2021 TRENDS: 4/ Retailtainment
Almost one year on from our first lockdown and it’s safe to say the world of retail has had to think on its feet. We reflect on just some of the ways it’s revolutionised here. There’s one key trend from all this rapid change that’s caught our attention and that’s fully experiential, sensor-stimulating Retailtainment.
What we're seeing
REAL LIFE SPACES TO DIGITAL STAGES
We’ve seen exceptional retail entertainment emerge in recent years as a trend. House of Vans was more than just a shop – BMX, art, music, street culture and fashion all mixed. It even featured a cinema, café, live music venue, art gallery and a skatepark.
What to do during a pandemic when your bricks and mortar store is steeped in experience for your customer? You take it online, of course! Superdrug Tv is an amazing example of this, it’s a YouTube Tv show presented by Radio DJ Daisy Maskell. It features celebrity and influencer interviews and key people from the brand discussing all things beauty, skincare, sex and relationship advice. We feel it’s a perfect space for Superdrug to play as it’s where their audience is (not to mention TikTok, of course!).
POST PANDEMIC EXPECTATIONS
Cost, choice, convenience, and customer service will always be hallmarks of what customers expect on a basic level. Now with some return to normality on the horizon, the standard at which these needs are met will continue to rise. The pandemic created unimaginable challenges to logistics and operations in the sector so naturally, consumers began to curb their expectations. Once we emerge from the crisis, we imagine their preferences and the need to be inspired beyond fully stocked shelves (which have become a luxury in these times) will reignite.
RETAILTAINMENT, REIMAGINED
In lieu of jaw dropping take overs of real spaces (like transforming tunnels into skateparks), brands are finding new ways to try to build emotional connections with their customers. Retailtainment doesn’t always have to be a full production of bells and whistles, especially when we’re unable to visit stores it can simply be an opportunity to create more value-added content for your fans and followers. Taking advantage of technology and interfaces like Instagram Story Q&As has meant a great deal of expertise and knowledge sharing can reach far greater numbers. Like Farrow & Ball, delivering the answers to burning questions from budding home renovators or keeping in the thread of sprucing up your walls, Little Greene Paint & Paper have made a tutorial about choosing wallpaper. This sort of content has come at the right time, with a huge uptake in DIY and home improvement. What better way to liven things up in the four walls of your home than by changing them completely?
OUT OF HOME, AT HOME
Innovation is the key to staying relevant in any walk of life. The retailers, brands and service subscriptions that can offer new experiences are the ones who will win out. We’ve seen a boom in at-home food and drink do it yourself kits, from cocktail mixing and cake baking to steak nights and candle stick making. It’s meant the survival of more boutique brands too. In a time where restaurants are shut, cinemas and theatres permanently dark, it’s a new way to create fun, excitement and yes, entertainment in our own homes.
OUR TICKETY TAKE
Brand perceptions are being increasingly gauged on customer experiences. From virtual shopping experiences to reaching out to audiences through social media, brands that strengthen their connections and forge new ones are the ones who’ll reap the rewards.