Retail

From groceries to placemaking, a wide-ranging exploration of the retail industry

Shopping for wellness

Grocery retailers are assuming a new role as dietary advisers, educating consumers and providing personalised health and nutrition guidance.

Pop Culture Meets Commerce

NTWRK's CEO, Aaron Levant, discusses why hyper-urgency is the future of shopping.

Africa’s Untapped Potential

Increased internet access and a booming youth population are driving the continent’s unique and burgeoning online retail market, bolstered by digital marketplaces and the rise of mobile money services.

Eco-logistics

Eco-logistics:

In a bid to reduce the growing environmental impact of e-commerce, retailers are rethinking their logistics and developing new...

 Packaging : Sustainability : Retail
Is retailtainment the future of e-commerce?

Is retailtainment the future of e-commerce?:

NTWRK is shaking up retail with its pop culture-powered video commerce app. Its CEO, Aaron Levant, discusses why hyper-urgency is the...

 Retail : E-commerce : Media
African E-commerce Market

African E-commerce Market:

Increased internet access and a booming youth population are driving the continent’s unique and burgeoning online retail market,...

 E-Commerce : Africa : Retail
Rob Wood on why music is essential to brand experiences

Rob Wood on why music is essential to brand experiences:

The creative director of Music Concierge explains how, by creating distinct audio identities for brands and retailers, music and...

 Retail : Leisure : Hospitality
Prescription Supermarkets

Prescription Supermarkets:

Grocery retailers are assuming a new role as dietary advisers, educating consumers and providing personalised health and nutrition...

 Retail : Healthcare : Nutrition
Physical retail is the key to conscious consumption

Physical retail is the key to conscious consumption:

Slow retail expert Rebekah Matheny on how physical stores need to nurture consumer relationships to create a socially sustainable retail...

 Retail . : Sustainability : Retail
Are head office staff the new retail influencers?

Are head office staff the new retail influencers?:

To help build consumer trust and product authenticity, brands are starting to focus more on insider advocates than external influencers.

 Retail : Fashion : Social Media
How Coal Drops Yard captures a sense of place

How Coal Drops Yard captures a sense of place:

Chris Chapman, head of art at Droga5 London, on creating the visual identity for Coal Drops Yard, a new retail concept in London’s...

 Retail : Placemaking : Branding
Virtual sonic worlds are the next branded experiences

Virtual sonic worlds are the next branded experiences:

The Spatial Sound Institute is a research centre created by technology platform and artistic collective 4DSOUND. John Connell,...

 Media : Digital : Retail
How the world’s largest online shopping mall is shaping our lives

How the world’s largest online shopping mall is shaping our lives:

At Dutch Design Week 2018, designers from Design Academy Eindhoven hosted Geo-Design, an exhibition that examined the growth of Chinese...

 Retail : E-commerce : Dutch Design Week
The studios making virtual retail a reality

The studios making virtual retail a reality:

As mixed-reality commerce gathers pace, a growing community of creative digital studios are facilitating the transition from the...

 Retail : VR : Digital Culture
Department Store Disruptors

Department Store Disruptors:

As stores with outdated value propositions continue to decline, new multi-brand retail formats are emerging that bridge the gap between...

 Retail : E-commerce : Digital
How mobility is transforming last-mile delivery

How mobility is transforming last-mile delivery:

Autonomous driving technology promises to have a transformative impact on how we receive our purchases.

Retail : Delivery : Automotive
Why flagship stores are the arcades of the future

Why flagship stores are the arcades of the future:

Gaming is creating a new breed of bold retail spaces that transcend language barriers, says Gilles Boissele, creative partner at UNIT9.

 Retail : Fashion : Youth
Furniture as a Service

Furniture as a Service:

With consumers less willing and less able to establish permanent homes, furniture brands are having to develop products and services...

 Retail : Furniture : Hospitality
Inspiration per square foot

Inspiration per square foot:

The success of bricks-and-mortar retail is no longer determined by sales per square foot but the benefits of creating inspirational...

 Storefront Salvation : Retail
Shoppable Social

Shoppable Social:

Social commerce continues to grow as new technologies and in-platform features transform the way consumers buy and interact with products.

Retail : Socia Media : Digital
Subconscious Commerce

Subconscious Commerce:

With Internet of Things technology creating newly immersive brand touchpoints and data analytics allowing businesses to anticipate every...

 Retail : Automation : Technology
How malls can survive into the future

How malls can survive into the future:

The malls of the future will cater for specific audiences, appeal to a wide spectrum of ages and join the dots between e-commerce and...

 Retail : Placemaking : Mall
Convenience Stores 2.0

Convenience Stores 2.0:

Corner stores are moving away from sugary snacks to offer fresh, organic and vegan alternatives, accessible to all 24/7.

 Convenience : Retail : Vegan
Data ID Stores

Data ID Stores:

Future-facing bricks-and-mortar brands are personalising the store experience through the use of consumer data profiles.

 Retail : Fashion : Food And Drink
Is there such a thing as a brandless brand?

Is there such a thing as a brandless brand?:

While there are clear imperatives for debranding, businesses still need to think of it as a design exercise.

Branding : Packaging : Retail
Why peer-to-peer lending is the future of interiors

Why peer-to-peer lending is the future of interiors:

Harth co-founder Ed Padmore explains how the furniture sharing platform will benefit both designers and owners.

Hospitality : Retail : Furniture
Are digital payments luring us into debt?

Are digital payments luring us into debt?:

Retailers are increasingly offering point-of-sale loans to pay for non-essential goods.

 Retail : Finance : Apparel
Office Stores

Office Stores:

Through new technological and physical touchpoints, FMCG brands are exploring the workplace as a profitable retail opportunity.

Retail : Convenience : Co-working
Why retailers and marketers need to take VR seriously

Why retailers and marketers need to take VR seriously:

Anita Fontaine and Geoffrey Lillemon, creative directors of Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam's Department of New Realities, blend speculative...

 Retail : Technology : VR
Responsive Wayfinding

Responsive Wayfinding:

Retailers are harnessing digital tools to bring the speed and convenience of navigating an online store to the physical...

 Storefront Salvation : Retail : Placemaking
How can supermarkets cut down on plastic waste?

How can supermarkets cut down on plastic waste?:

The strategies food and drink retailers can use to reduce their reliance on the material.

 Retail : Food And Drink : Packaging
Accessible Premium

Accessible Premium:

From taking the idea of the dollar store online to the rejection of big brands, retailers are exploring how they can democratise...

 Retail : Digital : The American Middle
Storefront Salvation

Storefront Salvation:

Fuelled by an understanding that saving the store relies on a combination of physical touchpoints and digital technology, retailers...

 Retail : E-commerce : Digital
How the retail landscape will change in 2019

How the retail landscape will change in 2019:

With The Future Laboratory hosting its Retail Futures Forum on 3 May, we preview some of the key themes to be unveiled.

 Retail : Technology : E-commerce
Bundled Buys

Bundled Buys:

From helping consumers navigate a seasonless fashion model to combating the resale market, luxury fashion brands are exploring the...

 Luxury : Apparel : Retail
Micro-retail

Micro-retail:

With convenience a key priority for consumers, brands are exploring the potential of dynamic selling spaces in non-traditional...

 Retail : Digital : Technology
Voice Retail Market

Voice Retail Market:

As voice-enabled devices continue to enter our homes, and consumers become increasingly comfortable with the idea of talking to...

 Retail : Technology : Digital
Loyalty Market

Loyalty Market:

As consumers become less loyal, brands are looking to personalisation, cryptocurrencies and mobile-based initiatives in an effort to...

 Retail : Digital : Technology
Should we start taking QR codes seriously?

Should we start taking QR codes seriously?:

Once consigned to internet history, the iconic squares are finally ready for their revival.

 Packaging : Retail : Advertising
Pricing Strategies: Part 1

Pricing Strategies: Part 1:

From price point activism to discounts based on demand, companies are embracing a more dynamic approach to pricing as a means of...

 Retail : Wellness : Drink
Click and Connect

Click and Connect:

With 40% of global shoppers now preferring to purchase clothing and footwear online, brands are exploring new ways to push the buying...

 Retail : Apparel : Fashion
Pricing Strategies: Part 2

Pricing Strategies: Part 2:

Through a combination of data-collection and changing consumer demand, artificial intelligence is bringing new value to the idea of...

 Retail : Fashion : Food
Live-stream Market

Live-stream Market:

From its potential as a tool to promote brand transparency to the integration of Buy Now buttons, brands are tapping into the lucrative...

 Retail : Digital : Technology
How to future-proof the physical store

How to future-proof the physical store:

Natalie Berg, retail analyst and founder of NBK Retail, on why stores should be seen as assets rather than liabilities.

Retail : E-commerce : Phygital
Digital Store Fronts

Digital Store Fronts:

The future of online shopping is being shaped by visual-first digital experiences.

 Retail : Youth : Digital
Grocery AI-sles

Grocery AI-sles:

With 44% of jobs in the UK retail sector expected to be at risk of automation by the early 2030s, according to PwC, grocery brands are...

 Retail : Digital : Technology
Augmented Retail

Augmented Retail:

As augmented and virtual reality continues to grow towards an expected market value of £80.3bn ($108bn, €91.3bn) by 2021, brands are...

 Retail : Digital : Fashion
Liyia Wu on the Chinese live-stream retail revolution

Liyia Wu on the Chinese live-stream retail revolution:

The ShopShops founder discusses how her platform offers a revelatory shopping experience that cannot be replicated by e-commerce.

 Retail : Digital : Media
Ryan Elder on the power of distance in sensory marketing

Ryan Elder on the power of distance in sensory marketing:

The associate professor of marketing at Brigham Young University reveals how the perceived distance of a sensory experience can impact...

 Retail : Advertising : Marketing
Chinese Duty-free Retail Market

Chinese Duty-free Retail Market:

Chinese tourists’ passion for duty-free shopping is making Asia-Pacific the engine of growth for the travel-retail sector.

Retail : Travel : Luxury
The future of airport retail is hyper-personalisation

The future of airport retail is hyper-personalisation:

With vast amounts of passenger data tied up in boarding passes, let’s use it to transform the airport retail experience, says Lee...

 Airport Retail : Duty Free : Customer Data

Related to Retail

Solace is digitising the funeral industry News

Solace is digitising the funeral industry

The start-up is reinventing death care as a digital-only direct service that offers online cremation and funeral planning.

Death : Wellness : Service
Stat: Americans are not in favour of a cashless society News

Stat: Americans are not in favour of a cashless society

In a recent survey, 67% of US consumers said they are against the idea of a cashless society.

Cashless : Fintech : Finance
Galeries Lafayette hires influencers as salespeople News

Galeries Lafayette hires influencers as salespeople

The new Galeries Lafayette department store, which opened last month, has unveiled a digital-first training programme for its shop floor employees.

Retail : Luxury : Customer Service
Why retailers need to rewrite data collection Big Ideas

Why retailers need to rewrite data collection

Fresh from Retail Week Live 2019, the title’s executive editor George MacDonald urges retailers to rethink data collection and listen to shoppers’ needs at a hyper-local level.

Retail : Data : Customer Experience
H&M creates a peer platform for fashion advice News

H&M creates a peer platform for fashion advice

The retail group is looking to engage consumers online with Itsapark, a new community-driven platform for styling and shopping recommendations.

Community : Fashion Retail : Social Media
Target’s sensorial furniture for children with autism News

Target’s sensorial furniture for children with autism

The retailer has introduced a range of sensory-friendly pieces as part of its Pillowfort children’s homeware collection.

Retail : Inclusive : Design
Digital Dialogues Design Directions

Digital Dialogues

A new visual language is helping to demystify algorithms and AI-driven systems by communicating them as visible and tangible entities. As a result, consumers are starting to gain a deeper understanding of complex data.

Branding : Packaging : Design Direction
Will DINKs become a priority for truly sustainable brands? Big Ideas

Will DINKs become a priority for truly sustainable brands?

Through the lens of a fictional future scenario, we explore how technology is driving behavioural shifts among brands and consumers. This month, we ask how brands in 2030 will support couples who forego parenthood to protect the planet.

Advertising : Future Family : Sustainability
Thought-starter: Is it time for retail to slow down? News

Thought-starter: Is it time for retail to slow down?

Slow retail expert Rebekah Matheny on how physical stores need to nurture consumer relationships to create a socially sustainable retail culture.

Retail : Sustainability : Consumption
Gentle Monster releases a series of sci-fi chapters News

Gentle Monster releases a series of sci-fi chapters

The luxury eyewear brand is exploring a future in which reality and fantasy coincide.

Retail : Luxury : Advertising
Landsec creates more inclusive shopping experiences News

Landsec creates more inclusive shopping experiences

The property firm has announced a number of initiatives to improve the shopping experience for people with autism across its retail developments.

Retail : Leisure : Inclusivity
Thought-starter: Will mixed reality boost physical retail? News

Thought-starter: Will mixed reality boost physical retail?

Maciej Zasada, technical director at UNIT9, explains why shoppers’ physical connection to real products, combined with an augmented environment, equals the perfect blend of cool, real and practical.

Retail : Leisure : Entertainment
Universal Everything digitises luxury goods News

Universal Everything digitises luxury goods

The UK-based studio has created a series of video artworks for high-end department store The Hyundai.

Retail : Luxury : Digital
Rapha launches customisable cycling kits News

Rapha launches customisable cycling kits

The British cycling brand has partnered with fashion software company Unmade to launch a personalised design service.

Retail : Leisure : Sport
Will biochips revolutionise finance and data-sharing? Big Ideas

Will biochips revolutionise finance and data-sharing?

Skin-embedded microchips will transform how we share data, gain access to spaces, travel and even protect our finances. Jowan Österlund, founder and CEO of Biohax International, explains.

Finance : Technology : Workplace
Load More