Globalshop is the annual Trade Show for retailers and brand managers to find retail design, in-store marketing, and in-store technology solutions. The show runs March 10 – 12 in Las Vegas. It’s one of my favorite events of the year, because it’s a great opportunity to see what’s new in the in-store marketing industry, and share the latest ideas and best practices with my peers. #globalshop if you’re following on twitter.
After the first day of the show, show defiantly “feels” smaller than it has in the past (official numbers aren’t out yet). Clearly there are fewer exhibitors, and traffic on the show floor felt light as well. The segment of the show dedicated to digital merchandising (digital signage and kiosks) is particularly light, continuing a several year trend, it seems that exhibitors in this space are opting to exhibit at the Digital Signage Expo instead.
Attendance issues aside, there continue to be a lot of great retailer marketers at the show, and insightful observations about the future of retail were easy to come by.
Here are some key trends identified by retail notables and GlobalShop conference speakers Wendy Liebmann, WSL/Strategic Retail; Tom Moseman, Envirosell; Joe Feczko, Macy’s; Lee Peterson, WD Partners; and Ken Nisch, JGA:
- Shoppers will remain more cautious, deliberate and value oriented.
- Online has empowered shoppers with information, yet they have not rejected brick and mortar stores. They want to be dazzled and have an emotional experience when they shop.
- Retailers must understand their shoppers on an emotional level, not just with demographics.
- In order to create a compelling environment, retailers will have to integrate data mining with a synchronization of all retail disciplines: visual merchandising, store fixturing, design and operations, digital, point-of-purchase and marketing services. No more silos.
- Connecting emotionally with shoppers requires 360-degree marketing embracing all touch points from in store to social media.
- Retailers will have to innovate continually, making it more urgent to stay on top of trends and network with colleagues and suppliers. It’s no longer enough to develop a prototype store, test it, reset all stores and then forget it. The new normal is a fleet of stores in constant flux.
I definitely think that the global recession has permanently changed shopping behaviors. I really buy into the theory first put forward by brand marketers at Henkel that traditional demographics based marketing is dead. You can no longer expect all people from a particular demographic, psychographic, or economic stratus to shop in a certain way. Instead we need to think more about the specific missions and shopping style of those that visit our stores, and tailor in-store experience to their needs. Henkel likes to talk about three distinct shopping styles:
Shoptimizers are most likely to be influenced in their choices by pre-shopping stimuli such as circulars and coupons. In fact, this group accounts for virtually 100% of coupon usage.
Mainstreeters do far less pre-planning and rarely save coupons, so their store choices are more likely to be influenced by location, convenience and price reputation. This group is highly sensitive to in store messaging and promotions.
Carefrees bypass pre-planning, and once inside the store, tend to ignore prices and promotions and simply buy what they like.
My own co-workers are doing a great job in MTI’s booth at the show. Despite the slower floor traffic, we captured as many leads as we have in the past several years, and we’ve had great conversations with many of our client who have been nice enough to drop by an spend some time with us. If you are at the show, please stop by booth #2230 and say hello. If you’re not at the show, feel free to use the comments here to share your thoughts.
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