design:retail - September 2017 - 10

globalshop talk

010

Press "Play"
DOUG HOPE
FOUNDER AND SHOW DIRECTOR, GLOBALSHOP

doug.hope@emeraldexpo.com
@globalshopshow

F

OR AN INDUSTRY as large

as retail is ($5 trillion),
it's surprisingly not that
burdensome to "take the
temperature" of the market, given the retail design
slice of the market is a relatively small
community, both on the supply and
owner side. So far this year, we see a
market lull, and an industry that's essentially on hold. That's somewhat an
understandable psyche as a flurry of retail
closures hit in the first and second quarters of the year (not to mention hyperactive
media overplaying the growth of online retail).
Yes, there have been more closures than in the
past several years, and yes, online retail has had
strong percentage growth. On the other hand, retail chain store openings have increased more than
50 percent over 2016, and brick-and-mortar retail
still dominates, with 92 percent of total retail purchases going through physical doors. Amazon's
pending purchase of Whole Foods does not seem
to have propelled design market momentum. At
least not yet, as retail chains and their innovation
teams sort out decisions that will drive retail's nextgen model.
As the dust settles from historic retail change,
there are three fundamental (and actionable)

GlobalShop 2018
March 27-29
Sponsored by Shop!
In cooperation with IIDA

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globalshop.org
CONTACT US:
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SEPTEMBER 2017

DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM

tenets that define a clear direction: 1) Improve
in-store shopper experience, 2) Accelerate home
delivery purchases, and 3) Expand buy online,
pick up in-store (BOPIS); all of which Amazon
will undoubtedly bring to Whole Foods. Amazon is
perhaps the superstar at removing friction
from the shopping experience and reducing or eliminating the pain points of a retail
transaction. In the past year, brick-and-mortar
retail has actually added friction and pain at
the most critical point-the cash register. New
chip reader POS systems have slowed down the
checkout process, increasing shopper waiting intervals and, because not all systems work
alike, confusing shoppers and store employees

SHOW STAFF:
→ Founder and Show Director Doug
Hope (770) 291-5453 doug.hope@
emeraldexpo.com → Director,
Sales & Marketing Heather Kuznetz
(770) 291-5512 heather.kuznetz@
emeraldexpo.com → Senior Account
Executive Kerry Tyler (770) 291-5432
kerry.tyler@emeraldexpo.com →
Account Executive Donna McKerrow
(770) 291-5521 donna.mckerrow@
emeraldexpo.com

GLOBALSHOP.ORG

alike. For brick-and-mortar to gain, it's
essential that this issue be addressed by
everyone involved, and few retailers have
done so.
BOPIS and ship-from-store speak to a
new retail model that leverages the web
and mobility, transforming retail doors into
distribution nodes that can get product to
the shopper as fast or faster than pure-play
online retailers. And BOPIS represents
not only a retail design challenge, but an
opportunity to engage and delight the shopper, when done properly. BOPIS truly is a
bright spot for retail designers, and one that
is expanding and evolving rapidly. Ship-from-store
converts the back room (and sometimes the front
desk) into a shipping department that must operate
efficiently-design work that is perhaps not as glamorous, but every bit as essential to growth.
To be sure, there are many other challenges
for retailers, but shopper experience, BOPIS and
ship-from-store are ready-made, immediately
actionable fields to move design from a state of
"Pause," into motion. It's time to press "Play."

→ Marketing Manager Vanessa Ruiz
(770) 291-5502 vanessa.ruiz@emerald
expo.com → Conference Manager Toni
Ward (770) 291-5441 antoinette.ward@
emerald expo.com → Senior Operations
Manager Derrick Nelloms (770) 291-5452
derrick.nelloms@emeraldexpo.com →
Executive Vice President Joe Randall
joe.randall@emeraldexpo.com

EMERALD EXPOSITIONS:
→ CEO and President David Loechner
→ CFO and Treasurer Philip Evans →
Chief Information Officer Bill Charles →
Senior Vice President, General Counsel
and Secretary David Gosling → Senior
Vice President, Operations Lori Jenks
→ Senior Vice President, Digital Teresa
Reilly → Senior Vice President,
Marketing Operations Joanne Wheatley
→ Vice President, Human Resources
Eileen Deady → Vice President,
Corporate Operations Denise Bashem

Photo by MAXIMP/SHUTTERSTOCK
http://www.expo.com http://www.globalshop.org http://www.DESIGNRETAILONLINE.COM http://www.GLOBALSHOP.ORG
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of design:retail - September 2017
