One Grande and Four Large Takeaways from a Retail Leadership Tour

I had the pleasure of going on a retail leadership tour in New York earlier this week. I came home with a blown-up pair of Bass Weejuns and five takeaways that are important for any retailer looking to thrive. Well, sort of.  I should say that I came home with a single really big takeaway – one that you simply cannot live without – and four other important ones.  It’s like George Orwell wrote in Animal Farm: “Some animals are more equal than others.” Same goes for observations and the stores they came from.

As advanced as we are with search engines and expensive research initiatives, oftentimes the best lessons come from where they always have – the streets. Enjoy these four and hope to see you on Tuesday for the big finish.

1. Be a Window, Not a Mirror.
By definition, a window is a view of the outside. An open window allows you to hear what’s going on, too. A mirror, on the other hand, only reflects whatever is standing in front of it. Many companies love the mirror approach and build stores, websites and any outward facing communication as though they were looking into a very large mirror. It’s a reflection of the brand. Other stores use a window approach and mold themselves out of what they see and hear from their shoppers and users.  A Duane Reade store on Wall Street models services, adjacencies and time-based offers after the busy lives of the shoppers they serve. The Duane Reade on Wall Street is way different than the Duane Reade on Your Street. Sorry for the commercial interruption, but we’re doing a lot of work in developing store personas and then applying that lens to a store’s local market. In other words, opening the window for you.

2. Tech shouldn’t get all of the credit or all of the blame; It’s the idea that matters.
Throughout the tour my fellow tourists wanted to give a lot of credit to the technology stores were using to make good things happen. Tech can make good things happen, but it takes a solid idea to make great things happen. C. Wonder in Soho learned their customers hated waiting in line at the registers, so they dumped the registers and found a good tech solution (remember that story when we get to the big idea). PayPal has a think tank in operation in downtown Manhattan that may cause them to change their name – they’re much more than a pay service these days. PayPal’s big idea centers on enhancing the sales experience. It’s masterfully fulfilled with some new thinking and new technology courtesy of the big thinkers at PayPal.

3. Think Like a Customer, Act Like a Brand.
Okay, I’m cheating on this one. I learned this a long time ago, and people who know me know I’ve been preaching this for the last decade. But it’s true – you must think like your customer (see uber point one) but act to build your brand. Eataly, an amazing megastore on Fifth Avenue that has “grocer,” “general merchant,” “wine shop,” “microbrewery” and “restaurant” (actually, seven restaurants) in the description, is all about customer and brand. Everything but the really fresh stuff is imported from Italy. The store features Italian-themed market areas complete with carts and merchants that feel more like proprietors and less like store employees. The restaurants offer range in both price and cuisine. Eataly is an escape based on customer desire but integrated so well that the Eataly brand is built and nurtured at every step. The splash of digital signage is a good reminder that these guys are tech-smart but still focused on making the shopper love Eataly.

4.  Manufacturers and retailers need to partner up.
In the symbiotic relationship that exists between retailers and manufacturers, the result of joining forces can be game changing. L’Oreal has machines in test at the Wall Street Duane Reade that allow users to do a virtual makeover. Snap a picture, scan some UPCs and watch as you get a makeover on a touchscreen nestled in the merchandising display. Cool. The list of products the user “applies” shows up as a shopping list that can be saved and emailed to a loved one, a friend or to the user’s email. Cooler. And yes, other manufacturers do similar things, but to hear the Duane Reade GM talk about the collaboration using terms like “partner” and “friends,” you know that’s a relationship that will deliver big things for both.

So there you have it—four good lessons with a promise for one more great one. See you in a few days.

- Tom Tholen, contributing author for The Brand Show and chief customer engagement officer at Two West, Inc.

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