6 Major Trends Reshaping the Luxury Retail in 2020

Luxury retail is experiencing a paradigm shift. The traditional ways of doing retail are no more effective and requires a radical makeover. Mobile commerce is blooming worldwide as growing number of consumers are using their smartphones to research, compare, purchase and return products. Does this mean brick and mortar stores are becoming passé? Absolutely true, many iconic retailers like Nordstorm, Lord & Taylor, Victoria secret, Barneys, to name a few, are closing their retail stores. To remain relevant, these stores are trying to reinvent themselves by going digital.  But, simply moving sales online will not be enough for their survival. Retailers need to device innovative ways to make their stores meaningful for the new-age luxury buyers. In tandem, digital players such as Amazon, Rent the Runway and Warby Parker are opening physical stores, as a way to augment the online experience. What’s leading to these changes? Customers urge for seamless, bespoke shopping experience through 360 degree access to retail across all touch points is resulting in luxury retail disruption.

Let’s look at 6 major trends reshaping the luxury retail environment.

Phygital Retail: In future, there is need to blur the line between physical and digital retail. As per Juniper Research, fashion brands’ retail spend on AI is predicted to rise from $2billion in 2018 to $7.3 billion by 2022. Software developer SAP is working with Harrods to develop technology that provides customers with personalized recommendations from the in-store screens based on what they are wearing. Omnichannel brands are using digital behavior to inform in-store assortment. Nike store in Los Angeles furnished the store with Nike Cortez sneakers after knowing through digital commerce data that its local customers enjoy running.

Note: Data-driven technology with help luxury retailers to design appropriate in-store strategies.

Experiential Stores: In coming times, luxury retailing will be driven by experience. Recently opened flagship store of Nordstorm in New York is trying to captivate time-starved buyers by providing dedicated service stations for easy returns/ exchanges, etc. The store is providing a perfect blend of technology, innovation and a truly luxury experience. Store associates are well-trained and empowered to augment customers’ experience. Similarly, Sephora is providing free beauty workshops to not only attract customers but also to provide them with something more than just a product to walk away with.

Note: Luxury retailers need to have celebration every now and then in the store so that people will have a reason to talk and step into the store to discover something different every time they visit.

Care is the new Commerce: Organizations have to adopt ‘care is the new commerce’ mindset. They need to understand each step that customer goes through in their journey while making buying decision.  This will help in knowing customers’ problems better and providing them personalized solutions (services) by leveraging analytics and artificial intelligence. Recently, Cartier has initiated a digital customer care system, ‘Cartier Care’ which is designed to build relationship with clients. It provides clients access to comprehensive suite of watch workshop services like complementary battery changes, brightening and engraving, full technical check, etc. It aims to permit customers to sell their timepieces back to the company and acquire creations from latest collections.

Note: Today, luxury retailers need to go an extra mile to serve their clients.

Zero-inventory Stores: There are many luxury retail brands that focus on ecommerce business model. They can benefit from having physical presence. Various researchers have proposed a novel idea, known as zero-inventory stores (ZIS) which will make physical stores as a platform where shoppers can touch, see and experience the items while orders can be placed online. Less inventory would require smaller store format which would mean huge savings on rental costs. Such stores will enable to gain the best of both physical and digital world. Research suggests this strategy is not only cost effective for retailers but has supercharging impact on digitally native customers.  As ZIS provides millennials with an opportunity to experience the product, it would generate more demand and less returns. JLL, the commercial real estate company, predicts more than 800 new stores will open in next five 5 years by top 100 digital players. Will it have any implications on traditional luxury retailers? In my view, this will have lethal impact on age-old retailers, who may have to find alternatives to survive in this complex and challenging environment.

Note: Experience-driven ZIS will help luxury retailers to engage, inform and provide better service to millennials while leveraging online fulfillment.

Luxury brands partnering with resale/ rental sites: Few years back, high-end brands could never have thought to make collaborations with closet-sharing/ pre-owned apps. However, as luxury consumption patterns of consumers are undergoing drastic changes, brands are exploring new ways such as these to generate traffic into their dying stores, attract millennial clientele and boost sales. Also, because of circular nature of the partnership, it is a way to boost the corporate social image of luxury brands. Lately, Burberry has announced an official partnership with pre-owned luxury site The RealReal. Customers who purchased consigned Burberry items through The RealReal are provided with a unique shopping experience at Burberry stores. Similarly, Rent the Runway and Neiman Marcus teamed up to redefine the way consumers shop.

Note: Luxury retailers have to explore new business partnership opportunities to draw millennials into their stores.

POP-IN / POP-UP shop: Physical retailers like Nordstorm created a POP-IN shop with EverLane, a brand known for its transparency approach, to tap today’s discerning, eco-conscious shoppers. Similarly, many luxury brands like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, etc. are opening pop-up stores to test small before opening a full-fledged store. It helps brands to display their new collections and engage directly with customers. Recently, the Hermes Silk Mix pop-up was held in Munich. The pop-up prioritized on enticing young consumers who feel estranged by flagship stores; for whom sense of community holds great significance.

Note: Luxury retailers have to come up with innovative store formats to excite discerning, new consumers.

Today, luxury retail environment is more challenging than ever. Emergence of collaborative economy, growth of social media, advent of AI and VR and changing consumer behavior has made it hard for traditional luxury retailers to survive. The only solution left with them is to adapt and accept innovative new business models to remain relevant in the future.

(This article has also been published in indiaretailing.com on 13 February 2020)