Experiential Retail: Transformations and technologies to grow your business

February 7, 2020 by
Nico Hoeijmans

ZooMoovMiguel Pereira is CEO at ZOOMOOV, a company that offers children and parents playtime between home and school. It has educational and entertainment activities and products targeted at promoting life skills valuable to children ages 1 to 10. ZOOMOOV is a data- and experience-driven company in the kids-entertainment industry. In a few years, the company has expanded to 70 retail outlets across Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. Now, he shares his vision on experiential retail.

What do you believe are top trends driving and derailing experiential retail?

'We believe augmented reality (AR) to try apparel, artificial intelligence (AI) which anticipates or facilitates the purchase of complementary products or entertainment which solidifies brand values are great examples of experiential retail that make a mark. The most important is that it offers a great customer experience. Experiential retail does not need to be about all whistles and bells of exceptional experiences at once. It is about offering a solid - great - customer experience. At ZOOMOOV, frontlines can address customers by their name, offer packages according to their previous transactions or offer them to try activities they have not experienced before. That is all facilitated by technology.'

How can in-store technology be used to collect data?

'At ZOOMOOV, we use Point of Sale (POS), CRM and location-based marketing tools to collect data from each of our physical shops. This gives us a great idea of who is buying when and where. The biggest challenge is to find out why people buy. If we can identify this, especially related to the psychographic factors, we will be able to find identify people with similar behaviour. Being able to identify a group like this will enlarge the Routine Outcome Monitoring (ROM) and help us improve our offering. As there are many technology solutions to gather data nowadays, we focus on trying to find those technologies that give us a better understanding of our customers and integrate well with our current used technologies and business processes.'

IMG-0580In what ways can digital transformations bridge the gap between online and offline sales?

'I believe that technology is an enabler for great sales processes and it can be used by anyone. I know of a Singapore-based florist that started offering chatbot experience to clients. It allowed customers to track their orders quickly and easily. A seamless and user-friendly process that benefits his business. Don't forget that both online and offline sales channels face challenges. With the right technologies, the - sometimes - bumpy ride can be mitigated for consumers, for instance by offering them tracked purchases done offline.'

What does experiential retail even mean these days?

'It can mean a lot. At ZOOMOOV, we see it as an extension of traditional brand experience. It is gaining popularity as there is a shift in customer preference, goods to services, and a decline in sales per square meter. Not everything experiential retail is necessarily new. A butcher showing how to marinate or cook a piece of meat? A shop attendant demonstrating how to combine a skirt you might want to buy? I believe it is experiential retail. However, it definitely is not new. What we see as experiential retail is likely to consolidate over the coming years. The technologies that are accepted by the main driving force - customers - will stay. New tech should not be exaggerated, faked or overly technological. If so, it is not likely to improve the experience as you aim for. I look forward to what the coming years will bring.'

About

Miguel Pereira will be speaking at eTail Asia in a Keynote Panel: Completely connected – How to build a powerhouse of experience-driven retail. eTail is where the top minds in retail meet, collaborate and learn about what's disrupting the industry today and what'll change tomorrow. With over 600+ retail leaders exclusively in one place at one time, this is THE meeting place to benchmark your business with the best and shape the future of your industry. eTail Asia is happening at the Equarius Hotel, Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore from 4-6 August 2020. Register with exclusive code CBM15 to get 15% off. For information on the speaker line up and sessions, download the agenda.

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