How Retail Reinvention is Rejuvenating Brick-and-Mortar Retailers

I just experienced an Aha! moment as I am in London walking from one retail store to another on Piccadilly Street and Regent Street.

Minutes earlier I had come out of a meeting with a business partner in which we had been discussing how the retail landscape is changing, and how major retail brands were struggling / closing unable to adapt to this modern fast-moving retail economy and compete with social media and eCommerce-based retailers that did not have the operating costs of brick-and-mortar stores.

I walk into a famous men’s shoe store chain, whose style and quality I have always admired. In the middle of the store there is a prominent coffee bar. I am surprised to see it since 18 months ago this store only had shoes and salespeople. 

I sit and order a latte while looking through their online catalogue on an iPad they provide me, which includes their limited café menu, available shoes as well as their parent company’s shoes for women. Now, in a shoe store that for the past 500 years has sold custom-made shoes in-store exclusively for men, this shocks me.

I talk to the staff, and they inform me that the coffee shop is generating a significant percent of their daily income, and also that the sales of women’s shoes has taken on a profitable life of its own.

Bewildered, I exit the store and make my way to Fortnum and Mason, an upmarket department store so I can buy some tea gifts for friends (one of the perks of traveling around the world!). This store opened in 1707 and is a quintessential British retailer famous for their hampers, tea, coffee and chic knickknacks. I have always enjoyed the great restaurant at the end of the department store’s main floor. 

After buying my tea I walk up to the floor that has women’s clothing and accessories. To my surprise, I notice a classy bar serving champagne, caviar and smoke salmon on small toast breads. You cannot miss this as there are people (mostly women) chatting and waiting to be seated, surrounded by shoppers. I notice how the store’s space optimization has created an atmosphere (a culture) that not only attracts consumers, but engages with them and inspires them to stay in the store longer.

I decide to check out the men’s floor, and I am immediately greeted by the beautiful leather bags, ties, shirts, cufflinks and tailored suits. I walk around the small gift section and I see a bar reminiscent of an old English Club complete with a barman in full attire and serving beer and Gin Tonic, right out of the adventures of Phileas Fogg. Next to the bar in the same mahogany wood décor are a gentlemen barber shop and a shoe shine station.

I realize I am grinning while I imagine myself returning to the bar after buying a suit. I’d look good and feel good – from the same place. Complete convenience.

Maybe I should have ordered a drink at the bar because minutes after leaving to return to my hotel I realize I am really thirsty. I walk into the Ralph Lauren’s London flagship store and immediately spot the in-store coffee shop with friendly-looking servers. So I sit down and enjoy my tea and sparkling water.

Clearly, necessity is the mother of invention – or reinvention – especially in today’s global retail environment. And this should not be surprising. Just look at the melting pot of restaurants and retail stores in large open areas in airports that promote shopping and consuming.

I wonder if struggling retailers like Macy’s, Sears and Barnes and Noble would adapt to new market demands for optimizing in-store customer experiences they might have a chance of successfully rebuilding and rebranding.

Barnes and Noble could, for example, sell printed books with the same eBook at a bundle price, and leverage their retail store space by building out a comfortable reading lounge, children play area, restaurants and a convenience store. Consumers could buy milk, enjoy a cup of coffee and read their book in store and/or online. It would be a one-stop-shop for the ultimate customer shopping experience.

I have now returned to my hotel and feel good about the future of brick-and-mortar stores. If they continually think out of the box and reinvent themselves to optimize in-store and online experiences, they can not only survive but also thrive. It’s a much better option than facing extinction.

About the Author

Afshin Alikhani is a business operational analyst with 30+ years in the computer software industry developing organizational end-to-end processes for companies primarily in the retail and hospitality sectors. He is the Founder and Chairman of Retail Realm, a leading multinational retail-centric software development and distribution company.