yet unlit festive lights dangle in waiting in cities across the world and brands have started airing their Christmas ads.

So far we’ve seen Disney get in on the action with a tearjerker to rival John Lewis’ crown, while Dobbies has unveiled an unexpected, abstract campaign from ODD.

Boots has also launched a charity-focused push from Ogilvy centered around the issue of hygiene poverty. Elsewhere, Barbour has returned to the popular children’s book Father Christmas, written and illustrated by Raymond Briggs. And Burberry’s London-based singing and dancing spectacular is has broken through the Christmas bubble to a roar of applause.

Papa John’s: Giving More This Christmas, London.

In an effort to raise awareness and support two of the most prevalent issues the UK is currently facing, hunger and homelessness, Papa John’s is launching its ‘Giving more this Christmas’ campaign, which sees the pizza delivery chain donating a chunk of their creative and marketing budgets to Crisis and the Trussell Trust.

To put the money which would have otherwise been spent on creative designs and production costs to better use, Papa John’s instead, enlisted help from internal staff to design and create the assets for its Christmas 2020 campaign.

Lidl: A Christmas You Can Believe In by Karmarama, London

Building on the success of Lidl’s Christmas campaign last year Big On A Christmas You Can Believe In, this year’s advert uses an amusing parody in an animated world to support the same sentiment.

The ad nods to the unbelievable and unrealistic nature of Christmas ads whilst interrupting these Christmas advertising tropes, and side-stepping them for great Lidl products, at great Lidl prices.

The campaign sits within Lidl’s ‘Big On’ creative framework launched last year with advertising agency Karmarama and looks to highlight the brand’s commitment to being ‘Big on’ quality and always ‘Lidl’ on price.

Deliveroo- Christmas is on, London

Celebrating its first ever major UK Christmas campaign, Deliveroo’s latest spot ‘Christmas is On’, was created in-house by the food-delivery company, and highlights that no matter what uncertainty lies ahead the next few months, Deliveroo will be here to deliver this Christmas.

Throughout November and December, a brand new festive menu on Deliveroo features exclusive dishes from loved chains to local neighbourhood favourites. From Pret’s legendary Christmas sandwich to Burger King’s Festive BBQ King and Pizza Hut’s Christmas Pizza, these limited-edition dishes are available only on Deliveroo.

The campaign also celebrates the festive grocery favourites available for delivery on-demand in as little as 20 minutes from mince pies to prosecco, from the likes of Co-op, Waitrose, Aldi and Morrisons.

Burberry – ‘Singing in the (London) Rain’, London

Fashion house Burberry is making a splash this Christmas with a timeless rendition of Singin’ in the Rain, infusing the Gene Kelly classic with the brand’s distinctive urban edginess.

Produced by RiffRaff Films and directed by MegaForce, the classical climatic dance-off has been choreographed by dance collective (La)Horde, amping up the thrill factor by introducing falling blocks of ice for the fleet-footed quartet to circumnavigate.

Evading a descent into tired schmaltz and cheese the short film brings the 1950s straight into the 21st century with a hailstorm on London’s Petticoat Lane.

Keen to fashion more than just a video, Burberry is aiming to celebrate its capacity to provide social good, signified by a partnership with footballer and activist Marcus Rashford to finance a network of British youth centres.

Boots – ‘What the World Needs’, Ogilvy London

Boots has launched its Christmas campaign, centred around acts of kindness, care and great value for all. Boots ‘What the World Needs Now’ campaign recognises that it has been a year like no other and acts of care and kindness are what is needed most.

To help, Boots will provide hygiene essentials to some of the millions of people in the UK living in hygiene poverty, with a donation of £1m worth of products to The Hygiene Bank. Boots is also inviting customers to donate hygiene items to support those most in need this Christmas.

American Egg Board: The Gift of Eggs by BBDO

American Egg Board’s new campaign, ‘The Gift of Eggs,’ pokes fun at holiday extravagances in order to celebrate what really matters during the season — family, friends, special memories together and food.

The campaign’s two short films upend trite holiday gifting advertising, like the perennial car with a big bow in the driveway, by adding a comic twist to remind consumers that just a dozen eggs can open the door to incredible possibilities.

The 15-second films, created in partnership with creative agency Energy BBDO, are called ‘Giant Bow’ and ‘Proposal.’ The former plays off over-the-top holiday car commercials, showing a family surprising their dad with an extravagantly wrapped carton of eggs in the driveway; the latter leans into jewelry store holiday clichés, revealing that the holiday proposal is not with a diamond, but an incredible egg. The tongue-in-cheek films will run on social and OLV and were shot following social distancing protocols

Zalando – We will hug again by Anomaly

Against the backdrop of a challenging year of uncertainty and separation, Zalando is celebrating the hug as the ultimate expression of human connection and solidarity. Created by Anomaly Berlin, ‘We Will Hug Again’ is devised to convey a feeling of optimism and hope across Europe.

This message of hope will be depicted across numerous formats. Firstly, it will be brought to life through a series of Hug Portraits which will appear as large unbranded murals in visible urban locations across Europe. It will also include a heartwarming film, ‘100 Years of Hugs,’ directed by Vincent Haycock, and set to the track ‘Godspeed’ by Frank Ocean.

Barbour: Father Christmas to The Rescue by Illuminated Films

For the second year running, Barbour has returned to the popular children’s book Father Christmas, written and illustrated by Raymond Briggs.

The film follows a young boy whose dog has chewed his father’s beloved Barbour wax jacket. The boy writes to Father Christmas to say that he doesn’t want a present this year, he just needs his help to repair his father’s jacket in time for Christmas. Father Christmas realises he can’t mend the jacket himself but has the bright idea of taking it to the Barbour factory in South Shields to see whether they can assist. The Barbour customer service team set to work repairing the jacket and give it a rewax too, so it looks as good as new.

The film is based on the true story of Dudley the dachshund who chewed his owner’s much-adored Barbour jacket. His owner sent it back to Barbour with a note from Dudley to say he was sorry.

Disney: From Our Family To Yours by The Walt Disney Company

Disney’s Christmas charming Christmas ad is inspired by the themes of traditions and family togetherness in a year that has upended both. Exploring the relationship between a gran and her granddaughter, the animation is certain to tug at the heartstrings.

Running across 26 markets in Europe, as well as Australia, New Zealand, North America and parts of Asia, ‘From Our Family To Yours’ holds the same production values as any Pixar movie would.

Based on insight from consumers that traditions, family and nostalgia were the most important things to them in the run up to this Christmas, the short sees the introduction of two characters – a grandmother, Lola, and her granddaughter.

Dobbies: The Joy of Dobbies by ODD

Dobbies has departed with Christmas tradition to launch ‘The Joy of Dobbies’ brings to life the magical experience of a trip to the retailer during the festive period.

Abstract, impactful and unexpected, it features a bauble-filled hot-tub, sledging poodle and raining mince-pies. All an entertaining ode to the fact that nothing that beats the feeling of a trip to a Dobbies garden centre at Christmas.

At its core is a disruptive marketing strategy from ODD that centres around short, shareable film content that will catch attention on TV as much as stand-out online. The films also feature original scores from acclaimed Jazz musician, Ola Onabulé.

Waitrose & John Lewis – Give a Little Love

Inspired by the kindness we saw throughout the pandemic, the Waitrose and John Lewis advert was created by advertising agency adam&eveDDB, and isn’t just a celebration of different forms of moving art – from animation and claymation to CGI and cinematography – it’s made up of nine different vignettes created by eight different artists who are leading experts in their particular art, including Chris Hopewell, who has created music videos for Radiohead and Franz Ferdinand, and French animator Sylvain Chomet.

The unique approach was chosen in a spirit of kindness towards the creative industries, which has been hard hit by the pandemic. Instead of a single production team, multiple artists were selected, giving employment to many people across our creative community.

Sainsbury’s Gravy Song

Sainsbury’s takes a heartfelt look at food, family and memories in three-part Christmas advert collection, starting with the ‘Gravy Song’. The spot tells how a father and daughter’s excitement for Christmas gets them talking about Dad’s gravy and his “famous” gravy song. The song brings back memories of years gone by, as the daughter tries to cope with the embarrassment of her Dad’s singing, whilst admitting her love for the gravy (and the song, really).

In a year when Christmas feels more uncertain yet more needed than ever, the collection of nostalgic adverts aims to celebrate culinary memories with loved ones and transport us through time by centring around three personal stories of modern British families and their connection to Christmas food. It’s another one to be created by Wieden+Kennedy.

Tesco – No Naughty List

Directed by Raine Allen-Miller from Somesuch and developed by BBH, Tesco’s festive offering this year absolves us of our sins by saying, “After a year like this, we believe there is no naughty list. So go on Britain, treat yourself to the best Christmas ever”. We can live with that.

We see a few characters admit they bought too many loo rolls. While others confess to poor video call etiquette. But the supermarket tells us to indulge anyway, as we “deserve it”. It’s a cheeky, fun spot all backed by one of Britney Spears’ classics, Oops I Did It Again.

Three: Your Phone’s Seen A Lot This Year by Wonderhood Studios, London

Three’s holiday campaign, directed by award-winning director, Simon Ratigan, shows 2020 through the eyes of our phones – from heart-felt kisses on video calls to working from home and virtual quizzes, all voiced by a choir that sings what unrelenting hard work it is to be a phone.

In the end, the lead drops her trusty phone, just in time to get a deal on a shiny new one from Three.

Coca-Cola – Give something only you can give

If the McDonalds and John Lewis adverts didn’t have you crying, Coca-Cola’s offering definitely will.

The two-and-a-half minute clip follows the story of a dad trying to deliver his daughter’s letter to Santa against all odds.

And it was actually directed by Oscar winner Taika Waititi, who has worked on films such as JoJo Rabbit and Thor: Ragnarok.

notonthehighstreet.com: The Magic of Small Things by Friendly Giants

Notonthehighstreet, the UK’s curated online marketplace for the UK’s best small creative businesses, reveals its first airtime TV Christmas advertising campaign in three years.

The ad, which focuses on ‘The Magic of Small Things’, taps into the national, pandemic-accelerated shift towards supporting small, local businesses, and to cherishing simple moments of connection that have become even more important in 2020.

Aldi: Kevin’s Out in the Cold by McCann UK

Aldi has finally premiered its Christmas ad from McCann which sees Kevin the Carrot return to screens to mark the start of the festive season, bringing with him some much-needed wonder and magic.

The country was left on tenterhooks and rooting for the plucky carrot’s safe return following his appearance earlier this week in a teaser advert. Just days ago, Kevin set the sky alight, Top Gun style, in a fighter jet escapade with co-pilot Turkey.

He was left perilously adrift with a flaming parachute, leaving fans asking Where is Kevin, and will he manage to get home to Katie and family in time for Christmas?

Myer – Bigger than Christmas, Clemenger BBDO, Melbourne

Myer is helping put the joy back into 2020, with a Christmas campaign via Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, encouraging Australians to come together to celebrate all of the moments they’ve missed out on this year and make this Christmas even ‘Bigger than Christmas’.

From birthday parties, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, anniversaries, Easter, and weddings that have had to be put on hold or celebrated in isolation – Australians will be packing it all into one day where they can celebrate it all.

To launch the campaign, Myer have today released an original Christmas carol that reflects on the events and occasions that were a little different this year, using iconic Aussie satire and sunny-side up sense of humour.

The campaign will come to life across all facets of the major Australian retailer’s communications including: advertising, visual merchandising, stores and digital platforms. It also showcases Myer’s ultimate, curated, one-stop Giftorium experience, which includes an exclusive partnership with Disney. In addition, Myer Gifticians will solve all gift giving needs to suit all ages and budgets, there will be complimentary gift wrapping along with the option for customers to round up their purchases at the point of sale, with proceeds going to charity.

David Jones – The home of Christmas for 182 years, Sydney

David Jones is waving goodbye to 2020 and warmly welcoming the festive season with ‘The Home of Christmas for 182 years’, a nostalgic Christmas campaign inviting all Australians to celebrate 182 Christmases with the iconic department store.

Founded in 1838, David Jones has seen almost 200 years of Australia’s heritage through its famous windows. From the perspective of looking out, not in; ‘The Home of Christmas for 182 years’ celebrates two centuries of Christmas shoppers peering through the glass, uniting the years with a sense of joy and delight.

Michael Hill Jewellers – It truly is the thought that counts, CHE Proximity

Michael Hill Jeweller has launched its Christmas brand campaign in collaboration with CHE Proximity, based on the premise of helping a loved one rediscover their sparkle.

The film shows an all too familiar chaotic evening routine for mum, kids, and the family dog, which culminates in a bedtime story.

Mum resonates with the lead character who, ‘at the end of a year of endless debacle’, realises that she had ‘lost her sparkle.’

This doesn’t go unnoticed by her kids, and on Christmas Day, mum spots a thoughtful little treasure trove labelled ‘to mummy’, with a purple Michael Hill box.

Marks and Spencer: This is M&S Christmas Food by Grey London’

In a year when charity funding has declined almost 25%, this Christmas M&S Food has announced it will donate £2m to good causes, saying it’s not a year for “Christmas advertising fairytales”.

Central to this, M&S Food is shining a light on a number of important charities, partnering with nine world-famous actors who have added their unmistakable voices to nine brand new Christmas food ads, shot in its signature ‘food porn’ style.

The star-studded voiceover cast — which includes Tom Hardy, Olivia Colman, Helen Mirren and Chiwetel Ejiofor have all chosen to work with M&S, selecting charities close to their hearts to which M&S Food will make a donation on their behalf.

And M&S is doing the same for customers. Every time a customer signed up to its sparks loyalty scheme shops at M&S in-store or online at M&S.com, it will donate to their selected charity, from a range of 35 different causes.

M&S Food will also donate an additional £1million across a diverse range of charities including Shelter, Together for Short Lives and the 35 Sparks charities that M&S supports. Through Sparks, M&S has donated £7.3 million since 2015.

Very.co.uk: Christmas is this Very moment’ by Grey

Very.co.uk has launched a funny Christmas campaign, its first from Grey London, which encourages people to embrace every single moment in the countdown to December 25 instead of focusing on the clichéd portrayal of Christmas day.

The charmingly honest film sends the message that the best thing about Christmas is not just Christmas day but the combination of all the wonderfully festive moments in the build-up to Christmas, from Christmas lights and the all-important tree to Christmas jammies.

Javier Campopiano, chief creative officer Europe and creative chairman London at Grey, said: “It’s a different Christmas message, a message that offers the unfiltered point of view of someone who truly loves everything about Christmas, every single bit that makes it such a magical season.

“Not only is it different to what the brand and its customers have seen before, but we’re confident it’ll resonate right now when we’re facing the prospect of a very different festive period.”

Argos: An Evening with AbracaDaisy & The Incredible Lucy

Despite scrapping its paper catalogue in June after 47 years, Argos has brought out the second chapter in its ‘Book of Dreams’ campaign, which once again taps into the nostalgia that people feel for flicking through the pages of its Christmas gift guide.

Though the original ‘Book of Dreams’ is currently out of print, Argos has brought out a Christmas gift guide to replace it. In the spot, two girls spot a box of magic tricks on the pages of the guide, which transports them off to the furthest reaches of the imagination, to a world where they have their own extraordinary magic show.

Last year saw Argos introduce the ‘Book of Dreams,‘ dropping its playful ‘Christmas Fool‘ character in favour of a more family-oriented spot. Both were created by The&Partnership.

“Last year‘s Christmas ad performed extremely well for us,” explains Argos‘ senior campaign manager, Rob Quartermain. “This year, we‘ve taken that idea on another step. It felt like a really powerful and strong idea and something that‘s uniquely Argos.”

Amazon: The Show Must Go On by Lucky Generals

This year Amazon tells the inspiring story of a determined young ballerina who inadvertently brings her community together amid the challenges of this year.

Set to an arrangement of Queen’s ‘The Show Must Go On‘ the film features 17-year-old French ballet dancer, Taïs Vinolo as her character is forced to train from home due to the pandemic.

While her dreams of dancing a lead role are cancelled due to Covid-19, she doesn’t let this hold her back and she continues to practice her routine – dancing wherever and whenever she can. Inspired by her resolution and resolve, her sister and the community around her pull together to give her a stage and an audience in an emotional finale.

Last year, Amazon released a Love Actually-style spot, that featured a little girl playing Everybody Needs Somebody to Love, a flirty couple and its hallmark singing parcels.

TK Maxx: Lil’ Goat by Wieden+Kennedy

For its Christmas ad this year, TK Maxx has introduced ‘Lil’ Goat’ – a sassy, enviably dressed little goat.

As ‘Lil’ Goat’ struts across a snowy landscape, her farmers watch her go by. The wife questions her husband, “Did you buy the goat a designer outfit?” Gary, instead of conforming to the stoic farmer type, looks on tenderly with a tear in his eye and replies, replies proudly, “Yes, she’s had such a hard year. She bloomin’ well deserves it if you ask me”. The ad concludes with the jubilant goat sliding freely across the icy terrain, embodying the off-price retailer’s spirited and often humorous nature to deliver an important message – after the year we’ve had, everyone deserves to feel special this Christmas.

Last year TK Maxx adopted a daredevil skier called TK to show how shoppers can enter autopilot in its stores.

Lego: And I Think to Myself… by Lego Agency

The Lego Group celebrates the magic of the everyday as experienced by children through play. It showcases families coming together and experiencing the joyful, humorous adventures that children create and explore as they build, unbuild and rebuild with Lego products.

Part of its ‘Rebuild the World’ brand campaign, the playful storyline is set to a bespoke reimagining of ‘What a Wonderful World’

In the whimsical adventure, every story, animal and vehicle in the fun-filled celebration of children’s creativity are based on existing Lego products; princess knights calm dragons, astronauts celebrate their marriage with dinosaurs and giant chicken, and a Star Wars AT-AT takes a nap mid-crusade.

Pepsi Max: Christmas Refreshed by Truant London

Pepsi Max has partnered with rap artists Kamakaze and TrueMendous for its new Christmas spot.

‘Christmas Refreshed‘ sees Pepsi shatter old Christmas traditions, offering an alternative view. ‘Traditional is so cliché‘ the rappers declare, and throughout the ad longstanding Christmas tropes are replaced with cool alternatives – a sledge is replaced by a hench soundsystem, a festive jumper transforms into a sick Pepsi jacket.

TBWA: Ian Wright & Family by Portal from Facebook

Portal from Facebook launches a brand new holiday campaign with national treasure and footballing legend, Ian Wright.

Each family moment in the campaign showcases how a different feature of Portal is helping the Wrights feel like they’re hanging out together. From the AI-powered Smart Camera, AR filters, through to Group calling and Rooms, Portal’s technology allows the family to focus on what matters; coming together during the holidays and keeping their family traditions – like making fun of Dad – alive.

Asda: That’s An Asda Price Christmas by AMV BBDO

This year, Asda was one of the first of the major supermarkets to launch its Christmas ad.

With England on the eve of its second lockdown, many are looking to the festive season to bring a little cheer to the end of 2020. Featuring the tagline, ‘the Christmas we all need, at the prices we want’ the spot sees the return of Asda super-fan Sunny and his wife and children as they try to bring some seasonal cheer to their Scrooge-like next-door-neighbour, Christine.

The spot has won praise for its no-frills approach to this year’s festivities, acknowledging that “Christmas is going to be different this year so let’s really make the most of it.”

Walkers: A Sausage CaRoll by Elvis

Walkers Crisps has released its Christmas offering starring YouTuber and Christmas No.1 holder, LadBaby, with supporting rolls from East 17’s Tony Mortimer, Walking in the Air singer Aled Jones, and Walker’s mainstay, Gary Lineker.

In the spot, the gang performs a medley of Christmas carols with lyrics adapted to herald the arrival of Walker’s new sausage roll flavoured crisps.

The ad was created in partnership with The Trussell Trust, the charity which supports food banks across the UK. The crisp brand has pledged to help LadBaby raise more money than ever in its name this Christmas. Walkers had already pledged £1m to The Trussell Trust earlier this year, as the charity needs more support than ever due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic.

The post Christmas 2020 Ad Round Up appeared first on This Is Retail.

In an unpredictable year it’s hard to see what’s on the immediate horizon — particularly when it comes to consumer spending habits.

2020 has been full of wild cards. In years past, forecasting for the last quarter of the season seemed, comparatively, like a much more straightforward effort. But, in a year when retailers have been trying to serve their customers, keep employees safe and still have products shipped out on time in the middle of a pandemic, it’s hard to see what’s on the immediate horizon, especially with consumer spending habits.

“We might want to predict right now. The only thing we can guarantee is that we would be wrong,” said Howard Meitiner, managing director at Carl Marks Advisors and former president and CEO of Sephora USA.

Holiday sales forecasts have been cautious, too: ICSC projects a 1.9% rise in spending, while CBRE hovered in the same space, predicting less than 2% growth. Deloitte went a bit further, releasing a “K-shaped” approach to the season. One arm of that scenario keeps growth at 0% to 1%, while another, more optimistic version has a rise of up to 3.5% if several things fall into place, including an “effective federal pandemic relief bill with an unemployment insurance benefit supplement, and the creation of an effective vaccine.”

Meitiner puts it simply: “If sales are flat overall — that would be success.”

While the pandemic, an upcoming election and a teetering economic situation has thrown many variables at forecasting for the season, companies are thoughtfully delivering solutions to meet consumers where they are. Retailers have made an effort to elongate the season to keep customers safe and to respond swiftly to orders, BOPIS has become commonplace and e-commerce is primed to be a vital shopping channel.

In the middle of an unprecedented year for retail, here are five predictions for the holiday:

1. A longer holiday season

Black Friday has traditionally been the kickoff of the holiday shopping season. However, 2020 has upended most strategic plans, including the start of when retailers generally prompt holiday spending.

Consulting firm AlixPartners added the month of October for the first time to its holiday forecasting, stating that the typical seasonal definition was “meaningless” this year. Instead, the company’s research stated that 49% of consumers are planning to start their holiday shopping by Halloween or earlier.

Then Amazon effectively drew a boundary around the definition of the season with the launch of its Prime Day sales event Oct. 13 and 14. When the e-commerce giant postponed the event, which is typically held in July, it lead to much speculation on what its game plan would be in regards to the holidays. But, when a new date was announced, other retailers, including Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Kohl’s and J.C. Penney, launched with deals of their own on the same days, definitively pulling back the start of the holiday both to remain competitive and to spread out the logistics demand for the period.

2. E-commerce is king

The spring of 2020 was a gut punch for the retail industry. Nonessential retailers temporarily closed their physical doors to reduce the spread of COVID-19. While brick-and-mortar sales were mostly put on pause, retailers looked to their online channels to keep products moving. It resulted in both Q1 and Q2 showing a terrific boost to e-commerce for many stores, including Gamestop (up 800%), Macy’s (up 53%), Kohl’s (up nearly 60%) and Ulta (up more than 200%).

Continued uncertainty with COVID-19 will dramatically impact shopping patterns this holiday season. A recent report by PwC stated that a majority of consumers (55%) said the virus is their top concern, with 65% stating they are concerned about catching the virus when holiday shopping.

This makes online purchasing an attractive alternative. The International Council of Shopping Centers in a recent report estimated e-commerce sales will jump 25% this year. The figure is notable, as U.S. e-commerce sales in 2019 grew around 13% to $137.6 billion, in a season that was marked by a robust e-commerce channel.

3. Store fulfillment takes center stage

In the run up to the holidays, companies have been taking on additional staff, which is typical for the fourth quarter. However, this year there is greater emphasis on warehouse and omnichannel operations, as many retailers make moves to leverage their stores as a means to fulfill orders.

In September, Target announced it would keep hiring “on par” with last year’s 130,000 holiday workers. However, the big-box retailer is using its workforce in a different way, specifically as a means to support omnichannel services, which grew a dramatic 273% in its second quarter. As part of this effort, Target announced plans to double the number of employees focused on Drive Up and Order Pick Up operations.

Walmart has a similar strategy, as it anticipates hiring 20,000 seasonal employees, specifically for its e-commerce fulfillment efforts as it prepares for a spike in online shopping. Walmart-owned Sam’s Club will be hiring far less — around 2,000 workers — but for a similar purpose, to fulfill supply chain operations. The club store also introduced a ship-from-store program, a first for the retailer.

All this highlights what Meitiner calls the “four A’s” of service — anytime, anyplace, anyway, anywhere — as retailers attempt to leverage their operations to quickly fill orders at various touchpoints. The “winners are going to be those retailers who are going to accommodate the way the consumer wants to be accommodated,” he said.

4. Shipping could be an issue

Package delivery via mail over the past few months has been fraught. The summer of 2020 brought an increased concern over the postal system, as consumers started realizing their e-commerce orders were taking much longer than usual, and anxiety increased around changing policies at the United States Postal Service, especially around the impending election.

Back in August, UPS announced that it would increase surcharges for the holiday season as a means to counterbalance the sheer volume in e-commerce growth expected from November to mid-January. FedEx followed by doing something similar, stating that some surcharges were to begin as early as Oct. 5. The delivery company explained to analysts during the summer that the peak surcharges are a new normal, and that the pandemic dramatically increased parcel volume away from business-to-business operations and to more costly business-to-consumer deliveries.

That backdrop leads to a precarious shipping setup for the fourth quarter. Though retailers are heavily pushing omnichannel this season, the volume of mail due to an uptick in e-commerce may lead to delays in delivery. “It’s going to be slow, it’s going to take longer to get there, because demand is going to balloon,” said Ray Wimer, professor of retail practice at Syracuse University.

A recent forecast by Salesforce predicts the number of packages shipped via traditional mail providers will exceed capacity by 5% between the week before Cyber Week going through Boxing Day (Dec. 26). “That’s potentially 700 million gifts that are at risk of not arriving in time for the holidays,” according to Salesforce.

A longer term concern, though, is the cost. “What’s that going to do to retailers’ gross margins?” asked Wimer. “You now have an extra surcharge in the heavy months now from the UPSs and the FedExs. Are you going to all of a sudden pass that off? Because we do know from past that customers abandon when they see they’re being charged the shipping costs. So I would think that retailer is going to take on that cost, which further lowers margin.”

5. The consolidation of store visits

In-store holiday traffic is expected to drop up to 25% this year due to coronavirus-related concerns, even as retailers put precautionary measures in place like social distancing, increased cleaning regiments and limiting the number of people in stores.

“I don’t think people are going to just go off to stores without planning and thinking,” said Meitiner. That means, he said, shoppers will have fewer store visits, but when they do go into a physical space they will purchase more. It means a “much more purposeful visit.”

That puts big-box retailers like Target, Walmart and Costco at an advantage, where consumers can buy from multiple categories on their lists. It also means that specialty retailers may get edged out as consumers look for one-stop shopping solutions.

Wimer said that even prior to the pandemic store traffic was dropping, even as comps sales and average transaction numbers were still doing very well. “Consumers were being more precise in when they were visiting a store — that they were going in to buy something. There seemed to be, looking back in 2019, a little more hesitancy to browse just to browse. I think that, if anything, has increased.” ​

Via RetailWire

The post 5 Predictions for the Christmas Shopping Period appeared first on This Is Retail.

What are the digital shopping experiences driving the future of the store? For a mobile-first 2020 and long beyond, here are strategies that top retailers are betting on for next-gen brick and mortar. Although not new, it’s a good reminder of good practice.

Digitally enabled shopping experiences are evolving

2020 has witnessed a skyrocketing acceleration of mobile and other digital-first shopping experiences. However, many of the trends and tech involved took hold before social distancing times—and will likely remain relevant long after. As customers look to limit their time and level of contact inside stores, tech that supports these digitally enabled shopping trips has become even more sought after, with 72% of consumers rating tech that reduces checkout time as most valuable, and 61% rating tech that reduces time spent navigating the store as most valuable.

In response, retail stores are continuing to elevate their digital strategy. Here’s how brick-and-mortar shops in various industries are leveraging technology to create not only safer shopping environments, but also more useful, immersive and connected experiences that meet heightened expectations for personalised journeys in 2020 and far beyond.

Interactive Showroom — Mobile has become the preferred method for navigating daily life and increasingly, consumers want to be able to engage with their surroundings in a convenient and contactless manner. To meet these expectations, retailers are ‘programming’ their physical showrooms to interact with the image recognition and scanning technologies available on mobile devices and apps to deliver relevant content and experiences as well as provide easy access to in-store services like bookings and payments. Nike Rise is pioneering this mobile-activated showroom concept with its concept store in Guangzhou, China. There, Nike Pulse app members can interact with products through their phone, scanning to both virtually learn and try items, receive perfect fit recs and peruse merchandise curated in accordance with local purchasing data.

Directed Navigation — Customers are harnessing the power of mobile apps to navigate retail footprints and locate the products they need. By creating “in-store” modes on their mobile platforms, retailers can provide the necessary in-context information to guide customers quickly and safely during their visit. Office supply retailer Staples is doing so with an interactive store map tool that lets customers locate specific items, then route their shopping trip—all before setting foot on the premises. A cloud-based mobile platform enables the mapping and routing capabilities, while also providing real-time inventory updates.

Immersive Visualization — For larger-ticket purchases, customers are still hesitant to shop online if they cannot visualize the product in the context of their homes or day-to-day lives. As a response, brands are leveraging technologies such as VR and AR to help customers see products in their home environments and swipe through different options to match their at-home decor and needs. IKEA’s AR-enabled mobile app, for instance, helps customers plan out how their potential purchases will look in their house using a visual overlay. And when it comes to shopping in the store, app users can scan products to view a wider range of similar items than what may be on display, reports Reuters.

Augmented Demoing — Not all experiences have to be mobile-first, however. While in-store browsing creates an opportunity to see, touch and try products, shoppers can’t necessarily see how they fit and perform in multiple scenarios and settings. To overcome this, retailers are integrating digital media—video, interactive displays and experiential tech like VR—into the product experience. This multimedia sales approach can help bridge both the experience and confidence gaps while making innovation and excitement a core aspect of the shopping experience. Canada Goose has taken this immersive educational approach in its Toronto concept called “The Journey.” The inventory-free location is anchored around a series of experiential rooms where visitors can not only learn the story behind the brand’s iconic parkas, but also put them to the test in a “Cold Room” complete with wind and snow. Customers can digitally purchase items from an on-the-floor associate and have them shipped to home, which keeps the focus on storytelling and immersion as opposed to transactions.

Via PSFK

The post 4 Best Practice Uses of Digital in Retail appeared first on This Is Retail.

It goes without saying that the holiday season, like all others in 2020, will be anything but normal. When it comes to retail, uncertainty about consumer spend and decreased confidence in an ability to prepare has the industry on edge.

What follows is an article shedding light on projected consumer behavior in the upcoming months as well as trending strategies for successful retail activation.

New research from the States has shown undeniable evidence of skyrocketing ecommerce (a reported 66% of consumers expect to increase their online purchasing for the Christmas season) combined with overwhelmed fulfillment operations (57% of consumers plan to ship more gifts directly that last year) has translated to retailers moving up their holiday timelines to help curb an unmanageable crush. In addition, brands and retailers are focusing on innovative digitally enhanced retail activation and store experiences that deliver on the safety and convenience demands of the 2020 consumer.

Within this context, we share here five strategies that offer solutions to the disruption of this year, touching on all stages of the path to purchase as well as ways to leverage hybrid virtual-physical retail. In many cases, these approaches spotlight points of digital transformation that emerged before the pandemic and accelerated during it—making them relevant for the holidays as well as long beyond.

Virtual Window Shopping — With many physical stores closed, the opportunity for casually browsing through aisles and racks has decreased dramatically. To recreate the serendipity of IRL discovery, retailers and brands can experiment with ad hoc conversations with store staff and immersive platforms that allow remote shoppers to discover and learn about products. Take Très Bien, an apparel brand that has created a virtual storefront experience over Zoom where an in-store associate takes shoppers on a floor tour full of insights and close-ups.

Digital Drops — As entertainment and commerce continue to blur, fashion brands are recognizing the need for gamified shopping experiences. Brands and retailers can explore immersive methods of showcasing seasonal lines and products by leveraging social media channels, popular gaming platforms and mixed reality capabilities, like droppTV, the world’s first-ever shoppable streaming platform. Debuting with music videos, droppTV lets audiences view the content while seamlessly browsing integrated virtual pop-up shops to purchase limited-edition streetwear.

Social Browsing — Consumers looking to replicate the social aspect of shopping are seeking out private group forums and virtual co-shopping platforms as a means to connect. Brands and retailers can leverage social media platforms and tech solutions to create virtual micro communities where fans can interact and share in real time. Teleport, for instance, is a mobile app experience that invites members to create video shorts of themselves sporting products like accessories and apparel that they love, and sell them to viewers to earn a cut of the sale.

Pre-Visit Preparation — Long before leaving for a store or embarking on an experience, customers are now in a planning mindset. To help shoppers make the commitment to visit a store, retailers are bridging the gap between intent to purchase and in-store satisfaction by offering accurate information about product inventories at local stores. Men’s formalwear retailer Suitsupply is encouraging safe store appointments through guided pre-visit virtual sessions where customers can browse and select inventory in conjunction with live stylists if they choose, then arrive to find fitting rooms ready with their choices..

Density Forecasting — To improve their own operations and customer comfort, retailers are leveraging in-store cameras and digital infrastructure to generate real-time crowd estimates and wait times, helping to manage density and offer alternative shopping options. Safe Queue is a mobile app helping big-box retailers and more create digital lines, leveraging GPS tech to let shoppers within 1000 feet of a store reserve a virtual spot, then wait in their vehicle or other safe place.

Via PSFK

The post How Can Retail Adapt To Christmas 2020 appeared first on This Is Retail.