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The retail industry is going through a period of rapid change brought on by changing consumer behavior and the accessibility of technology. The Amazon Effect has changed shopper’s expectations and all other retailers have to rise to the occasion and meet these heightened expectations that mainly center around speed, convenience and personalization. In our 2020 Innovation Briefing, we take a look at how today’s top retailers are turning their focus towards measuring experience per square foot and pushing for a new in-store strategy.

Raised in a technology-saturated world, it’s easy to assume that “digital natives”—young consumers who have grown up in the digital age and have never known life without the internet—prefer digital shopping over physical retail. However, studies show that young Millennial and Gen-Z shoppers in fact value brick-and-mortar stores more than their parents or grandparents.In this report, Future Stores and the WBR Insights research team uncover key strategies for transforming retail brands and driving in-store loyalty among digital native consumers. We identify key pain points and opportunities in how in-store retailers prioritize and engage this segment. Finally, we focus on in-store retailers who do well among these customers to understand their strategies for building long-term loyalty and in-store success.

Ushering in a new decade by providing customers with an ideal venue for discovering its latest products, Apple has redesigned and reimagined one of its most iconic spaces – The Cube on New York's Fifth Avenue. In our 2020 Case Study we take a look at the unveiling of Apple's landmark store after two years of closure for renovations, and why the return of this space is unique among the company's roster of retail venues. 

Advances in technology are making it easier for brands to experiment with interactive experiences. From AR and VR to touch screens to apps, retailers are enhancing and extending the brand experience in a personalized and meaningful way. In our 2020 Trends Report, we take a look at where the retail in-store technology community is heading and how you can stay ahead of the curve.

The retail apocalypse is over, and the retail renaissance is here.As micro and macro retail and economic trends squeeze major retailers, savvy executives are betting on daring retail strategies to increase store engagement and revenues. The store of 2018 is smarter, more efficient, and more technologically advanced than ever before (even if it’s not as large). In this Retail Innovation Briefing, we take you behind the scenes at a few retailers that are striking out on new paths and reaping the rewards.

It’s 2019 and the Retailpocalypse is deepening. Avalanches of corporate debt and high competition from online and nimble retail disruptors are pushing major retailers to rethink core strategy assumptions. There is growing awareness in the retail community that technology is the key to bridging the online and in-store experience gap. But which technologies, and at what time? In this Retail Tech Briefing, our aim is to take you behind the scenes at a few retail technology startups that are (or could) intersect with store retail to create valuable experiences, foot traffic, and revenue gains.

In this report, we explore how the most successful retailers create a unified, seamless experience between digital and physical channels for a competitive advantage in today’s digital economy. We investigate how they are changing their brand strategy, and leveraging data from customers’ both online and offline experiences to create a more inclusive, personalized environment. Finally, we provide qualitative insights from retailers themselves into how they are adapting their brand strategies.

Building on the vast expertise of Worldwide Business Research (WBR) in creating educational executive events for various sectors, Future Stores was launched in 2013 to provide tactical strategies for brick and mortar retailers to optimize their in-store experience and achieve omni-channel integration. Months of industry research with over 100 retail executives is compiled to create the program each year. And in 2019, Future Stores Seattle looks to prepare senior retail executives in operations, marketing, digital, and technology to lead their companies into the future of retail.

Research underscores the potential benefits and ROI-maximizing opportunities for retailers who take advantage of digital and physical 'phygital' blended experiences through the use of consumers' smartphone devices. According to a 2019 IDC report, "Connected Print Offers Retailers the Opportunity to Maximize Consumer Engagement While Gaining ROI," a survey of 2,000 consumers found they experienced more joy and confidence making shopping decisions when phygital product navigation and discovery was available.Take the first step to experience the future of print with OKI Connected Print!

As brick and mortar stores fight for relevancy, retailers look to integrate stores and outside digital experiences with a degree of personalization once exclusive to online sales. Driving In-Store Traffic & Purchases through Digital Channels goes beyond in-store pickup and returns to uncover how retailers make physical stores locally relevant in an increasingly digital retail environment.

The retail industry is undergoing a massive time of transition due to changing consumer behavior and disruptive technologies. In-store visits are significantly down due to the massive shift to digital, so stores are working to push the online sale as well as reinvent the store environment to increase foot fall. But with technology changing rapidly and consumer expectations at an all time high, many stores are failing as evidenced by numerous store closings.Retailers are working to compete with Amazon’s level of personalization, efficiency, price and overall customer experience, but it’s no easy task. They are quickly realizing that the days of a strictly transaction-focused/product-centric environment are gone. Today, it’s all about relationships and engaging the customer wherever and whenever they choose to engage.It’s not all gloom and doom however. There are many retailers who are successfully reinventing themselves by creating immersive, engaging retail environments, hiring knowledgeable, tech savvy associates, meeting heightened expectations around delivery and fulfillment and understanding the importance of the smart phone throughout the entire experience.

It’s 2018 and the Retailpocalypse is deepening. Avalanches of corporate debt and high competition from online and nimble retail disruptors are pushing major retailers to rethink core strategy assumptions.There is growing awareness in the retail community that technology is the key to bridging the online and in-store experience gap. But which technologies, and at what time?In this Retail Tech Briefing, our aim is to take you behind the scenes at a few retail technology startups that are (or could) intersect with store retail to create valuable experiences, foot traffic, and revenue gains.