Omni-Channel Retailing: The Future Trend in Fashion and Luxury Industry - Part 2/2

Omni-Channel Retailing:
The Future Trend in Fashion and Luxury Industry
Part 2/2
Publication
May, 2014
The sequel to Fashionbi’s extensive research on Omni-Channel Retailing
Focus on Merchandising, Events and Offline Advertisements/ Promotions.

Omni-Channel Retailing - Part 2
May 2014
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© Fashionbi - All rights Reserved
Index
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1. Omni-Experience With The Merchandising. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.1. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.2. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s Website. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
1.3. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s E-Commerce/M-Commerce. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
1.4. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s App . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
2. Omni-Experience At Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
2.1. Omni-Touchpoint: Events and Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
2.2. Omni-Touchpoint: Events and Brand’s Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
2.3. Omni-Touchpoint: Events and Brand’s E-Commerce/M-Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
2.4. Omni-Touchpoint: Events and Brand’s App . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
3. Omni-Experience With The Ofﬂine Advertisements/Promotions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
3.1. Omni-Touchpoint: Offline Advertisements/Promotions and Social Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
3.2. Omni-Touchpoint: Offline Advertisements/Promotions and Brand’s Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
3.3. Omni-Touchpoint: Offline Advertisements/Promotions and Brand’s E-Commerce/M-Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
3.4. Omni-Touchpoint: Offline Advertisements/Promotions and Brand’s App . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

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In the publication you can ﬁnd case-studies about the following brands
Adidas
page 27, 84
Aldo
page 82
Alexander McQueen
page 20
Bata
page 81
Belstaff
page 60
Bottega Veneta
page 54
Bouthentique
page 81
Burberry
page 26, 59, 64
C&A
page 18
Cartier
page 29
Coach
page91
Diane von Furstenberg
page 53
Diesel
page 83
DoDo
page 93
Estee Lauder
page 80
Etro
page 97
Fendi
page 58
Freya
page 106
Gap
page 53
Geox
page 25
Giorgio Armani
page 90
Gucci
page 41, 58
Hermès
page 79, 89
Hugo Boss
page 52
Izzue
page 23
Jaeger-LeCoultre
page 89
John Lewis
page 25

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Metersbonwe
page 33
Moschino
page 66
Moynat
page 29
New Balance
page 36
Nike
page 19,28,82
Nordstorm
page 17
Oscar de la Renta
page 79
Pepe Jeans
page 101
Primark
page 28
Sephora
page 35, 59
Swatch
page 100
Tiffany and Co.
page 40
Tissot
page 70
Rolex
page 30
Rebecca Minkoff
pag 51
Massimo Dutti
page 24
Me&City
page 33
Levi’s
page 92
Liu Jo
pag 97
Louis Vuitton
page 54, 107
Macy’s
page 24, 57, 70
Mango
page 97
Marc Jacobs
page 85
Marks & Spencer
page 101
Mary Katrantzou
page 67
Kiton
page 93
Lancome
page 54

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Urban Outfitters
page 33
Valentino
page 52
Van Cleef & Arpels
page 71
Versace
page 92
Volga Verdi
page 20
Wonderbra
page106
Zara
page 14
Tommy Hilfiger
page 50
Topshop
page 49, 65, 69
Uniqlo
page 19
TRESemmé
page 99

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Description of points
Besides this icon, you would
find examples of the latest and
most innovative trends in the
market. These are examples
of some digitally advanced
fashion and luxury brands or
from other sectors of retail.
Trends and Opportunities
of what can be
This icon includes some of the
best omni-channel strategies
that fashion and luxury brands
have implemented in the
recent past with their detailed
description and pictures for
your better understanding.
Case-Study
Clicking on this link would lead
you to the video that describes
either the case-studies or
the trends and opportunities
in detail. These short videos
would help you understand the
examples quickly and easily.
Video
This symbol could be used to
identify the most interesting
and thought provoking
statistics and facts related
to Omni-Marketing topic.
This includes number and
charts which would help you
understand the market better.
Interesting
to know

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We are all shoppers. We are all consumers. The incredible thing is - we all have our unique and personal view on the
shopping experience. Retail industry is undergoing a complete makeover. Historic shifts have taken place in the fields of
economics, demographics, consumerism and technology. All that was known about retail till now has suddenly become a
thing of the past. No more ‘typical’ consumer, no more ‘geography’, and no ‘one size fits all’ solutions anymore.
We are living in a world where ‘total information available’ and ‘ways to access this information’ follow Moore’s law or
probably outrun it. This instantaneous availability of information at our fingertips is constantly changing everything about
us. How we communicate; how we seek, receive and process information and how we entertain ourselves has changed
dramatically over the years. The newest addition is - how we shop.
Shopping experience in no longer confined to the physical walls of the store. There are more ways to instantly connect
to the information, people, brands and the companies, than ever before. Consumers, empowered with technology and
information, actually can know more about the product than the salespeople at the store. All this helps consumers make
better and informed decisions.
These ‘smart consumers’ are constantly rewriting the sense of the retail industry. They control - When, Where and How to
shop. They don’t think in terms of channels but in terms of getting things done easily, quickly, cheaply and even in funny
ways. And they want it... Anytime... Anywhere.
Welcome to the world of omni-present Shopping!
Yana Bushmeleva
COO of Fashionbi

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Introduction
In the previous publication of Fashionbi that was published in January 2014, we
had introduced the concept of Omni-Channel Retailing which is the future trend
in the luxury and fashion industry. As the name suggests, this publication is a
sequel to the previous one. Before we go into the topics of this publication, let us
have a quick recap into what was dealt with earlier as this would help understand
the new topics better.
Over the recent years, there has been a change in the approach to marketing.
What was initially just a single channel for marketing, slowly evolved to multiple
channels. But with the recent boom in technology, growth of social media and
easy access to the internet at all times, marketers are slowly embracing the
concept of Omni-Channel Marketing. This change is mostly due to the behavior
of the present day shopper who is empowered with information thanks to the
technology. They research the product on various channels before they make the
final decision to purchase it.
In short, Omni-Channel retailing is offering a seamless integration of all the
various channels of the brand. This way customers have access to all information
irrespective of time or location. We , at Fashionbi have developed a methodology
to help marketers implement this concept for their brands and create a consistent
omni-channel experience for their customers across their different channels.
The first step involves identifying the different situations at which a customer
would come into contact and experience the brand. This involves both online and
offline experiences. Online experiences could be through a search engine, social
media, the brand’s official website and so on. While the offline experiences could
include anything starting from the store window to the fitting rooms to the various
events organized by the brand.
Once these situations are identified, the second step involves mapping what we
call the ‘Omni-touchpoint’. An omni-touchpoint is a situation where an offline
experience could combined with an online experience with the help of some kind
of technology. After mapping this omni-touchpoint, marketers would have to
think of everything a potential customer could do at this touchpoint and describe
this situation. Doing this would shed light on what the brand is already doing at
these Omni-Touchpoints to provide their customers with a seamless integration
of their channels and would indicate the situations where there is room for further
improvement.
Previously, we had dealt in detail with the omni-experience at the store window,
inside the store and at the fitting room. These Omni-Touchpoints were explained
in detail with the help of examples of the best practices by brands today. Further,
the trends and opportunities in each touchpoint were also identified. In this
publication, which is a continuation of the previous one, we will explain about the
omni-experience with the merchandising in the store, events organized by the
brands and offline advertising and promotions.
In the three months since our first publication in which we called Omni-Channel
as the future trend for retail, several other publications and surveys by the world’s
leading consulting and advisory firms have agreed with us and established this as
a fact.

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A recent survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers that was published in February 2014 revealed that today’s customers consider brands to offer cross-channel shopping
as a norm and they also expect brands to have convenient physical stores, websites capable of handling purchases and a mobile site or app as a given. Customers
empowered with technology have raised the bar high up for every brand and retailer. Here are some of the most important findings from the survey by PwC:
1. A compelling brand story that promises a distinctive experience
Certainly product price and availability are time tested reasons for choosing one brand over another, but a closer look reveals that ‘brand trust’ is the number one factor
that customers give for shopping at their favorite retailer. Changing how the brand is communicated helps strengthen the brand’s image.
2. Customized offers based on personal preferences and information which are totally protected
Even while cyber-security is a major concern for online shoppers, they increasingly want personalized offers based on their previous purchase history. The percentage of
shoppers who visited the social media pages of brands for offers after receiving a personal message or mail has increased over the past year.
3. An enhanced and consistent experience across all devices
It is increasingly important for brands to stay technically agile across all devices as more and more customers are embracing a range of devices to shop. Customers
should be able to access as much information on all channels.
Top regions for mobile phone shopping
Do you buy products using a mobile phone/smartphone?
China
23%
77%
Middle East
48%
58%
India
31%
69%
Global
average
57%
43%
Yes
No
Base: 15’080 (Global), 900 (China), 1’006 (India), 1’000 (MIddle East)
Source: PwC Global Total Survey 2013

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4. Transparency and real time information into a retailer’s inventory
While customers cannot get enough of in-store technology like virtual try-on mirrors and so on, more than 20% of the shoppers would like to be left alone while they
shop. Of those 20% of the shoppers, almost 50% of them wished to check out other stores and the stocks in-stores to aid their purchase. To implement this, most
brands would need to upgrade their back office, warehouse and distribution channels.
Consumers value inventory transparency over other types of in-store technology
Which of the following in-store technologies would make your shopping experience better?
Base: 15’080
Source: PwC Global Total Retail Survey 2013
Ability to check other store or online stock quickly
In-store WIFI with fast, siple, login
Sales associates who can take payment
without going to the cash register
Sales associates with tablets
to show you alternative products
Using your mobile phone to
pay for your shopping
Pay for an item through the store’s app
None of the above
46%
31%
27%
23%
21%
20%
20%
20% 30% 40% 50%10%0%

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5. To maximize the value of mobile shopping, both store apps and mobile
sites must improve
With the global penetration of mobile internet services expected to reach 54% by
2017 compared to fixed broadband which would reach 51% of the population, it
is important for brands to concentrate more on both mobile websites and apps.
While apps can be used to improve the experience, it is equally important for
brands websites to be optimized for mobile viewing.
6. Two-way social media engagement
Brands are discovering that just opening a Facebook page or Twitter account is
not enough to meet the customer’s expectations. Really using the power of social
media involves listening to what customers have to say and to engage with them.
The modern consumer doesn’t just want to shop, they also want to be heard and
responded to.
This recent survey of more than 15000 shoppers in 15 different countries only emphasis and reconfirms what we have earlier mentioned as the important points that a
brand must keep in mind while they are in the process of creating an omni-channel experience.
Online shoppers are evenly split in their preference for
mobile browsers versus apps
How often do you use either app or mobile browser on your mobile/
smartphone for shopping?
Digitally empowered consumers embracing social media to
connect with brands
Which of the following have you done using social media?
Base: 6’506
Base: 15’080
10% 15% 20% 25% 30%5%0%
Daily
16%
17%
Weekly
21%
22%
Monthly
23%
24%
A few times a year
21%
21%
Once a year
7%
7%
Never
12%
8%
App YesMobile browser No
Followed
favorite brands
or reteilers
41%
59%
Interacted with
favorite brands
48%
52%
Provided
positive or
negative
comments
about
experience
45%
55%
Discovered
brands
42%
58%
Researched
a brand
41%
59%
Bought
products
52%
48%

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1
2
3
Omni-ExperienceWithThe
Merchandising
1. Omni-Experience With The Merchandising
Customer look for great experiences to connect with brands at many different
points. But at the end of the day, everything boils down to the ‘product’. We live in
a world where the number of products available at our disposal is more than ever
before. In this extremely crowded market place it is difficult for a single product to
stand out. Even a great product cannot sell itself if none knows about it.
A customer might be impressed with the window display or the in-store experience
but if they do not get the right information about the product, they might not make
the purchase. It is key to get all the information about the product across to the
customer for them to understand the product better and for them to trust the brand
more. This is specially important for premium luxury brands as knowing the story
behind a product make the customer feel more secure about his choice. Digital
technology has forever revolutionized the way customers purchase and it has also
made it easier for brands to get product information across.
In a recent survey by Capgemini, it was found of 56% of respondents said they
were likely to spend more money at a physical store if they had used digital
channels to research the merchandise prior to purchase. And 55% said they were
more likely to spend more money with a particular retailer if the merchandise
were available anytime via any channel. Digital shoppers are focussed on core
information about the product like it’s price, functionality and delivery information
and these digital savvy shoppers expect it as a mandatory norm for brands to get
these information right across all the channels. It is only after these needs are met
by the the brand are the customers open to engage with the brand.
The brand’s online channels drives commerce to the offline channels and vice
versa as customers sometime research the product on either one of the channels
and purchase in another depending on their convenience. It is therefore important
for brands to provide all necessary information about the products across all its
channels and stay coherent. These are some of the Omni-Touchpoints where this is
possible.

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1
2
3
Merchandising
Nordstrom
C&A
Nike
Uniqlo
Volga Verdi
Alexander McQueen
Izzue
Zara
Massimo Dutti
Geox
Bloomingdales
Tiffany & Co
John
Lewis
Burberry
Adidas
Nike
Primark
Moynat
Cartier
Rolex
Macy’s
Metersbonwe
Me & City
Urban Outfitters
New Balance/Foot Locker
Gucci
Argos
Sephora
John Lewis
Sport Chek

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1
2
3
Merchandising
1.1. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Social Media
Description of the situation: What the potential customer can do at this
Omni-Touchpoint:
• Follow for updates of the latest product launches
• Check for special discount codes for social media followers/fans
• Check reviews of other customers about specific products
• Check opinions and popularity of specific products among social media
influencers/bloggers
• Share your personal experience after trying on specific products at the
store
• Create a wish list of the products you like and share on your social
media page
Recent studies show beyond doubt the positive influence that social media has
on the sales of products.
As you can see from the graphs, Pinterest is the social network that’s most
likely to drive spontaneous purchasing whereas Twitter and Facebook users are
likely to make social media-related purchases of products they were already
considering.
Also, 2 out of 5 social media users purchased an item after sharing or favoriting
it on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest. Out of these users who purchased, almost
90% of them purchased the products in-store. These statistics by itself prove
why it is important for brands to promote their merchandise on social media and
connect it to their brick and mortar store.
Purchase Intent
When you shared or favorite this item, were you already thinking or
purchasing it?
Social Purchasing By Network
Have you ever purchased an item - either in-store or online - after you
shared or favorited it?
Period: April - June 2013
Source: from Social to Sale, VIsion Critical, 2013
Period: April - June 2013
Source: from Social to Sale, VIsion Critical, 2013
Pinterest
Purchasers
Facebook
Purchasers
Twitter
Purchasers
YES,
I thought about
purchasing this product
and was researching
the purchase
YES,
I was vaguily thinking
about purchasing this
product
NO,
I had not thought about
purchasing this product
22% 22% 21%
49%
60% 70%
9%
29%
16%
On each platform, some purchasers have made both online and offline purchases
Total
29%
Pinterest
22%
Online
21%
In-Store
Total
22%
Twitter
18%
Online
17%
In-Store
Total
38%
Facebook
29%
Online
30%
In-Store

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1
2
3
Merchandising
Customers are also increasingly impatient to wait for 6 months to see the new merchandise in the store. What was earlier just two collections a year, has increased
over the past few years to four collections with the addition of Prefall and Resort collections and something a couture collection as well. On the other hand, fast
fashion brands like Zara and Topshop add new items to their store almost every week.
It is nearly impossible for brands to have elaborate marketing campaigns and photoshoots when new products are released at such a rapid pace. As a solution for
this problem, most brands have resorted to social media marketing to announce arrivals of new products and drive traffic to their brick and mortar stores. Shoppers
are now willing to interact with retailers on a number of different social networks in order to find information on deals, products and contests.
Pinterest API for brands
The fastest growing kid on the social media block is
Pinterest. The launch of the Pinterest API in November
2013 shows their intention to help brands perform
better. This application lets third-party sites embed
Pinterest pins, and make it easier to post content
into Pinterest itself. It also helps brands by generating
information about most pinned, most clicked, recently
pinned items. Sales on E-Commerce websites
which originally generated from search on the virtual
scrapbooking site, Pinterest have doubled after its
launch and brands like Target and Topshop have
quickly taken advantage of this with various campaigns
connected with Pinterest.
Interesting to know

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1
2
3
Merchandising
Nordstrom
Not only is Nordstrom leveraging this new feature with a separate section on their website for the the top pinned items in the different categories (Accessories, Clothing
etc.) but they have also taken this a step further and incorporated them in their physical stores. The American upscale fashion retailer created a display of their most
pinned products in the store. The pilot program which was initially launched in 13 Nordstrom stores initially had Pinterest displays in the shoes, handbags and dress
departments.

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1
2
3
Merchandising
C&A
The Brazilian branch of C&A did something similar by integrating Facebook likes into their brick and mortar stores. Every time someone clicked the thumbs up like
button on a particular merchandise on C&A’s Brazilian website, the number would increase on the hanger embedded with a screen in the physical rack of the store. The
campaign which they called FashionLike was a marketing push by the retailer to bring together online group thinking with real world decision making.
Most shoppers these days are unsure of their choices and always wish to have a second opinion. They tend to send pictures to their friends and family to be absolutely
certain that they made the right decision. Campaigns like these help customers make purchasing decisions based on the social popularity of the product.
http://fsh.by/CTh3JQ

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1
2
3
Merchandising
WeChat, Chinese Internet Giant Tencent’s social mobile app is one of the fastest growing in the world. What started of as instant messaging app similar to
WhatsApp has today become a tool used by brands for communication because of its various other features that are similar to social media platforms like Facebook
(Newsfeed), Twitter (Small content), Skype (Video calling) and Foursquare (Location based content). As with other social media platforms, most brands in the
Chinese market have used WeChat to create a branded space for them and share information. Some of them are even using this platform to provide personalized
customer service and support.
Nike
The Nike + Run Club account on WeChat primarily aims at giving running tips
and running plans to its followers. But it also an option to help users pick her
running shoes. The account has information about all the running shoes that Nike
sells. By filling in a Questionnaire, users who are not sure about which pair of
shoes to buy can get product recommendations.
Uniqlo
Uniqlo has a special WeChat account just for its jeans which is called U Jeans.
This account helps customer find the perfect pair of jean. By inputing various
details like age, height and weight, fabric and fit of their choice, customers get a
range of color options available. They can then choose the store where they wish
to pick up and pay for the jean.

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1
2
3
Merchandising
Volga Verdi
Understanding how influential people can be on social media, California based
fashion brand Volga Verdi launched a program called ‘The Exchange’ that gave
one’s social media influence a dollar value. Every customer was offered a discount
in exchange for them promoting the brand and it’s products on their social media
pages. By posting a certain message on your status or liking the page, you could
get upto 50% off on each Volga Verdi T-Shirt. The more connections (followers
or friends) you have, the bigger the exposure for the company and the bigger
discount you will get.
Alexander McQueen
At the Alexander McQueen flagship store in London, gesture-controlled mirrors on
the first and lower ground floors allows customers to browse the collection and
photograph themselves in looks which they can then share with friends via social
media channels or email.
Trends and opportunities of what can be
Zappos
Online retailer Zappos decided to leverage on the the popularity of #ootd posts on
Instagram and came up with a strategy to make customers purchase products on
their website. The company’s pilot project which is called “NEXT OOTD” gives their
Instagram followers personalised shopping recommendation every time someone
posts a photo and tags it #nextootd. This recommendation is based on the follower’s
Instagram posts.
Fashion brands could also use this strategy of personal shopping via Social Media.
Every time a customer tags the brand and any of its products on a social media
platform, a team of personalized stylists could analyze the style of the customer from
his other posts and recommend similar products offered by the brand.

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1
2
3
Merchandising
LoveList
A lot has been said about how brands are leveraging on Pinterest to drive online sales. Pinterest lets you ‘pin’ your favorite brands and their products when you
find them online so they are easily accessible and organized whenever you want them. But how do brands connect their offline physical stores to this social
media network ? This has always been a limitation and this hurdle has been crossed with the launch of an app called, LoveList. This app gives you the ability to
scan real-life products directly to your Pinterest
boards using the item’s barcode.
If you are in a store of a brand and like their
product, there are various options and brand
apps which could help you save the products
on their specific wishlist. But customers tend
to forget what product they saw in which store.
LoveList gives you the option to simply scan the
product and pin it to the board of your choice
on Pinterest. This app is currently connected
to all barcodes on Amazon’s database but with
the inclusion of a particular brand’s database,
the pins would lead to products on the brand’s
webpage from which customers could buy
online.
Brands could further improvise this with an
option to save and share the products on the
social media accounts of the customer like Facebook and Instagram, not just Pinterest.
http://fsh.by/W2-7Mw

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1
2
3
Merchandising
1.2. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s Website
Omni-Touchpoint:
• Find more information (material, country of manufacture etc.,) about
each specific product.
• Get to know the story behind each specific product
• Get information about the other variations of a specific product.
• Check for product availability in other stores to purchase later
According to a recent survey on ForSee 2013, out of the 70 percent of shoppers
who used a mobile phone while in a retail store during the holidays, 62 percent
accessed that store’s website or app. The brand’s website is expected to be the
universe of information about the brand, its history, its products and campaigns
- basically everything related to the brand. Therefore it is only obvious that
shoppers tend to go to the brand’s website while in the store to get any sort
of additional information and there is a need for the store to offer an effortless
connection to its website.

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1
2
3
Merchandising
Izzue
Hong Kong based brand Izzue which is immensely popular amongst the youth in China included the address of their website in most parts of their merchandise.
This brand which belongs to the I.T fashion conglomerate has included their website URL in their brand label, price tags, care labels and even the shopping bags.
Although the brand still does not sell online, the website contains all other information regarding its products and store locations. This way even after a customer
makes the purchase and leaves the store with the merchandise, they can still easily find the web address from the merchandise itself.

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Zara, Massimo Dutti
Zara offers the same Omni-Experience to all its customer irrespective of the country as the tags on the products in China and Italy have both the website url
and the QR code. Scanning the QR code in Shanghai leads you to the Chinese version of the website whereas in Milan, it leads you to the landing page of the
International site from which you can select the country and language of your choice. Massimo Dutti which belongs to the same group Inditex also has the website
link on all its tags except the ones for accessories. Massimo Dutti also has a mobile version of the website which is very necessary these days as most customers
access the brands websites on their smartphones.

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Geox
Geox, manufacturer of breathable shoes and fabrics has not just the URL to
their website but also icons of all the social media networks they are active on.
They also have a QR code on the booklet tag with details about the special
‘respira’ fabric. Scanning this QR code leads you to the home page of the
website. While promoting newly launched products, it would be smarter for
brands to link their QR code with the exact page of newly launched products
as customers might lose time navigating through the website to reach the
specific page and might sometimes not find what they are looking for.
John Lewis
Most retailers offer free wifi in their stores but it is not always easy to
access the website easily as in the case of the examples in the previous
publication (Eg: Sephora Store in Shanghai offers free wifi but it is difficult
to navigate through the website as it is not mobile compatible). As soon a
person connects to the free wifi at the store, brands can make sure that
their webpage opens immediately with options that offers assistance during
their time at the store.
Retailers like John
Lewis have embraced
online technology
in-store by providing
website access
points throughout the
store and therefore
welcoming omni-
channel commerce.

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Burberry
Burberry has always stayed ahead of the pack by being the most
digitally innovative fashion brand. After 2 years of renovations,
Burberry unveiled its digitally integrated 27000 square foot flagship
store in Regent Street, London. The main aim at creating this store
was to bring the digital experience of the website burberry.com into
a physical space. The store is wrapped in full-length screens which
changes between displaying content displays to live streaming
fashion shows and sometimes into mirrors. Burberry has also
integrated this technology into their merchandise. Some of them
come attached with a chip similar to an RFID which displays video
content related to the product when it come close to the mirrors
in the dressing room. Customers can also view this content by
scanning the tag on their phone while outside the store.
In Burberry’s first stand-alone beauty store in Covent Garden,
traditional tills have been swapped with iPads and iPhones for
payments. In another attempt to merge digital experiences with
the physical world, the digital runway nail bar allows customers
to virtually try-on nail colors. The website offers an option for
customers to pre-book styling and manicure appointments at the
burberry beauty box store.
http://fsh.by/IjML3A
http://fsh.by/h8m7FQ

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Another reason for brand’s to connect their website with the store is the size of their product range. With new collections in-store so often, most brands have
product ranges so large that sometimes even the flagship store is not big enough to accommodate it all. It therefore becomes very necessary for brands to
keep their customers aware of their complete product range even if not in the store and the brand’s website is the perfect channel to let this happen.
Adidas
This problem of not having enough space to exhibit their entire product range
was sensed by Adidas, which lead to them partner with Intel to create a virtual
footwear wall, Adiverse. Adidas has been using digital signage in its stores for
years to promote products and show product videos but this 3D interactive
wall virtual wall is a step ahead. It is a natural extension of their physical
product range as it showcases the virtual product range, it allows customers
to interact with the entire footwear line available on their website, not just
what was on the shelves. By sensing the gender of the customer, the virtual
wall makes product recommendations and provides all information about the
product. Products chosen on the virtual wall can be purchased from the store
just like the products in their physical product range. This way, an adidas store
in a small town can seem like a flagship store as it would have all merchandise
under their roof.
http://fsh.by/97FJFQ

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Nike
Adidas bigger competitor Nike did something similar in their new concept
store called Fuel Station. In this digitally enabled retail space, Nike uses
technology to allow customers to interact with the space in multiple ways.
In between all these interactive spaces, you would see just a handful of
shoes in the shelves but to counteract this, the walls come fitted with a half a
dozen iPads which can be used as an interactive catalogue connected to the
website with access to the entire range of products and place orders.
http://fsh.by/3-X3Nw
Primark
Irish retailer Primark who does not sell online (Used to sell on asos.com
earlier but not anymore ) uses its website to display its product catalogue
with “Find my nearest Primark” tab. Brands like these which do not have an
E-Commerce platform yet can leverage on the website by displaying product
inventory and availability in the store closest to the browser.

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While fast fashion and sports brands are more experimental to implement extremely innovative ideas and make drastic changes into their stores, this is not
the same in the case of Luxury Brands. Some luxury brands have a belief that being extremely open could make their brand lose their sense of exclusivity and
hence do not foray too deep into this field. They do however use their website as a means to direct traffic into their real world stores with the use of the use of
the ‘store-locator’ function on the website.
Moynat
One of France’s oldest trunk makers, Moynat displays on their webpage its
products with a descriptive information and material and size details. There is
no option to purchase them directly from the website whereas clicking on the
‘boutique’ tab leads to a page with detailed address of each of its stores.
Cartier
Jeweler Cartier has been exploiting this feature by going as far putting the
“find a Cartier Boutique” tab on its product pages and putting the user on a
path to purchase the product in the brick and mortar store.

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Rolex
Swiss Watchmaker Rolex’s website offers to help customers select the perfect
Rolex for them amongst their large selection of watches. After the selection
process, the watch is added to the wish list. The website then offers to help
you find the closest Rolex retailer.
Perch Interactive
Perch Interactive is a company that offers turnkey solutions to retailers
to integrate digital into their store. With it’s wall-mounted projection unit,
Perch lights up a table which acts as a display unit. Information regarding
the products are displayed on this table and by moving the product
around, users can interact with the table to receive more information about
the product. Perch provides a dynamic and hands-on interactive display
that creates a playful and engaging way for shoppers to pick up and
discover each product before they make the decision to buy it.
An opportunity that lies for brands here is to connect their official website
to the interactive table top display. Customers could be allowed to place
products on these tables that would recognise them and connect them to the
exact page of the product on the website. They would then be able to get all
information regarding the product directly from the website. This could be a
future trend for the omni-touchpoint of brand’s website and merchandise.
http://fsh.by/4VTShA

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1.3. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s E-Commerce/M-Commerce
Omni-Touchpoint:
• Products can be customized online and collected at the store
• Items in the E-Commerce wish list can be selected and picked up at
the physical store
• Products in the store can be scanned and added to the e-commerce
basket to be purchased later
• Access online shopping website from the store and purchase products
that are not in the store at the moment
Physical retailing is pricey for companies. Sky-rocketing real-estate prices eat up
a big chunk of operating costs. This made brands focus on channels where they
could sell their products online. But after years of boosting up their e-commerce
engines, brands and retailers are now waking up to omni-channel retailing,
recognizing that the core of their business is still their existing fleet of physical
stores. The vision of a brand being digital cannot be realised unless there are
changes offline and now brands are refocussing their strategies to merge their
physical stores with their e-commerce stores and therefore drive sales to both
the channels.

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Macy’s
More than 50% of the brands that sell online are trying to bridge the gap
between their virtual and physical store by having the option for customers
to return or exchange their products at the brick and mortar store. But some
brands out there have more advance options. American departmental store
Macy’s has been a forerunner in this case. Customers have the option to
check the availability of the products in the store through their website. They
also offer cash on delivery and in-store pick up options for products ordered
online. They have also invested heavily in the option for them to ship online
orders directly from their physical stores and not their centralized warehouses.
This is possible with a strong inventory control program.

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Merchandising
Metersbonwe, Me & City
Local fast fashion brands like Meteresbonwe and Me & City that have been
developing rapidly in China over the recent years. The websites of these
brands contain general product information but do not support e-commerce.
They however sell online through the common e-commerce channel banggo.
com. The shopping bags & tags of these brands have both the URL of the
brand’s own website as well as the URL of Banggo along with a QR code.
Urban Outﬁtters
Urban Outfitters apart from enabling shoppers to see if a specific item is
in stock at a retail location from their websites’ product pages also tries to
connect mobile shoppers to its brick and mortar stores with the “now playing
in-store” feature on its mobile store locator page.

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Merchandising
An interesting technique for brands to improve their QR code is to use
‘Visualead’.
As we have seen from the previous examples, most brands include the QR
code either in their shopping bag or their tags or labels but these QR codes
are just a small black square which has no visual connection the the brand
identity. Visualead is a company that helps incorporate images into the
QR code. Brands can use this to combine their logo with the QR code to
generate a QR code which almost looks like their brand logo.
Interesting to know

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Merchandising
John Lewis, Argos
Nowadays there is nothing as a fully online or a fully physical
store as the lines between both are fast blurring. British
retailer John Lewis who was one of the first to introduce the
‘click and collect’ service way back in 2008 also encourages
online shopping in-stores. Another UK catalogue retailer
Argos has launched a fast track service that allows
customers who have ordered products online to collect
them from the store within sixty seconds of arriving through
its exclusive ‘pay and collect’ points in the store.
Sephora
Sephora has also begun displaying real-time brick and mortar
inventory information on its e-commerce “pre shopping”
product page. Customer can go online on Sephora’s
e-commerce page and browse through products. They
can then select their closest store and check the product
availability in the store instantly. This service is specially useful
in the case of a beauty and cosmetics brands as customers
would wish to see how the product looks on their skin tone
before they buy it but it saves them the time involved in
browsing through the huge selection of products at the store
and thus prepares them before their trip to the store. They can
also book appointments for consultations with make up artists
at the store prior to their visit.

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Merchandising
New Balance, Sport Chek
New Balance has been manufacturing custom made shoes for
some time now. Customers can design their own shoe from scratch
on the new balance website and have it delivered in less than 10
days. They have now taken it a step further by joining forces with
footwear retailer, Foot Locker. The customizable kiosks available in
the foot locker store in Times Square New York gives the customer
the opportunity to design their own shoe in the physical store and
then deliver it to you within 10 days.
Canadian sports retailer, Sport Chek has come up with something
similar in their recently launched digital concept store. This 12000
square foot store is equipped with digital technology that enables
more interaction between the store and its customers. The company
partnered with Samsung to install around 140 digital screens
throughout the store which includes small digital tiles built into display tables and
many other digital displays to showcase videos and images. The store also has
Adiverse, the virtual wall by Adidas which was discussed earlier and a ‘build your
own sneaker’ kiosk by Reebok.
One of the most important factors to keep in mind while creating an Omni-Channel experience between the online and offline sales channels of merchandise is
uniformity. It is very important for prices to be the same in the e-commerce channels and the physical store. In order to do this, it is very important for brands to
directly maintain their official online website as well as their physical stores.

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ASAP54 app
A breakthrough in merging E-Commerce and Merchandising is a new app
called ASAP54. This image
recognition app that can
match photos of clothing and
accessories to identical or
similar products stored in its
database. So, the next time a
customer spots someone on
the street wearing something
they like, they would just
need to click a picture of
the product. The app then
allows shoppers to purchase
products directly from the
website of over 150 retailers
in its database which includes
Net-a-Porter, Barneys, J.
Crew, Neiman Marcus, Topshop, and Forever 21.
Brands can partner with this app to include their E-Commerce products
into their database. This way consumers who are showrooming can be
directed to their exact retailer without mixing up the different products they
see.
http://fsh.by/GtBypg
Parco
Another interesting innovation is by Japanese Retailer Parco. Every time a
hanger is removed from the rack, the digital screen above the rack would
project a video related to the product. This idea can be further improved
and merged with the E-Commerce by implementing a way in which every
time a hanger is removed from the rack, the screen would project similar
products offered by the brand but not currently stocked in the store.
Customers could then be allowed to access the products in the E-store
throughout the digital touch screens.
http://fsh.by/L3h4cw

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Merchandising
1.4. Omni-Touchpoint: Merchandising and Brand’s App
Omni-Touchpoint:
• Browse through product information easily with help of brand’s app
• Book a sales assistance before arriving at the store
• Get personalized recommendations based on your previous shopping
history
• Receive notification and information about the product when nearby
Recent studies show that consumers spend a significantly high amount of
time interacting with mobile apps than through other channels and less than
fifty percent of shoppers say they are less likely to compare products on other
channels when using a mobile app. This makes it increasingly important for brand
marketers to focus on apps. The mobile app is becoming the new website and
just as websites evolved from being a tool for digital marketing to becoming an
interactive storefront, the second generation of mobile apps is doing much much
more. This is mostly because brands have complete freedom as to what they
wish to do with the app.
Some brands use their app to share the brand history and campaigns with their
customers while some use it as their online store front. Here are some interesting
examples of how brands have used their app to give customers a whole new
experience with their merchandise.

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Merchandising
Bloomingdale
Bloomingdale launched it’s official app called Bloomingdale’s @ 59th and Lex
for it’s flagship store. The app included interactive floor maps, information
about events and must have picks from the fashion office of Bloomingdale.
Whereas Bloomingdale’s Big Brown Bag app apart from allowing customer
to search, browse and buy products straight from your phone also comes
with an in-store option. This option in-store scanner allows customers to
scan products while in the store and check prices, additional product details
(including color and sizes available in the store) and read customer reviews.
This helps customers stay connected with the brand rather than fraying away
to websites of other retailers while looking for additional details about the
product.

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Merchandising
Tiffany and Co.
The Tiffany and Co Engagement Ring Finder app brings the smooth and uncluttered shopping experience of the Jeweler’s website to smartphones. Users can
browse rings by shape, setting, metal, design and six different carat sizes Rings are displayed true-to-size and from multiple angles with zoom functionality.
Another interesting feature of this app is the ‘Ring Sizer’ which helps the customer find their exact ring size by placing one of their rings on the screen. Potential
customers can also see how it looks on their hand by placing their hand over the screen and photos of this can be saved and shared to get others opinions before
finalising on an engagement ring.

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Merchandising
Gucci
Gucci’s recent app has various features which connects merchandise to the brand. It allows you to scan product images from a Gucci advertisement in a
magazine and these items are directly added to the wishlist in the app. The app also has a store guide to all its stores worldwide. Similar to the Neiman Marcus
app, sales associates are notified of customer’s arrival at the store.
They receive all details about the customer from their past purchases
to shopping preferences to how they look for them to be identified.
The brand thereby aims to provide a high level of personalized
service for its luxury consumers.
By clicking on the touch videos in the store, items in the look of the
video appear on the screen along with a QR code. By scanning the
QR code, the video is linked with the customer’s iPhone. Now all the
items that are selected in the video and dragged into the phone are
added to the customer’s wish list on the app.
http://fsh.by/LRsK6A
When the ‘discover’ option on the app is turned on, customers
would get alerts with information about nearby products. This is
possible with the use of bluetooth technology.
Coffee giant Starbucks generates 4 million a week by mobile payments through its app every week and this trend of payments through apps is fast
penetrating into the fashion sector as well. With the growth of mobile POS expected to be more than 95% worldwide in 2014, another very important way
in which brands can use apps is for mobile payments. Brands like burberry are opening stores with no cash counters and encouraging mobile payments.
Payments through apps will be the next progressive step in this field. By inputting the credit card or bank details of the customer in his app, brands can make
payments in-stores extremely easy and safe as well.

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Merchandising
Phillips Intelligent In-Store LED Lighting
Ever walked into a departmental store and wasted time just trying to
find the product you were looking for? Phillips is piloting a new intelligent
lighting system that would make shopping much easier and save you a lot
of time. This technology which has been pioneered for use in supermarkets
uses a light based communication system to create a positioning grid for
your smartphone, telling you which route you would have to take to get to
your products.
This will give customers a greater control of their shopping experience.
Philips is already testing its smart illumination with a handful of
supermarkets. In the fashion sector, the mega sized stores of mass market
brands or sports brands could also make use of this innovative technology.
It is known that most customers check out products on the brand’s
website or on the e-commerce page before they enter the store. With the
help of this app, brands can use LED lighting to show where the products
that the customers browsed through on their website is and directly lead
them to it in the physical store. Along the way to reach the product, the
app can also show customers offers on nearby products and suggest
products.
Customers can therefore have a more enjoyable, extremely efficient and
less tiresome shopping experience with the help of this technology.

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Merchandising
IBM Watson powered mobile apps
With the growth of IBM’s Watson powered mobile apps, it is now easier than ever for brands to bring their online experiences into their brick and mortar store.
This supercomputer enabled app has cognitive computing abilities that allows the app to respond to contact and learn and adapt responses as new information
comes in. These apps also have a natural language processing and advanced data analysis that can assess a customer’s relationship with the brand and place
personalized context around responses to questions they ask.
Several apps powered by IBM’s Watson are already in use in the healthcare industry and many more under development. One such app was developed
for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. The app which is still under limited use advises doctors on the expected outcomes of the various
treatment plans and procedures taking into consideration the information about the patient.

This is an excerpt from
“Omni-Channel Retailing:
The Future Trend in Fashion
and Luxury Industry - Part 2/2”
(http://fashionbi.com/publication/3)
Find the full version of this Publication on the website

May 2014
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Omni-Channel Retailing: The Future Trend in Fashion and Luxury Industry - Part 2/2