Vending machine dispenses ebooks

Source: PSFK

An interesting item from PSFK about a Japanese vending machine that dispenses ebooks using QR codes.

What other digital content can be distributed in this way ? 

Retail Pain

Not a great time to be in Australian retail - mirrors international trends - it is significant these items were all on the Inside Retailing website today:

		David Jones chief sounds warning bells DJs chief describes a "dramatic" slump in retail sales.
		Sales seasons stretched as shoppers turn savers Conservative shoppers are picking out bargains at Australia's biggest department stores as half yearly sales run into late July.

		Consumer sentiment nosedives Australian consumer sentiment is at its worst since the GFC

Yesterday's most read story
		Retail conditions worrying Conditions in the retail sector have fallen to "worryingly low levels" in

Let's Get Fizzical

Lush, QVB.

Great window, merchandising concept and idea from Lush Cosmetics - apart from being colourful and standing out in a very crowded pedestrian (commuter mall concourse) environment, the quirky character speaks to the brand essence, and the fizz is a product feature.

The World of Crowdsourcing

Source: Sydney Morning Herald/ The Age
Stephen Saunders doesn't really think of himself as a designer or a retailer and he's not quite ready to give up his day job as a retail consultant. But he's part of a growing number of hobbyist designer/retailers riding the consumer revolt against what he calls retailing “mediocrity”.

==> Read more on the SMH site.
Interesting merchandising ideas and concepts

the STUFF-iT Design shop


I recently embarked on a new venture in the world of e-commerce through opening the STUFF-iT design store. I will be documenting some of the learnings here, as I believe they have relevance for those of us in the broader retail world, whether as marketers, advisers or shoppers.


First up learning is that the thirst for customisation of product by shoppers has spawned a number of alternate business models - see RedBubble and Zazzle as examples.  This is in essence the creation of their own content (nothing new in that) but then made manifest -the latter being the key point. Over time this will lead to a further questioning of the value of design in traditional retail stores.  This will present further challenges for retailers to differentiate on excellent customer service.


Please drop by the store, and as always I welcome any feedback.

Social Knitworking works for me

Sportsgirl, Eastgardens

I love this campaign by Sportsgirl - bringing winter warmth to social networking.  It also opens up some great merchandising ideas and opportunities.

Smiggle colors winter weather

i

Eastgardens cheerful window from Smiggle. Good merchandising idea for trans-seasonal.

Giving the Competition the Finger

Coles Waterloo. Impressive store level carry through of ATL campaign. Difficult to miss.

The Small Things

Source: RSR

http://www.retailsystemsresearch.com/_document/summary/1244

It's the small things that break retailers' holds on their customers. 

A great quote - I recommend you read this short anecdotal article about Amazon.

Smiggle Squiggle Scribble

Mid-city Plaza, Sydney.  Cool, quirky lighting from Smiggle - interesting to see how the format is developing, now with a clear 'Scribble' area too.  Very busy store.

Screw Romance

Lush, QVB Sydney.  I quite liked the way this merchandising idea stood out from the crowd - a brave move for Valentine's Day.  I hope their bravery was rewarded

RedBubble, Merchandising Ideas and the Future of Retail

I recently signed up for the RedBubble service- essentially a shopfront for artists and designers which provides fulfillment services for the production and distribution of framed prints, t-shirts, calendars, greeting cards and the like.  I was admittedly skeptical but was searching for a way to commercialise some of my (modest) creative output.  I have now been posting entries to both the arts section (my portfolio here) and the T-shirts section (portfolio here) for a few weeks. As many of you know I have been promoting myself via Twitter and Facebook.  To my surprise and delight I have even made a few  sales !


However, I wanted to share with you the merchandising ideas I have observed in RedBubble's approach, and at a time when Australian retailers have belatedly woken up to their customers shopping on the Net, a few thoughts on the future of retail.


I was delighted yesterday to receive my first package from RedBubble.  I had ordered a few of my t-shirt designs - for my ego, yes, but also to market them directly, and also to assess the quality of fabric and rendition of the images.  Here is what arrived:

Prior to this, they had done all the best practice stuff for e-commerce - letting me know when my order was being processed etc.  I was very impressed with the cool packaging - the 'attitude' was right on brand as well.


I strongly suggest you visit their site to check out their brand style, tone and manner - irreverent, quirky, relaxed without being 'way out there', ie. still accessible.  Here is another illustration - best warning label I have seen :)

What a cool merchandising idea - they just keep selling the brand's benefits without being intrusive.


And then there was the big 'reveal' for me:  I have to admit to being a tad nervous - not that it had been a huge outlay, but my fragile ego was involved :). I was delighted to see the shirts packed and folded carefully, with a card for washing instructions.  The quality of the fabric is great: super soft, very comfortable to wear.  


I was nervous about the sizing - as you can see from the photos I am not in the 'small' category :)  However, they were excellent fits, and very generously sized, which is not something I can say about most t-shirts I buy locally in the shops.  I have very seldom found my size, the 'cut' has always been stingy, and the quality of fabric mostly poor - admittedly these have been sub-$50 t-shirts.  Personally I do not see myself paying more for a t-shirt.


I landed these in Australia for well less than $40 each.  Delivery time was 15 business days which I thought was pretty reasonable for the busy Christmas and holiday period.
So, here they are: 4 designs:

  
The Hawk
http://www.redbubble.com/products/configure/6436330-t-shirt

Bucket List Cities
http://www.redbubble.com/products/configure/6453779-t-shirt

Iconic Sydney
http://www.redbubble.com/products/configure/6446339-t-shirt
and

Life's a beach
http://www.redbubble.com/products/configure/6467433-t-shirt
So, what does this all have to do with retail ?
Well, I make my main living advising retailers - mostly of the bricks and mortar kind.  Here is what this means:


1. The future is about shopper control and customisation - in this case, choice of colours, sizes, and design (either my own or someone else's).
2.  Savvy web retailers are setting new, increasingly high  standards for customer service - quick response times, well-considered web sites, great FAQs, no questions money-back guarantees, free shipping - which will totally de-risk the purchase for shoppers.
3. Oh, and did I mention it was convenient ?  All done from my iPad or similar - pick a device of choice.  Admittedly I had to wait a while, but if I was really desperate for a t-shirt I might have popped down to the mall. I saw the waiting time as the trade-off for getting exactly what I wanted.  And yes, most of what we buy does fall into the 'wants' category - and people are prepared to defer acquisition to get what they want, as opposed to what they 'need'.
4. There's a great community of fellow travellers - who inspire and motivate.
5. There is huge choice - have a look at the site.
6. The products are authentic - the products of individual passion, not some faceless machine.
7. The culture is strong and distinctive - helpful, friendly, but quirky and full of character and humour - just look up Mr Baxter on RedBubble.  Many retailers have created humourless environments that fail to inspire.
8.  The price is right - the market will decide - moving around Sydney CBD earlier today I noticed designer t-shirts everywhere (perceptual vigilance :P) and noticed how almost all of them were 30-50% off, and then still more expensive than what I had bought.
Once you get what you want - as a shopper as with anything in life - it becomes addictive. almost liberating, a bit like being a bird, really.

Google Retail ?

Source: Advertising Age

Here is an interesting article which talks about Google's plans for  Boutiques.com. Will we see Google competing with fashion boutiques now ?  The technology is fascinating too.

Outstanding Merchandising Idea

Darrell Lea, East Gardens. Outstanding Christmas window and execution of the visual merchandising idea with height, symmetry, lighting and colour.

IKEA advertising idea

Source: PSFK

In a replay of previous advertising ideas in the Paris Metro, IKEA is providing commuters in Paris with an enhanced level of comfort during the pre-holiday season. Till December 21st, the Swedish brand has transformed 12 bus stops into tiny lounges centered around one of their sofas.

More pics at PSFK HERE.

Consumer Research: Pretty Things Make Us Buy More

Source: Science Daily

New research shows that a seemingly innocent luxury item purchase can lead to an unintended, budget-busting spending spree. The problem starts with the purchase of a new item, particularly those among designer product lines, luxury branded items, or consumer goods of high-end design. Once home, these items -- graced with what researchers call salient design elements, such as a unique pattern or interesting color scheme -- can look out of place when compared to other possessions. The most obvious solution to this aesthetic mismatch would be to return the item to the store. 

But instead of making a return, consumers who were surveyed said they would make more purchases in an effort to try to surround their designer purchase with other luxury items and restore aesthetic harmony, according to marketing professors Vanessa Patrick of the University of Houston and Henrik Hagtvedt of Boston College, whose study is forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing Research.  READ MORE HERE

Retailer Marketing Strategy: Walk The Line

A few months back I attended the launch for Treeet, the new online shop for books, mags, music, movies initiated and funded by Gordon and Gotch, the big Australasian magazine distributor. I have since signed up for their emails, which I have been watching with interest, especially with regard to their marketing strategy.  At the time they said they would be differentiating from other players in this crowded market by promoting their 'in-stock' position and ability to ship quickly. ie. a marketing strategy built around service.


So, it was interesting when I opened one of their latest email offerings in the mad run-up to the retail Christmas.  Let me say that I think they do a lot of things right, and have done a credible job of establishing their business in one of the most challenging retail trading environments, ever.  


First up, was their opening:

My first thought ? $30 for a stocking filler ?  In an era of price deflation, I would expect a stocking filler to be less than $20 and heading rapidly south at that.  $30 and under seems way off the pace in today's market....


However, their presentation was enough for me to look further, especially as they advertised 'In Stock Now'.


Next up, I had a look at the products they thought would appeal to me, and this really got me thinking (and not in a positive way):

Please understand, I am a content maven - I devour books, mags (when I find one that interests me), movies and music - I own in excess of 400 dvds, and about the same number of cds - some would say I have a problem...  Of course lately, with my iPad I also devour a lot more content online than I used, and at a variety of times, too.  Reading an online mag in bed is somehow rather decadent.


I thought, wow, I am not sure I would pay over $20 for a new book. I have recently joined our fabulous new local library and also buy secondhand books (the new frugality), and it is very rare I feel I want a new title badly enough that I need to shell out more than $20 (often in excess of $30) for it. My friend has a Kindle and I am thinking about downloading (and paying for) some titles on my iPad.  Think about it, why would you buy new books, if not to give to a non-Netizen ? I could get a fabulous new move dvd for way less than that up the road my local JB Hi-Fi.... and my house is choc-full of books anyway... garage sale anyone ?


The magazine - I can't remember when I last took the time to read a physical magazine from cover to cover - and now, with FlipBoard on my iPad I can create my own customised magazine.  So that, too, fell by the wayside.


Which left me with good old Johnny  Cash - believe it or not - and this IS embarrassing - I do listen to some of the songs from Walk The Line - but just the other day I was putting a playlist together for my best friend, and I downloaded some tracks from iTunes - instant and only $1.49 for the ones I wanted.  That felt good!


So when  I took another look at their offers - I thought 'Wow - imagine being in a retail business - an online one at that - where you have so much competition and where the demand dynamics and distribution channels are changing so rapidly', and that's forgetting about those retailers locked into physical distribution outlets - those things called 'stores'.  You've got to work a lot harder to get me to part with my Christmas Dollar now. That means service and personalisation.....


So, what's it going to be ?  What's your marketing strategy ? Are you going to Walk The Line ?

Rudolph's Cool Shades

Optometrist, TGV centre.  Rudolph looks quite cool in this merchandising idea, but I have to say it doesn't do a lot for the product.  This optometrist deserves some credit for an attempt at this merchandising idea, but the execution has clearly not been thought out. 

Simple retail design

Source: PSFK, Camper Store South Beach

I love the simplicity of this shoe store design.  Read PSFK's article for more info. and pix.

Retail Lighting

City Chic, East Gardens. Outstanding lighting from this mid-market retailer succeeds in creating some retail drama and theatre.  In many ways the lighting could have been even more effective if there had been some additional colour in the merchandise styles chosen for display.