I went to opening day of the new Abercrombie & Fitch store prototype. I’m not sure it is an Abercrombie & Fitch store. And that may be the point. Perhaps with the new spring / summer product the new environment will make more sense, but right now, I’m wondering how current and future customers will react. The new store design is decidedly NOT the A&F we think we know. Unfortunately it is not clear just what it IS. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a beautiful store with some interest

I was quoted recently in The Columbus Dispatch about Abercrombie & Fitch's new store prototype. The redesign is definitely an improvement over the old stores, which had become "very cavern-like and almost stifling," said Chuck Palmer, principal strategist at retail consultancy ConsumerX. "I like the openness of the store front. It's much more inviting. The dual mannequins is very good. Being able to control the music and the lighting (in a fitting room) is kind of interesting

The debut of a new store prototype as a way of signaling a significant change in direction seems oddly outdated. Abercrombie & Fitch surely needs to reinvent itself, but today, it's not just about the physical store and it surely isn't about leaning on past brand success. In the information released leading up to the store opening, I'm not seeing anything that addresses benefits to their target customers, or for that matter a fresh look at who those customers are. The store d

AmazonGo is nothing less than a game changer. Not because of the reduction of friction at the checkout. That is awesome and one of the reasons consumers will try it, sign in to the app (see Uber) and come back. It’s sort of a red herring. The game changing and far reaching implications are in this statement: “computer vision, deep learning algorithms and sensor fusion.” This is not one functional technology, it is a combination working in concert to get Amazon what they want:

Content strategy and development are key for immersive retail. Marshall McLuhan, the academic who pioneered the study of media culture, famously concluded that "the medium is the message." He defined this to recognize that the medium by which a message is conveyed influences and, in some cases, supersedes the message’s content. In retail, as we compete for consumers’ attention, how we communicate with our customers is ever-changing. With animated, time-based content – dynamic

The anatomy of a digital merchandising system You might think of dynamic visual merchandising (DynamicVM) as just screens on a wall: something as easy as the new 4K smart TV you would pick up at Best Buy. Well, it should be. But it isn’t. At least, not yet. As market demand for in-store, consumer-facing digital networks grows, simplification is happening, but not quickly enough to keep up with consumers’ changing behavior. In the meantime, it is worth understanding how a mess

This is what I love about retail. It is in a constant state of flux. In good times, it’s about outpacing the competition; in bad times, it’s about protecting your flanks. Are we in good or bad times? I have no idea. What I do know is consumers still want what they have always wanted: to feel good about their purchases. And that’s what makes this interesting. Does Coach need department stores? Maybe not as much as they used to. Do department stores need Coach? Nope. They might

Microsoft Flagship Store, Fifth Avenue, New York What Works: Volume, volume, volume! As the primary visual merchandising tool, the large arrays draw people in and effectively change the environment from moment to moment. What Doesn’t: There is little to no blending or dialog between the one-way, advertising-level messaging on the screens and the products for sale. For example, the Surface products are featured on the screens, but they are not displayed close to the screens. T

This is a unique category and opportunity. If Target can succeed in being the translator of the noise of innovation for the average consumer, they'll win this emerging category. Can I trust them to tell me how this could work for me in my daily life?Knowledgeable staff and innovative displays showing how these items work together for consumers' benefit is the win. IF they can pull this off at scale, they could really own this category. Why Best Buy isn't all over this is beyo