The Next Decade of Retail Starts Today

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield has recently published a report detailing the results of a major Europe-wide survey on the future of retail. Covering the next decade of retail, 15,700 consumers shared their thoughts and the results place ‘experience’ front and centre of what retailers need to provide. 

Music to our ears

The headline findings of this research show that providing an experience in retail is both wanted and desirable with 59% of shoppers expecting the majority of retail space to be dedicated to offering up experiences.

Further to this 81% of the respondents said they would be prepared to pay more for experience. Meaning not only is the full retail experience important, but it’s an investment that can directly impact margin.

Considering this alongside our own research, where 60% of respondents say that shopping in a post-lockdown world is less fun, our report title ‘Mind The Gap’ becomes crystal clear - there is an opportunity to be had by tackling your in store atmosphere and experience.

Good in store experience is about finding the magic formula

Imagine a store with perfectly curated music that adjusts automatically according to crowding (to increase dwell time when it’s quiet, or reduce it when it’s busy), with responsive lighting that complements the time of day and weather conditions, interactive screens that empower customers to creatively engage with products, automatically serving timely offers, and capturing imaginations with live displays which can adapt the music and lighting accordingly for digital demos or performative installations… curating an experience that hits all the right notes is about harmony and integration. And for this, we’ve got your back.

In post-coronavirus retail, the right music + tech solution can be the superpower that creates pitch-perfect experiences in increasingly ‘sterile’ environments. And given this is a key area that’s here to stay beyond getting people back into shops post lockdown, is it time you revised your in store experience?

Find the full ‘Mind The Gap’ report here.