What does the store of the future look like?
Here’s the dilemma: Certain COVID-19-related adaptations to the retail setting might or might not be relevant in the future. It all depends on the impact of the pandemic on shopping behavior and whether it lasts a year, two years — or much longer. That means retailers must be innovative, agile and resourceful to navigate the challenges posed by the global health crisis and its accompanying economic fallout.
“I think we’ll want everything more modern. I don’t want doorknobs to enter a fitting room — we should just be able to push the door. There will be a lot less touching of metal and small items, but architecturally the changes are not very much. Roberts envisions retailers creating more space to give shoppers elbow room and easier navigation, adapting the brick-and-mortar experience to accommodate those shoppers who want to come and go quickly, and those who prefer to leisurely browse through.
“I can see fixtures coming out to the street, and pop-ups in parking lots, depending on the season and climate. People are going to want space and fresh air. One of the big unknowns is HVAC systems. What role will mechanicals plays in the store of the future? There is really not much information on the role they play in spreading the virus.
With the fitting rooms, “Retailers must make them comfortable. It’s also all about sanitation. A lot of fitting rooms are not very well lit and feel a little icky.” “My sense is the whole dressing room experience will also become more important. You could go online, to Tom Ford, and say, ‘hey I’d like to try on that suit, these shirts,’ and then you have an appointment and they have it ready for you, so there are fewer people in the same space at the same time. Maybe it’s your salesperson stepping in to what the clothes look like on you, and you do your whole transaction from there.
After the shutdown, people will be more inclined to enter stores with long sight lines and full overviews for a direct path to what they want, rather than going through narrow spaces putting people in close proximity to each other. Shopping malls and developers could incorporate social distancing by dividing one store into two to easily organize the goods on display.
Given the need for social distancing, the social aspect of shopping is changing. Consumers may not bring family members or friends along. “It’s no longer a social experience that you enjoy and hang out,” van Duijn said. Pushelberg: “As a result of social distancing, the scale of stores will remain large or grow larger, made possible by what will be affordable real estate. In a multibrand store, I believe there will be more compartmentalization, going from room to room in a graceful way that simultaneously controls traffic and creates intimate brand experiences. La Samaritaine, a department store we designed for LVMH in Paris, is by circumstance well suited for this new future of retail.
Yabu: “People want to return to stores and make purchases knowing how and why something was made the way it was. Perhaps at some point with the way real estate will be changing, allowing for more expansive retail spaces, the start-to-end experience can be a little more drawn out and people can also experience the craftsmanship behind what they’re purchasing in this multifaceted destination.
“With the beauty store for the future, how do you look at testing and servicing customers in something as intimate as beauty? We are working on a new concept for a multibrand retailer which will contain beauty, wellness and health. “We can already see as Europe reopens that people still want to shop in stores. Precautions like masks, hand sanitizer, distancing will be put in place, though people will still want to touch and try on.”• Edit and focus assortments so shoppers don’t have to plow through tons of products.• For dealing with taking clothing off the selling floor for cleaning, keep more stock in storage and less up front, and have sufficient service for retrieving what’s requested in short order.
“There is this whole idea of spatial repurposing — parking lots that transform some space into pop-ups or drive-in movie theaters, or event spaces where you stay in your car. Mall parking lots are huge and can repurpose a vast amount of space.” That could involve more personal service by employees greeting customers in their cars, at a distance, Insel added.
• Showrooming, so there’s more space and less inventory on the floor to facilitate social distancing. For the store of the future, establishing a sense of community and personalized experiences are increasingly important, said Sharples. “We don’t need a physical space to sell things. Obviously, we’re doing this all the time without a physical space. We can move volume online, through Amazon — anyone can do that. We need physical spaces to have the experiences. Stores are really going to be much more about places where you can connect and strengthen relationships and experiences.
Also for the store of the future, “VIP experiences might be the norm. Appointment-based shopping and how that might extend and be less elite,” said Riggs. “Another thing is materiality. We can do some things with terrazzo, and other surfaces that are more solid and cleanable than wood — stuff you can wipe down. A lot of the work we have been doing is third-wave coffee shops, that might translate into other retail. It would seem to be better in general for health if things are concrete and metal. There’s going to be an innate psychological aspect, the idea that your design looks safe, and feels clean and uncluttered.
“The introduction of private or semi-private rooms could be created through removal of traditional open floor plans, moving the product from the shop floor into individual categorized capsules. In our forward-thinking vision we have come up with perfectly spaced consultation rooms that allow customers and staff to be safely placed, while the introduction of partial screens means there is still a sense of interaction and personalization.
“I’ve always been an avid fan of how a certain smell can immerse someone in a fond memory or evoke a certain feeling. Often brands will have their own synonymous smell and so by ensuring that using diffusers to permeate the air, a memory is created in the sensory brain of our bodies. This will also enforce the brand and elevate the overall experience, again encouraging people to step out from behind their screens and into the shop.
“Floor staff, whilst protected behind a privacy screen, will still have clear interaction as they assist customers in choosing items from the dramatic vertical conveyor belts behind — we love the idea of the machine at work juxtaposed with the craft of the capsule. “I could also see high-end stores becoming about personal shopper appointments where you are the only one in the store. Changing rooms have to be cleaned after every shopper. Everyone will need a washer/dryer in their space, and maybe you pick up your own personal mat or cushion , in addition to a branded mask and gloves, when you enter the store.
“Smart retailers [will] allocate time and funds to reevaluate and reassess store strategies and store experiences and make them more exceptional, more of a spectacle. If they are able to implement them in time for their reopening, they will reap the rewards. In addition, self-quarantining will bring a renewed passion for real-life experience and occasion rather than the comparable flatness of e-commerce. This will be a cue for visual merchandising.
“Innovation and purposeful design will be front of mind and emphasized post-COVID-19, as will dedicating more surface area to a smaller edit of products that can be viewed in a different way, rather than packing in larger quantities of goods. Storytelling and sense of place can never be underestimated.
“The allure of the brick-and-mortar experience is essential as the differentiator, and acts to promote brand solidity. The goods and physical environment are designed to make one feel good and therefore hold more currency than ever, something to covet and look forward to.”
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