Experience Manifesto

Retail as a New (Old) Third Place

American Girl Doll store, NYC

I was involved in a discussion on Twitter today and was reminded on the idea of the the third place. It was a topic that I used to write about about a great deal and with everything happening these days, guess it's kind of fallen off my radar lately. If you don't know the idea of the third place, it's this:

In community building, the third place is the social surroundings separate from the two usual social environments of home ("first place") and the workplace ("second place"). Examples of third places would be environments such as churches, cafes, clubs, public libraries, bookstores or parks. In his influential book The Great Good Place (1989), Ray Oldenburg argues that third places are important for civil society, democracy, civic engagement, and establishing feelings of a sense of place.

When you look at how companies like Google, Facebook, etc., built their offices, I always thought they were built to really combine the second and third places together. For younger generations, so much of their social life was built around their work environments. For my Dad's generation, you worked and you mainly went home after work. During the dot com boom, they created offices that were for both work and socializing and the Google's of the world took it even further. You could do everything but actually sleep there.

Thanks to Covid, we're all working from home these days and while we talk a lot about how working from home is impacting our businesses, I haven't seen a lot of discussions about how working from home is impacting our social experiences. Yes, we know that covid has seriously impacted socializing right now, but even when Covid has left us, it seems like working from home is with us for the long term.

And that's where retail has an opportunity to step up. Back in 2011, I wrote:

We're missing a big opportunity to emphasize just what makes place special. As I've said in the past, I continue to think that there's a coming trend to socialize the retail environment instead of just merchandising the real estate space.

When Sydney was very young, we used to eat at a Burger King near our house quite often because they had an indoor playground. And it's not just about the actual playground. Since she's an only child, it was about Sydney's desire to play with a group of other children her age and the social aspect of that experience. It's not about the food there (sorry Burger King!), it was about it being a Third Place for Sydney.

So, what is the value of real estate for retailers today? If, thanks to the Covid and the internet people are much more comfortable getting their purchases sent to them, rather then getting them right away, do we need that much space dedicated to merchandise? So, if we can do away with the inventory portion of most retail spaces today, what else would you do with the space? How could you make it a much more social environment, rather than being a retail environment?

And if, thanks to the significant structural changes being made to our work structure, I think that there's a huge opportunity today. I continue to think that there's a coming trend to socialize the retail environment instead of just merchandising the real estate space. And the more we try to use the space for our purposes rather then our guests, the more they'll stay away.

Writing in their Dialogue, Gensler designer Kathleen Jordan talks about how retailers are adding to their experiences:

Familiar “ands,” such as a coffee bar or DJ booth, are commonplace. These added amenities draw from hospitality and are meant to personalize the retail experience and increase how much time consumers spend in a space—the “dwell time,” according to Gensler’s Kathleen Jordan. The right amenity doesn’t compete or distract with the product being sold, but offers a complementary use and a respite that allows consumers to recharge and extend their day.

Starbucks Reserve NYC

Starbucks is almost always one of the first examples given as a third place and their Starbucks Reserve is no different. I've had the chance to visit the original in Seattle as well as the location in Lower Manhattan, pictured below. With more menu choices and an actual bar serving alcohol, they are building on the environments that have driven them for years. Of course, in reaction to Covid, they are also building more drive-thru and pick-up locations., but they are not losing sight of what made them in the first place. A recent article in Restaurant Business about their efforts:

“As we started opening limited seating in our stores with very limited seating, it was immediate,” CEO Kevin Johnson told investors on Wednesday. “Customers were there. They want to be part of that community.

Back in 2017, long before we had ever heard of Covid, Retail Customer Experience had this to say:

Remember that for thousands of years the most powerful social experiences have happened where people gather. Whether it's a street fair or soccer game, a church or a coffee shop, people will always crave company. And what could provide a more engaging and social experience than shopping together? A show-stopping display, the big reveal as a friend emerges from the dressing room, an immersive installation — these occasions beg to be shared. The most compelling social media experiences begin with in-person social interactions.

As we wrote about here, retailers need to be thinking about their post-Covid strategy now, to be ready for when we get back to normal. I had the same challenges writing about the theme park industry right after 9-11. In the weeks after those horrible attacks, I spoke to many colleagues in the entertainment marketing field who all asked the same question: How do we go back to our business in the face of such a tragedy? What we do seems so trivial in the face of such tragedy…so unimportant. I, too, asked the same questions and wondered how I would get back to "business as usual" after these events.

Thanks to encouragement from industry friends and a great editor, Pat Esgate, I wrote a piece entitled The Great Good Places, where I talked about the important need to create fun. I wrote then:

As I thought more about it, the need for fun is a global experience. We may have fun in different ways, but we all like to have fun. Fun is one of the greatest tools we have to create a world of understanding and -- potentially -- peace. Hate can’t thrive in an atmosphere of fun.

Let’s ask how can we create experiences that bring people together to share a common, joyous activity. What we need today is more ways for people to come together and share joy—and that’s what we do. So celebrate the joy that you create.

Retailers now have a huge opportunity to recreate themselves for a new world. For 10+ years, I've been asking Why More Retailers Don't have Genius Bars and maybe this is the time to experiment and add new ideas. The large department stores that seem to be dinosaurs today, were once the forefront of retail experimentation. They were social experiences, where people gathered to be educated, to see the latest and to see each other.

The point is, that as consumers become continue to grow even more sophisticated in their expectations, retailers need to change their approach. I can shop online if all I need is shopping. I go to the store to receive service and I’m expecting more & more. Make my shopping experience my enjoyable. More helpful. More convenient. More of an experience.

If we do lose the office complexes that have been built the last decade or so, people will need new environments to be social and socialize. For decades, teens have used the mall as their socializing place, now more of us might be looking for a new place to hang out.

Retail can be the new (old) third place. As Ray Oldenberg said, third places are important for civil society, democracy, civic engagement, and establishing feelings of a sense of place. Today, more than ever perhaps, we need our third places as a society and what better way for retailers to help than to be our gathering places.

Creating the Right Experience Post Covid19

 

A few days ago, I posted What will Retailers Do Post #Covid19? and started the conversation about what we need to do as an industry to recover when the coronavirus threat is over. It reminded me of a previous piece I wrote almost 20 years ago.

Back in 2001, I was on deadline to turn in an article that would be of interest to the theme park industry the week of 9-11. Needless to say, that deadline passed and it was another few weeks before I was able to write again. The challenge was that I couldn't figure out what was important about our industry in a world upside down post 9-11. Like today, we were asking the same questions:

In the weeks after the attacks, I spoke to many colleagues in the entertainment marketing field who all asked the same question: How do we go back to our business in the face of such a tragedy? What we do seems so trivial in the face of such tragedy…so unimportant. I, too, asked the same questions and wondered how I would get back to "business as usual" after these events.

Thanks to encouragement from industry friends and a great editor, Pat Esgate, I wrote a piece entitled The Great Good Places, where I talked about the important need to create fun. I wrote then:

As I thought more about it, the need for fun is a global experience. We may have fun in different ways, but we all like to have fun. Fun is one of the greatest tools we have to create a world of understanding and -- potentially -- peace. Hate can’t thrive in an atmosphere of fun.

Let’s ask how can we create experiences that bring people together to share a common, joyous activity. What we need today is more ways for people to come together and share joy—and that’s what we do. So celebrate the joy that you create.

Now that we're all forced to do most, if not all of our shopping online, what will stores do to change that behavior once this is over? While big sales may help in the short term, that's not a long term plan. Retailers and brands not planning right now for what happens when this is all over, will be far behind the curve and may not be able to catch up.

Are you thinking through the design changes that will be needed to recreate your shopping experience? Will you be merchandising the same way you've already done it?  Jim Ackerman, CEO of Unified was pretty clear on what we need - 

“Consumers after a quarantine and lockdown are going to be looking for one particular experience----FUN. It will be important for brands and retailers to make shopping fun again. Ask any Gen Zer what they will be looking for after being cooped up for weeks—it isn’t even close.”

We’ve already seen one change within the grocery industry this week. Retailers around the globe, including Stop & Shop here in the US and Woolworth’s in Australia are opening up early to give the elderly a chance to shop before the general crowds come in. In addition to protecting them since they are more susceptible to serious issues, it also means they won’t be in as crowded and stressful an environment. Wonder if that will continue when this is all over.

Additionally, Morrisons grocery stores has announced food boxes, including a selection of everyday items based on current availability, including food and essential household goods. These boxes have been designed for the audience that now can't go to the store, but that has difficulty in making online ordering work.

Companies like Two Bit Circus (pictured above) and Meow Wolf have received a great deal of press over the last few years for creating a better experience than other companies in their respective spaces have in the past. ARTECHOUSE (pictured below) has been creating unique pop-up experiences for the last year. And Showfields, which bills itself as the "most interesting store in the world,"has created a theatrical experience around retail, with actors portraying different members of the Showfields team.

I've been speaking with Jim Wiemer, head of Design for both Unified and the Brand Experience Lab, about his 25+ years of design experience and his thoughts on what retailers and brands should be doing next. He outlined some of his key ideas for me:

Connect in-home, on-line shopping with re-tooled retail experiences

Retailers will need to build on consumer’s on-line habits when they return to brick and mortar stores. We've been talking to brands, retailers, consumers and students from some of our college partners and many of them have told us that they will be looking for experiences that build on their current on-line shopping, browsing and dreaming. Retailers have a chance of delivering relevant content, products in a way that adds clarity, curated by what was “trending”, “top sellers” and offer original experiences not found on-line.

 Enhance desired lifestyle or activity

Items that complement featured products or enhance the desired activity/lifestyle will instantly connect with the consumer who has been waiting to move forward with life and the activities that they enjoy. Let’s remember a large population has been closed in for weeks, some months on end, and need an outlet to feel real again. Retail experiences, designed right, can be that outlet for them to reconnect and build relationships with retailers, their products, and the newly created purchase path. Many GenZ consumers have spent considerable funds on cell phone technology. How can that technology be used in an engaging way for them to make purchase decisions? How can they be entertained and build memories as they reconnect through physical interaction with products at retail?

Mitch Edelman, President of Unified and Principal in Brand Experience Lab, a third generation in-store marketing expert, also had some thoughts on what retailers could do next:

Re-format the display 

• Using the right material palette for display theme and proper configurations that allow for best practices like organization, segmentation and focal points that deliver engaging presentations that will connect with consumers.
• Removing clutter and focusing on featured, trending products with a connection to relevant information in video format, which will enhance and connect their experience when at home in their fuzzy slippers.

In fact, looking through the vastness that is the internet, I came across a piece from 1999 and honestly, much of the advice Mitch and his fellow experts gave in that article back then, stands true today!

Get floor space. That’s the name of the game. If you build it or show it, they will buy. It’s not an easy task. In the case of floor and counter displays, marketers for the most part pay for the display space.

Make it dramatic. The display or program must be dynamic in every element. The offer must be clear and succinct. The "shelf impact" must be arresting.

Marry product and display. The display only has three tenths of a second to do its job so product packaging and display must be inter-twined.

Seek non-traditional channels. Marketers generally focus their P-O-P guns on high volume channels like department stores, supermarkets, discount stores and category-busters, e.g., Home Depot. But the smaller, less visible specialty stores and boutiques such as salons, home craft stores, liquor stores and independent bookstores can be equally important P-O-P environments.

Be a trend watcher. Before designing the program, analyze the market and the customer. Keep an ear to the ground. Look for what turns them on.

The truth is that many of the things that have been true before are true today, but even more so. The coronavirus crisis will end, as these things always do, and retailers need to be ready to respond to consumer needs when it does.

If you're waiting until this all passes to begin planning what you're going to do and how you can get your consumers back into your store, you're going to be that much further behind.

What will Retailers Do Post #Covid19?

With #Covid19 closing everything around us, we're all either in a lock down or panic mode. In the NY metro area, everything has been closed. My daughter is home from college for the rest of the semester and everyone is trying to figure out how long this will last. Lauren Thomas, writing about the industry at CNBC, had an article indicating that retail closures could top 15,000 this year. On top of everything that's happened in previous years, I'm sure this was not the year retailers wanted.

Here at the Lab, we've been talking about the importance of creating authentic, relevant and compelling brand experiences for quite some time. What will physical stores need to do post #COVID19 to bring shoppers back in? We're currently dealing with the global shutdown these days, with almost every country having some sort of shutdown in place. We're looking at the possibilities with members of our team and will talk about them in part two of this piece.

There was some looming good news for retailers. Most studies point to the fact that Gen Z loves to shop in store. According to a study by A.T. Kearny last fall, 81% if Gen Z like to buy in-store and 73% of Gen Z like to discover new products in store.

But, their newfound desire to come into stores creates challenges for many traditional retailers. They are brand promiscuous, shopping for good deals and good service. As my daughter wrote a few years back, they are also looking for experiences, both in terms of what they’re buying and how they’re buying. She concluded:

Gen Z has the world at their fingertips and won't hesitate to change shopping patterns if a brand does not support their interests. With a few Google searches, we can find out whether or not a brand uses child labor, their pollution levels, and anything else we might be interested in. Brands need to consider their brand morality and the unique experiences they offer if they want to keep us as consumers. How can their products create experiences that transform me and the world around me? Yes, Adidas is still selling me a shoe, but the experience they created around that shoe gives me a reason to buy them over other sneaker brands, even if they cost more.

Echoing her thoughts, a study by ubimo, they stated:

Gen Z still shops online, but they’re being increasingly driven to physical storefronts by their desire for personalization in shopping, preference for experiencing products, and an expectation that brands engage with them in a meaningful, authentic way. They also want to know what they’re buying before they shell out — just shy of two thirds of Gen Zers want to touch, feel, and experience products before making a purchase.

But #Covid19 is putting a huge hold on all of this optimism. As I write this, the market is down almost 2,000 points (it was down 2,700 at one point) and the CDC here in the States is recommending no crowds bigger than 50 people for at least the next two months. The vast majority of people are now working from home - my commute has been almost empty the last few days. Grocery stores have been cleaned out. Curfews have closed restaurants all around me and, if they're still open, they are for take out only. Hourly workers are not spending money as they're afraid they won't have an income for the next few weeks. That is likely to trigger a recession, even a brief one, which will further slow spending.

Check out part 2 to see what we and others are thinking we need to do when this is all over!

Ready for Members!

Excited to announce that after a few months of working on the infrastructure of the space, we're ready to open our doors to members! We are creating a word-class accelerator for companies working in retail, VR/AR and out-of-home (OOH). As we looked for our own space, we quickly realized that many coworking spaces are great for working, they are usually not very good if you need to do demonstrations of physical technologies.

Our space is just across the river from NYC, a short PATH train ride away in Jersey City. With 14,000 sf (and another 14,000 available if needed!), we have plenty of room to grow; set up your technology for live demos, meetings, seminars and getting work done in a living, breathing, future factory. It allows for you to go from concept to a real-world testing environment and get instantaneous data and feedback. This also allows our members from outside of the United States to have a US office location. We even provide staffing to present your products when you are away. And did I mention that the Cake Boss bakery is in the building too?

What we offer:

• Shared Space working with BEL design team
• Access to tech member network spaces while in NY
• Client support for hosted meetings
• Desks & office furniture 
• Conference room facilities
• Use of the shared space to host up to 4 events per year
• Demonstration area to present products and technology
• Kitchen for your staff and guests
• Wi-fi connectivity throughout premises

In addition, all members can participate in all events hosted on the premises including (based on availability and suitability) client presentations, industry specific events, meet-ups with other entrepreneurs, workshops about general business topics; demonstration events.

For members, BEL is your brand accelerator, helping you grow your business by:

• Demonstrating your technology to key retailers and clients.
• Presenting your technology to Unified/BEL clients and contacts.
• Working with Unified Merchandising LLC for manufacturing support, from prototype through final product.

Lastly, for companies outside of NYC, the BEL staff can act as your local business development staff. We can represent you in all client presentations that are necessary, acting as your staff on the ground in NYC and in the States. This allows you to be able to react quickly to client requests, without incurring last minute travel expenses.

Julian Fisher, CEO of our first member company, jisp said, "We are thrilled to be the first to take our place inside the Brand Experience Lab showing how the simplest, fastest and most seamless route to outstanding customer service lies in the hands of every shopper, their cell phone. And with jisp it is an experience once tried you’ll never want to shop any other way. It maybe a small step for shoppers but it’s a giant leap for retail."

Want to learn more about what we're doing? If you're developing innovative, new tech for the retail industry, click here to learn about our membership program.

If you're looking for space for your company, you can email David or Jim and we can give you additional information. You can also click here to download our full presentation.

Here are a few pictures of the space, come visit and see what it looks like in person! You can go to Brand Experience Lab for directions to our space. Hope to see you soon.

Toys R Us is Back!

Had a chance to visit the brand new, Toys R Us at the Garden State Plaza on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, the first of their new physical stores.

Not surprisingly, the first thing you can notice is how small the store is compared to their previous stores. They are currently opening up two locations, the one we have here in NJ and a second one in Houston. While a traditional store from the first version would've been around 40,000 sf, the store I visited was about 6,500 sf according to reports I've read. Also understand that future stores will be about 10,000 sf, still much smaller than their older stores.

The other thing that you see right away is that it is much more experiential than the previous version of the stores. Although they had a few flagship stores (like the one in Times Square), most of their stores were really just large warehouse buildings with a lot of merchandise in them. They were pretty unfun places for a company dedicated to sell toys to children. Now, each area of the store is designed to let people actually play. My favorite was the Nerf shooting range, which I thought was pretty cool.

In order to keep the the number of SKU's down in the physical store, they've partnered with Target to deliver additional products through digital screens placed throughout the store. These screens are located throughout the store and allow you to find a broader range of toys than they can stock in the stores. Not sure how partnering with Target will help them build their own brand identity, so it will be interesting to see how this works out for them.

The good news is that the store was pretty crowded (I deliberately took pictures without people as much as possible) and kids certainly seemed to be having a good time. The store had a great deal of staff working the day we visited, so it will also be interesting to see if that continues after the holiday season.

I'll do some additional visits throughout the holiday season and see how it continues and will report back here when I do. For me, creating smaller stores, designed to let children actually play, is what they should've done years ago.

It Really Isn't That Hard

Monday night, I needed to run a quick shopping errands to get ready for some meetings at the Lab, as well as just get some things done for me. So, I headed up to the Garden State Plaza, since I could do everything I need there. I did get everything done, but I also had very good experiences everywhere I went. Although I didn't get the names of everyone I dealt with, I had a great experience at each of the 3 stops I made. It just reminded me, how simple it is to give customers good service, no matter what your product is.

• My first stop was to the AT&T store there. I upgraded from a Note 9 to the Note 10+, a phone BTW, I really like. I was supposed to be sent a box to return the old phone, but after several weeks and multiple phone calls, I hadn't received it. Not wanting to get charged for the old phone, I took it with me and went to the AT&T store to see if they could help in person. Franke (I think that was his name) asked if I needed help, I told him what this issue was and he solved everything in less than 5 minutes. Got me the box, shipping label and made sure it was all packed and ready to go. He was polite, friendly, efficient and most all of all, solved a problem that four phone calls didn't.

• My second task was a visit was to the Swatch store there. I've been wearing a Bunnysutra watch (funny story about it, ask me the next time you see me!), so I visit Swatch stores much more frequently than I used to. I love that they will just clean it and polish it up and replace the battery for free whenever that's needed. Once again, the staff couldn't have been nicer and friendlier and we always have a fun conversation about the watch.

• Lastly, I visited the Nespresso store there to pick up some coffee for the office. Love their machine and particularly love that the pods are recyclable, but I'm not really knowledgeable about coffee. Again, the staff there couldn't be more helpful. From sampling some of the new blends to being able to give me good suggestions on which coffees I should buy, shopping there is always a fun experience. I always come away from their store feeling I got some fun coffee and got just a little more knowledgeable about coffee. BTW, their boutique in the Bloomingdale's at the Short Hills Mall is equally good.

At the end of the day, it's not rocket science. All of the people I interacted with on my trip were friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. They all seemed to enjoy what they were doing. And I walked away a happy and satisfied customer.

Bunnysutra

Bucknell MIDE Program & The Future of Retail

Earlier this summer, after Sydney was accepted to Bucknell, we learned about a program in the business school there called MIDE, their Markets, Innovation & Design program. I thought it was a pretty cool program and reached out to connect during one of our visits with Sydney. That started a conversation about ways we could work together during the school year.

Later in the summer, once we had the folks from Jisp move in, that started many conversations about how the store of the future would be designed if you didn't need cashiers and checkout lines, particularly at grocery and convenience stores. Our internal teams started thinking about it as well, exploring the entire checkout process that exists today and what would be done with that space once the checkout lines were removed and it spurred some great conversations.

In late August, I had the chance to meet with Collin Smith and we both thought that the idea of recreating the front end of a grocery store would be a great project for his class. Since they had to explore a topic and then actually design and build something, the ability to use our manufacturing resources at Unified to actually build some prototypes was pretty exciting.

Collin described the class and its process:

“Creative confidence is about believing in your ability to create change in the world around you....the ability to come up with new ideas and the courage to try them out.” - Tom Kelly, IDEO

Our design studio at Bucknell's Markets, Innovation & Design program is building creative confidence by having students bring new ideas to life through prototypes people can actually experience and interact with to really feel what the future might really be like. We fill our studio space with supplies for very rapid and rough prototyping (ex. pipe cleaners, felt, fun foam, Play-Doh, popsicle sticks, tape, hot glue, etc.) so our design teams can think with their hands and physically build on each others ideas.

This collaborative project with Brand Experience Lab builds on these making experiences by giving these students real opportunities, tools, and mindsets to envision, design, and demonstrate possible futures of retail experiences. By bringing these ideas to life through low and high fidelity prototypes these students will be able to really ensure that what is designed makes sense in the future lives of people, bringing truly meaningful and differentiated consumer value.

Let’s make the future awesome, together.

I had the chance to meet with the class in late September and kick off the process with them. Throughout the semester, we'll introduce them to other designers and technologists who will give them more ideas to work with over the semester. There will be a variety of times throughout this process to see what the students are doing and we will update the blog whenever we can.

You can email me if you'd like to know more about the program and participate either as a technology or retail partner. We anticipate this to be the first of many programs and we couldn't be happier to be partnering with Bucknell on this first initiative.

More on MIDE:

As a Bucknell markets, innovation & design major, you'll learn to recognize what consumers want — before they even know they want it — and build a career developing the products, brands and messages to meet those desires. But you don't need to wait until graduation to get started. Whether you want to help entrepreneurs launch their first websites or start your own magazine, you’ll have freedom to follow your passions here. When you are ready to enter the job market, those experiences in and out of the classroom will make you stand out. Leading employers around the world actively recruit our graduates, who hold jobs with organizations as diverse as Tommy Hilfiger and the Philadelphia 76ers.

Our First Member - Jisp!

We're very excited to introduce Jisp, our first member of the Brand Experience Lab here in Jersey City. jispGO is a secure solution for friction free shopping via mobile - customers are able to browse and shop spaces physically and digitally, completing their purchases within jisp, negating the need for lines and front end cash wraps. Think of it as a way to bring the experience of "Amazon Go" to any retailer. A recent report from Omico Group found:

Most Americans are willing to only wait up to eight minutes in line before abandoning their cart of potential purchases. The report also noted that 77% of consumers are less likely to shop at the retail store again if they experience a long wait in checkout lines. With customers leaving empty handed, retailers have a problem and are losing an estimated $38 billion in potential sales.

jisp solves that problem using NFC and cell phones, eliminating the huge capital expenditure usually needed to deploy a system for cashierless stores. Using NFC also means that everything can be controlled from a central point, allowing for fast updates to prices and information that the consumer needs. It also means that promotions can be launched almost instantaneously, from a central office. With jisp, customers can shop as they go and pay through the app with no frustrating waits at the checkouts. jisp’s solutions are 4x times faster than barcode scanning and are completely adaptable. See the video below to see how it works.

I met the jisp team at a retail conference in London last fall and was very excited about what they're doing. As we started to look for members to join the Lab, they were one of the first ones I recommended. Last month, we showcased jisp at our GlobalShop booth and saw the same very positive reaction from people who saw it there that I witnessed in London when I first saw it.

"We are searching the world for the finest technology companies in retail and jisp is one of them. We are proud to have them join BEL," said Jim Ackerman, CEO of the Unified Brand Experience Lab. "Jisp combines extraordinary technology with a great team behind it that will enable us to introduce them to the US market successfully."

Julian Fisher, CEO of our very first member, jisp said, "We are thrilled to be the first to take our place inside the Brand Experience Lab showing how the simplest, fastest and most seamless route to outstanding customer service lies in the hands of every shopper, their cell phone. And with jisp it is an experience once tried you’ll never want to shop any other way. It maybe a small step for shoppers but it’s a giant leap for retail."

The purpose of the Unified Brand Experience Lab is to help retailers and brands explore the future of retail and technologies like jisp are critical to that future. Thanks to online shopping, consumers are used to instant payment options and not waiting in line. jispGO solves a significant issue for retailers while helping a create a friction-less experience for consumers. We're excited to have them as out first member! You can come visit us here in Jersey City to experience jispGO firsthand!

Want to learn more about what we're doing?

• Click here to learn how brands can use the Brand Experience Lab and create the next generation of retail and brand experiences.
• If you're developing innovative, new tech for the retail industry, click here to learn about our membership program
.

BEL provides integrated solutions for Brands and Retailers utilizing emerging technology, shopper insights and retail industry experts. We also give companies in retail, VR/AR and OOH industries a place to work, showcase and sell the technologies they’re creating.

Explore the Possible - Deliver the Practical - Lead the Future

Unified Brand Experience Lab

We've started work to transform our new home for the Unified Brand Experience Lab! The space is designed to give companies in retail, VR/AR and OOH industries a place to work, showcase and demo the technologies they’re creating. With almost 14,000 sf, we have a great space to experiment, test, hold client meetings and do larger events. It is walking distance from the Hoboken PATH station, so very convenient from the city or NJ.  

If you're looking for space for your company, drop me an email and I can give you additional information. 

You can click here for additional information.

L.L. Bean Ends Lifetime Warranty

L.L. Bean made some pretty big news when they announced that they were ending their lifetime warranty on their products. This was a cornerstone of their customer experience since they started and I would guess a driver of why people shopped at Bean. It also spoke of why retail needs to be a relationship between the stores and the customers. Both sides have an obligation to be respectful of each other and when it gets out of balance, things like this happen. I would certainly be interested in knowing how much they were losing on these returns, but let's give them the benefit of the doubt that it was having a real impact on their bottom line.

But, rather than just eliminate the lifetime warranty, I think they had a chance to make a different play and maybe even generate some additional revenue to boot. They could've used this as a chance to create a new loyalty program for both one-time and regular shoppers, keeping this important point of differentiation alive, while making sure that it would be very hard for people to game the system.

Here's what I might suggest:

• For single items, they could charge a sliding fee based on the purchase price.
• For people who shop regularly, they could pay a yearly membership in order to keep the lifetime warranty.
• They could also waive the fee for people who shop above a certain spending amount.

I think that L.L. Bean could've really done better here and not just cut the warranty. Even when making choices to eliminate long-standing services, companies should use some creativity and think of how both they and consumers can benefit from the changes. Fortunately, L.L. Bean has a long history of doing right by their customers so it is unlikely that this will have a big impact on their sales. But not every brand has that equity to play with.

Companies should have an obligation to put their customers front & center in their decision process. Customer know that many times, that doesn't happen, hence the lack of brand loyalty we see today. We're very brand promiscuous today. On the other side, customers have an obligation not to abuse the system as well. If they do, then they force companies to make changes like this. When both sides work together, then both sides win.

Here's the letter that was posted to the L.L. Bean Facebook page:

A Letter to Our Customers,

Since 1912, our mission has been to sell high-quality products that inspire and enable people to enjoy the outdoors. Our commitment to customer service has earned us your trust and respect, as has our guarantee, which ensures that we stand behind everything we sell.

Increasingly, a small, but growing number of customers has been interpreting our guarantee well beyond its original intent. Some view it as a lifetime product replacement program, expecting refunds for heavily worn products used over many years. Others seek refunds for products that have been purchased through third parties, such as at yard sales. (Emphasis mine)

Based on these experiences, we have updated our policy. Customers will have one year after purchasing an item to return it, accompanied by proof of purchase. After one year, we will work with our customers to reach a fair solution if a product is defective in any way.

This update adds clarity to our policy and will only affect a small percentage of returns. It will also ensure we can continue to honor one of the best guarantees in retail, with no impact for the vast majority of our customers. To learn more, please view our full return policy at llbean.com.

L.L.Bean has stood for quality, service, trust, and getting people outdoors ever since my great-grandfather founded our company over 100 years ago - and that will never change. Thank you for being a loyal customer and we look forward to continuing to inspire and enable you to Be an Outsider.

Sincerely,

Shawn O. Gorman

L.L.Bean Executive Chairman

L.L.Bean Is Making Changes to Its Longstanding Lifetime Guarantee Policy

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