Directory of Major Malls
Directory of Major Malls

Touchscreens Help Men Shop for Clothes… Got Toys? It’s Time to Play… Two Top 5 Retail Trends to Watch

DMM Retail Industry e-News Issue #174

Case Study: Perry Ellis – Touchscreens Help Men Shop for Clothes

Touch Screen ShoppingThe National Retail Federation held its 2020 Vision retail conference and expo earlier this month in New York City. During the show, Jennifer Williams, vice president of retail services at Perry Ellis International, did an interview with Total Retail’s Joe Keenan. Williams talked about the company’s “Life Ready” application which was initially rolled out in Dillard’s stores over the past year, and uses touchscreens to help men pick out their clothes. “We were really trying to…kind of, help men who need help putting outfits together. I don’t think that’s a newsflash that men like a little assistance, but not in a fussy way, and so, the application is really to help build outfits around wearing occasions and just kind of simplify the process,” Williams said. At the link above, you can see Williams explain in the five-minute video the in-store business benefits Perry Ellis achieved as a result.

Got Toys? If Not, Maybe It’s Time to Play a Game

toysToys R Us made a comeback in 2019, and while it’s not the retail giant it once was, it is proof that a strong brand and interactivity can be a recipe for success in the real-world retail. Michael Baer is the senior VP for brand and marketing at Ipsos Media Development, and recently told eMarketer.com that traditional toys, such as board games, are big among tweens. In a survey of kids from age 4-14, when asked what they are saving their money to buy for themselves, dolls were ranked number five and Lego was number one. “Covering 2018, the latest full-year figures on US retail sales of toys from The NPD Group pegged the total at $21.6 billion, down 2% from the previous year but slightly higher than 2016’s total. Categories with gains over 2017 included action figures and accessories (up 10%) and dolls (up 7%),” noted eMarketer. Maybe it’s time, regardless of what you sell, to throw some dolls and Lego into the mix.

Two Top 5 Retail Trends to Watch (ok, some of them overlap)

top 5It may seem obvious once you go through the list, but we all have a habit of overlooking the obvious sometimes. So, we’re here to give you not one, but two, recent lists of the top five trends for retail in 2020. The folks over at Inc.com had the following five items on their list:

  1. Prioritizing experiences over shelf space.
  2. Taking online brands offline in creative ways.
  3. Recession-proofing prices.
  4. Adopting artificial intelligence in the right way.
  5. Giving customers more ways to pay. “Your point of sale should integrate with ApplePay, GooglePay, and Samsung Pay. Gift cards, alerts, tickets. Ensure that you offer the bells and whistles,” said Mona Bijoor, partner in the NYC-based investment firm, Kings Circle Capital.

Economic Times Retail has a similar list, but it’s worth checking out. They point out that retailers could use newer technology to tap greater sales potential from search engines and social media. “Social media channels, like Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, are also proving to be essential marketing channels for offline retailers, like they have been for online platforms.”


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DMM e-News - Issue #174

Spotlight Listing:

Gurnee Mills Gurnee, IL

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