New Retail Blog | Archive | Bird’s Eye View

Here Come the “Smarties”

Posted on 01. Sep, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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At the height of the Global Financial Crisis, when the economic sky was crashing in, commentators like J. Walker Smith of the Yankelovich Monitor were predicting a fundamental shift in consumerism. “The recent experience of frugality has ushered in an enduring era of penny-pinching and thrift that will utterly define the character and mindset of [...]

SOS (Save Our Shops)

Posted on 10. Aug, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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The Pixar animated classic “WALL-E”, set in 2105, paints a sobering, satirical picture of the future of retail. In a world trashed (literally) by rampant consumerism, the single remaining retailer (and company for that matter) is a megacorporation named “Buy N Large”. It’s an obvious dig at merchants like Walmart (the biggest company in the [...]

When “Sale” Gets Stale

Posted on 04. Aug, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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It used to be that the most powerful four-letter word in a retailer’s armoury was “Sale”. And while the tactic is definitely not dead, the abuse and overuse of the term “Sale” has certainly blunted its effect. Department stores are particular culprits, starting the traditional mid-year sales ever-earlier, running sale events longer, and peppering the [...]

Pop Up to the Extreme

Posted on 28. Jul, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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Trendwatching.com first coined the term “Pop Up Retail” in January 2004. As the trend forecasting website noted at the time; “if new products can come and go, why can’t the stores that display them do the same?” Since then, “Pop Up” has become a phenomenon, with a myriad of retailers opening temporary retail spaces. The [...]

“Tweetailers” and Social Media Retailers

Posted on 20. Jul, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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There’s a mobile Korean Taco truck in Los Angeles called “Kogi”, which has based its business model on being one of the world’s first “tweetailers”. It’s a very simple recipe. Make great tacos, put your restaurant on the road, and then promote your next location via Twitter. When a tweet goes out, a crowd of [...]

Who’s Breathing Down Walmart’s Neck?

Posted on 07. Jul, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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A quick quiz. What’s the second most valuable retail brand in the world today?
If you guessed “Walmart”, “Tesco” or “Carrefour” – or in fact any bricks-and-mortar retailer – you would be way off the pace. According to a report released last week by Kantar Retail* (http://www.brandz.com/output/retail.aspx/), the brand that grew the most in value last [...]

Are Your Customers Stealing Service?

Posted on 23. Jun, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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One of the hazards of retailing in the Internet age is that customers can get expert advice on products in your store and then once they’ve made their selection, go ahead and purchase at the best price online. It’s not only irritating, but debilitating. But what can you do about it?
Last year, Dixons, an electrical [...]

A Matter of Trust

Posted on 16. Jun, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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Would you put your faith in someone you don’t really know to help you make a critical decision?
Millions of consumers do just that every day, via product reviews on websites, the opinions of influential commentators or bloggers, or the say-so of their Facebook “friends”. And, worryingly for retail marketers, many experts say that shoppers are [...]

Everything Old is New Again

Posted on 09. Jun, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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In a quiet corner of the Malibu Country Mart – an upscale anti-mall just outside of LA – sits one view of the future of retail. And it looks an awful lot like the past.
The store in question is called Double RL & Co. and it peddles a “vintage American sportswear line” by Ralph Lauren. [...]

Discovering a Gem in London

Posted on 02. Jun, 2010 by Jon Bird.

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Taking part in a World Retail Study Tour, as I have been over the last couple of weeks, is sometimes like mining for diamonds. You have to drill through a hell of a lot of rock before you discover a gem. That’s what happened in London last week, when a colleague on the Tour led [...]

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