Retail & the Circular Economy: Square Pegs in a Round Whole?

Retailers can learn from the Circular Economy by becoming communities and not just sequences of job functionality. Positive actions & interactions stimulate others. Waste is minimised. Waste of resources, products and of time. And the waste of people – their energy, goodwill, knowledge, ideas and enthusiasm. I have to say that the concept of the “Circular Economy” is a rather recent discovery to me. Perhaps not the philosophy and the-

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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-

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Spanish Statement: The Primark Pinnacle of Pre-eminence

As part of VM-unleashed’s 10th anniversary year we take a look back at some retail milestones from the last decade and explain why each store’s message is as relevant for us today as it was then. The last decade has seen the rise of Primark as a tour de force in the world of value fashion as it strides from the UK and Ireland across Spain, Germany, Italy and now-

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Spanish Statement: Primark’s Pinnacle of Pre-eminence

Take a trip down Gran Via in Madrid, and you cannot fail to notice the extraordinary new flagship store from Primark.   Follow the Latin crowds of brown paper bag purchasers through the dramatic entrance and catch your breath as you enter the central atrium with its staggering vistas up through the multiple balconies and into the dome of the heavens, the pinnacle of Primark’s pre-eminence. The latest collaboration between-

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Primark Weighs in State Side: Entry of a Fashion Heavyweight

In a statement of international intent Primark fired its first style salvo into the soft belly of the US value fashion market with the opening of its 8,000 sqm Boston flagship.   Truly a shopping space full of superlatives, the four floors are home to 530 mannequins, 84 fitting rooms, 73 cash registers and a myriad of digital screens and traditional design features set to define the Primark brand as-

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Take a Tour under the Duvet: Primark Pinterest Lounge wear

In the strange world between day and night, asleep and awake, and battle is underway, from underwear to outerwear, for the hearts and minds, for the pennies and the pounds, that make up the slumbering giant that is loungewear.

 

The beast goes by different names from the familiar lounge wear, through home wear, day wear to the lofty Liberty heights of resort wear. Whatever the name, the game is on, with the potential beneficiaries and protagonists swelling from the ranks of lingerie specialists, fashion chains, home accessories retailers, health and beauty brands and some of the biggest names around, with Primark taking its place at the headboard of the home-wear bed.

Follow VM-unleashed! Ltd’s board Primark Pillow Talk: Delighting the Divas of the Duvet on Pinterest.

 

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Primark Pillow Talk: Delighting the Divas of the Duvet

In the strange world between day and night, asleep and awake, a battle is underway, from underwear to outerwear, for the hearts and minds, for the pennies and the pounds, that make up the slumbering giant that is loungewear.   The beast goes by different names from the familiar lounge wear, through home wear, day wear to the lofty Liberty heights of resort wear. Whatever the name, the game is-

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Proposition Primark: Added-value retailer

Even the lowest prices in the world command detailed scrutiny when it comes to value for money.

 

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Whilst an advised adornment, a prudent personalisation, or an essential embellishment can turn an anonymous basic into a soaring best-seller, an equally ill-judged adjustment can make even the most miserly mark-up a step too far for the discerning masses. Whilst Primark maintains its low price proliferation, it has equally expended a serious amount of energy in judging what makes its assortment sing for its adoring fans.

Identifying what’s important to its customers has allowed Primark to adorn its products with a dazzling array of added-value touches. Strategically located linings and logos, sub-brand developments and label de-lineaments, fashion details and functional features, precisely promoted and cleverly communicated add points to margins, and slices to sales. Points proven as top marks add up to a winning bottom line.

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From adoration to adornment, Primark’s perfect process has them singing all the way to the added-value bank.

Primania: Primark’s Personal Promotion Machine

E-commerce is not for every retailer, but social marketing certainly is.

 

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Primark has experimented with online selling in collaboration with ASOS, but with an average item value so low the economics just didn’t add up. So how can the Primark retail powerhouse engage with the digital world and sell to a wider audience?

Along comes Primania at the forefront of social sharing and social selling, in a digital model that is perfect for a mass market value performer, hell-bent on an international invasion across Europe and now to the US. Blurring the boundaries of retail, marketing, PR and advertising Primania combines the “available to all appeal” of its assortment with the endless appetite for self-promotion.

The idea is huge, but the concept simple as customers sign-in, creating their personal bios, and then upload themselves with their Primark fashions.

 

The social scenarios continue with looks and outfits favourite and scored, and also the opportunity for any budding fashionistas to propel their profile to the level of guru, followed and revered across the networks.

Primania is used as part of the Primark site, pruned back to latest looks, ethical credentials and store location, with Primania, like its protégées, the real stars of the Primark rollercoaster.

 

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VM-unleashed works with retailers to create social network strategies for engaging and selling to their customers…

Retail: A Game of Two Halves:

Retail: A Game of Two Halves:   Love it or hate it, you can’t escape it at the moment. Even a trip out for some retail therapy will have you ducking under flags and bunting, taking evasive action to avoid colliding with giant TV wielding consumers or staring vacantly at World Cup sponsored coffee cups, sandwich packets and cheerleading cup cakes.   Of course the World’s premier football competition is-

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