Designing the shopping experience is a large challenge that we're excited to watch the progress of, since nobody knows what it will really turn out to be. Recently Apple and Adidas have both proposed and are now beginning to advance new shopping experience designs that make very different bets on how consumers want to shop.
Apple's Reserve and Pick Up program—whereby you order online, then pick up the object in-store—isn't a new concept, with other retailers having gotten behind this much earlier; but I seize on it because Apple has a good track record for accurately providing experiences many people want to have. Their particular approach, particularly if BGR's assertion is accurate that you skip lines when you show up and pay with an iOS device, is predicated on minimizing time spent in the store. It presupposes the consumer researches precisely what they want to purchase online, doing all of their shopping calculations from their own computer. The store simply serves as a fulfillment point for that particular transaction.
Adidas is taking a different tack with their adiVerse Virtual Footwear Wall, a trial unit of which has recently been installed in an Adidas shop in London. The system consists of a large multitouch display that requires customers physically come into the store and play around with the thing. It's predicated on the decision-making process taking place in-store, and in that way maximizes in-store time. Seeing the video of it below, I think it's neat but am not 100% sold; in particular, having to start the transaction on one screen and then switch to a tablet seems a little clunky to me.
From a time and resource standpoint, Apple's approach seems to make more sense. Let's say you have 100 people, and today 50 will buy Apple products and 50 will buy Adidas stuff, using these new systems. The 50 Apple buyers all have computers and do most of the shopping "work" at home. Even if they all arrive at the Apple store at the same time, their queue is simply to pick up an object and sign for it, assuming the workers have it ready. And Apple doesn't have to provide a massive display system in-store. But in the case of the Adidas system, if the 50 people all show up at once, they must wait while the other shoppers all cycle through the touchscreen browsing process.
My questions to you are, what do you think, and more importantly how do you shop? For instance I'm typically an Amazon guy all the way, as I prefer their generally good prices and convenience of having it delivered to my door. I'll occasionally buy things from, say, an Apple store if I don't want to wait several for a delivery to arrive. And I order my kicks online, since I already know my size and hate dealing with NYC sneaker stores.
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Comments
I personally do not think buying footwear online can replace the actual experience in the store. From my seven years of footwear retail experience of a specialty store, many customers are pleased with our services. For example, all our staff will lace the shoes for the customers during fitting. The store has received numerous compliments from this because the customers do not experience this type of traditional service anymore.
So for the interactive digital display, I would see it as a tool but definitely not a replacement for the actual human interaction with the sales person