Talking shop: Retail forum explores key trends

Regaining Traction

Ed Burstell, managing director of Liberty, spoke about the challenges he faced while trying to keep the store relevant in the digital age. He discussed his exciting plans for a travelling Liberty pop-up shop and his strategy to create a seamless online/offline experience in-store.

S-commerce
Co-founder of new social commerce site Nuji, Dean Fankauser, offered an insight into the benefits of social networking, curator consumers and the future of social commerce. He predicted that serendipitous shopping is the future of retail and believes targeted vouchers sent to consumers by geo-location m-commerce will replace advertising.

Synaesthetic Retail
Faye Toogood, founder and creative director of London-based creative agency Studio Toogood, explained how retailers can build stronger relationships with customers by appealing to their five senses. ‘Multi-sensory experiences offer a new way of connecting people,’ said Toogood. ‘Brands will discover that multi-sensory experiences will resonate with consumers in a way that goes beyond the object.’

Augmented Retail
The CEO of augmented retail brand Holition, Jonathan Chippindale, talked through his company’s latest augmented reality project for Louis Vuitton and explained how AR can enhance a retailer’s products, brands and services. ‘Retail is taking technology and delivering retail benefits for inspiring consumers,’ said Chippindale.

All About The Edit
Former beauty director at Vogue, Anna-Marie Solowij and Millie Kendall of Ruby & Millie, gave a glimpse into forthcoming beauty retail trends ahead of the launch of their collaborative project, BeautyMART. The pair discussed how beauty retail is embracing new technology and why editorial-led online retail is such a draw for beauty and fashion consumers.

Visit LS:N Global’s Seed section next week for daily posts of the guest speakers in conversation.