VM Unleashed

Digital Signage Summit 2018: Disrupting the Store Design Model

Tim Radley, presenting at the Digital Signage & Interactive Solutions Summit 8-45 a.m. – 24th September Radisson Blu Hotel, London Stansted https://digitalsignagesummit.co.uk Looking forward to speaking at this very interesting summit on Digital Signage and the Store Experience. It’s a very relevant subject for retailers so hoping to set out the main issues, benefits and pitfalls with the opening presentation of the conference. Look forwards to see you there,-

Let’s applaud John Lewis: Putting People over Profit

Let’s applaud John Lewis: Putting People over Profit Let’s put this simply. Retail in the UK is undergoing destructive changes never seen before. There are less consumers with disposable income than previously. These customers prefer to buy online from Amazon and spend whatever else they can on experiences rather than possessions. Department stores are more at risk than most because their traditional model is focused on selling brands, most-

Retail Metamorphosis: Lessons from Disruptive Lives

Retail Metamorphosis: Lessons from Disruptive Lives Hot on the heels of seeing the new John Lewis TV advert, here am I, watching a TV programme on caterpillars, butterflies and a variety of other creatures. And I’m thinking, as I ponder the challenges confronting the retail industry, that businesses would do well to learn a little from nature. A lesson in lifestyle From caterpillar to butterfly, the most common metamorphosis, the-

Generous retailing: A little goes a long way!

Generous retailing: A little goes a long way! Take 2 petrol stations, located only 100 metres apart. Let’s say for example BP and Shell. They are both recently refurbished with spacious forecourts and shiny new stores. They both collaborate with recognised retailers appealing to a similar customer. Let’s also say Marks & Spencer & Waitrose. Their petrol prices are identical and matched daily. They both offer loyalty schemes both for-

Digital Signage Summit ’18: Tim Radley “Creating Store Atmosphere!”

Nudie Jeans: The Antidote to Mass Merchandising

The Morning Post:- 12th August “Nudie Jeans: The Antidote to Mass Merchandising” If you want to experience something which is so far away from mass merchandising as it is possible to be then look at Nudie Jeans, and if possible, visit one of their stores. Nudie Jeans is a Swedish clothing brand originating in Gothenburg, founded in 2001 by Maria Erixon, a former employee and AD of Lee Europe and Swedish-

“Commercial Retail” Overstocking & Under-Valuing the World?

The Daily Post:- 11th September “‘Commercial Retail”: Overstocking & Under-Valuing the World?” I remember a comment from a best practice range review from some years ago. Having spent a couple of days reviewing the client’s own assortment and comparing with detailed visuals of best practice and competitor ranges, the chairman sighed and leaning back in his chair exclaimed “Who buys all this stuff?” At the time it was an-

John Lewis: What’s in a logo?

The Morning Post:- 10th September “John Lewis: What’s in a logo?” So, John Lewis has dramatically unveiled to the world the delivery of its new strategy. A variety of channels, most noticeably a glorious new TV advert, bring to life the retailer’s desire to create an unparalleled customer experience based on its services and the historical strength of its people – or partners. As part of these ambitious initiatives it-

Retailers & Consumers: A Conflict of Space & Interests

The Evening Post:- 16th August “Retailers & Consumers: A Conflict of Space & Interests” Many traditional retailers and their customers just don’t “get each other” anymore! A gap has appeared between the priorities of each, the desires, the realistic possibilities of buying & selling – a conflict of interest. The distance that divides the two camps is best seen when we look at the issue of space and more precisely-

Le Labo: Scenting an Opportunity

The Morning Post:- 7th August “Le Labo: Scenting an Opportunity” Le Labo is one cool, expensive perfumery retailer. Its origins are in France – hence “The Lab” – and it draws its inspiration from the halcyon days of perfumeries of the 19th & early 20th centuries. However Le Labo is not just about exquisite scents & smells but is very cleverly put together. As a brand it hits many of-

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Iceland: No joke for Department Stores

The Daily Post:- 6th August “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Iceland: No joke for department stores” So, a funny thing happened on the way to the shops. To be precise a couple of funny things with more to follow without doubt. Let’s move forward a few months and I’m making my way into The Range, my local store for value home furnishings and décor. Inside I also-

Dyson: Designs on Disruption a Retail Lesson for Us All

The Evening Post:- 3oth July “Dyson: Designs on Disruption a Retail Lesson for Us All” For those people who have been in the retail business for more than a few years, or have been working in a traditional retail business for what might seem more than a few years, it must appear as though disruption in retail is only for others! However, many so-called disruptors are simply self-evangelists of their-

Knowing the qualitative retail reality of your town centres

The Daily Post:- 13th June “Knowing the qualitative retail reality of your town centre” I’ve walked on both sides of the retail High Street this week. On the one side I’ve been listening once again, as I’m sure you have, to more news of widespread store closures. This time it was House of Fraser. However what seemed so chilling on this occasion was the list of towns soon to-

The Shop at Bluebird: A Playground of Wonders

One of the pleasures of shopping in the physical world is the joy of discovery. However it’s not often that you stumble upon a completely new concept store in central London, especially not a 1,500 sqm one. Welcome to “The Shop at Bluebird” nestled in Floral Street, a stone’s throw from Covent Garden Piazza. Described by its creators Dalziel & Pow as a ‘playground of wonders’ it certainly creates a-

The Golden Age of Retail Personalisation: 100 years ago

The Morning Post:- 4th June “The Golden Age of Retail Personalisation: 100 years ago?” Lest we get ahead of ourselves and think that we have invented the retail wheel through our technological mastery its worth reflecting that certainly up until today the golden era of retail personalisation was in a time before even H.G. Wells envisaged the role that computers would play in our lives. And should we consider that-

Is your online sales & physical store numbers strategy in place?

Online & offline, the biggest challenge for historic retailers is to remain relevant and attractive to their customers. That will ultimately dictate the online sales potential and physical store numbers that will be viable for a business. Do you remember the days when the e-commerce part of a bricks ‘n’ mortar business was compared to the largest physical store? That was a realistic ambition. It also considered e-commerce as a-

Customer Experience Analytics: Which comes first…the Chicken or the Egg?

Which should come first, the chicken or the egg? How long will the chicken stay for, where will she go, and how many eggs will be in her basket? The answers to customer experience analytics still seem tantalisingly out of reach for many retailers. This year’s RBTE event at Olympia had its fair share of new IT initiatives as well as more established applications, refreshed, re-invented and re-packaged.-

John Lewis: The Revolutionary “Loved & Found”

Still my retail highlight of the year for many reasons was to see the opening of the new John Lewis at the Westfield London extension. But whilst the popular headlines latched onto the innovative and original idea to train the store personnel with actors so as to be able to engage and sell more successfully, there was another less covered fact, which altogether has deeper repercussions for John Lewis and-

“Selling other Peoples’ Stuff! Is it the end of Generic Retailers?

The Daily Post:- 23rd May “Selling other peoples’ Stuff! The end of generic retailers? So what are the common threads amongst many of the retailers suffering in the current market climate? They’re certainly well publicized. Of course there are the issues with over-sized expensive store portfolios, a slowness to embrace omnichannel, a lack of consumer confidence and a dearth of disposable income…but certainly at the epicenter of the evolving shopping-

“Spoil you Staff with Space!” and “Your Space with Staff!”

The Morning Post:- 22nd May “Spoil you Staff with Space!” and “Your Space with Staff!” Many discussions I have been having recently on allocating space within stores. The whole model is changing from those large product areas, static stockrooms, over-spaced or unruly queuing areas and pitiful backroom facilities for staff to one that reflects not only the requirements of the shopper but in fact what generates the income. Or it-