The post-pandemic retail experience
has arrived
Why retailers are still holding big events outdoors
Despite eased restrictions and increased indoor foot traffic, brands and retailers plan on pandemic-made concessions to outdoor retail – from pop ups to al fresco dining – permanent. A number of major retailers are partnering with other brands to build out new types of outdoor retail experiences.
Click here for full story
Virtual customer service enters physical retail
Click here for full story
Connected devices like smart speakers are the next customer service option in physical retail stores. As the pandemic creates a new openness to technology in stores, digital technologies are helping people navigate Amazon Fresh and other brick-and-mortar stores. These are the new pieces of tech that are taking the place of in-store associates.
How retailers are enticing consumers to come back into stores
Click here for full story
In-store foot traffic plummeted in 2020. However, major retailers and small brands alike report that consumers are returning to in-store shopping in the first quarter. To continue this momentum, brands are offering in-store exclusives sales, freebies at store events and courting the vaccinated.
How out-of-home
advertising is evolving
Click here for full story
Before the pandemic, subway ads were a hot commodity for brands. But then people stayed home for a year, which meant that most out of home advertising lost its luster. Now, cities are reopening -- and some people are going back to the office -- but the out of home landscape is changing.
Ghost kitchens join
the retailer playbook
Click here for full story
Grocers saw explosive growth in 2020. Now, some are turning to ghost kitchens to keep growth apace. Food delivery apps skyrocketed over the last year, and retailers like Walmart and Kroger are trying to cash in on the phenomenon. The question remains whether or not they can go beyond groceries into the prepared food space.
Life as an Amazon Shopper
Click here for full story
In Whole Foods stores, Amazon-employed shoppers race to fulfill and prepare orders for pickup and delivery in a highly time-sensitive environment. This happens both in stores that welcome in customers and in dark stores, behind the public’s view -- and is a growing part of retailers’ omnichannel programs.
The big-box work experience has changed
Click here for full story
Workers at big-box retail stores are expected to do it all: Fulfill online orders, become experts on certain departments, and provide top-notch customer service. But more than a year into the pandemic, as workers remain stretched thin, they’re growing increasingly frustrated.
New York’s retail
landscape remains in flux
Click here for full story
Hot retail startups are ditching Soho for Brooklyn, while Manhattan storefronts are being scooped up by retailers who benefitted from the pandemic, like Target. New York’s retailers took a hit in 2020, and while lines are once again starting to form outside of the most popular stores, it’s not entirely clear yet what retail’s future looks like in the pandemic.
Sampling in the
post-pandemic
world
Click here for full story
As the world reopens, brands are ready to give samples out that help drive sales. This month, Costco and Sam’s Club became the first major retailers to announce the return of in-store food samples. But some upstarts are thinking outside the box -- or sales floor -- when it comes to handing out free products.
The in-store cafe is coming back
Click here for full story
The pandemic ushered in shorter shopping trips, thanks to pickup and delivery options. With customers rushing in and out for essentials, adjacent spaces like cafes, bars and even children’s play areas were shuttered. This is a look at how and when retailers will bring back these traffic-building experiences.
In 2020, the retail industry was completely upended. Some stores closed, others were forced to pivot. In the immediate months, retailers scrambled to implement new cleaning requirements, social distancing programs and labor systems, all within a matter of weeks.
Now, longer-term business decisions are being made once again, with new leases being signed, store layouts are changing and technology investments are ramping up. As a result, a new post-pandemic retail playbook is emerging. The consumer experience has evolved -- both in-store and outside -- in a myriad of ways. To help readers better make sense of the dizzying array of changes that are afoot, we mapped out all the ways that retail might be changing within a single city block.
Take a stroll around this city block to explore what the post-pandemic retail experience might be.
The post-pandemic retail experience
has arrived
In 2020, the retail industry was completely upended. Some stores closed, others were forced to pivot. In the immediate months, retailers scrambled to implement new cleaning requirements, social distancing programs and labor systems, all within a matter of weeks.
Now, longer-term business decisions are being made once again, with new leases being signed, store layouts are changing and technology investments are ramping up. As a result, a new post-pandemic retail playbook is emerging. The consumer experience has evolved -- both in-store and outside -- in a myriad of ways. To help readers better make sense of the dizzying array of changes that are afoot, we mapped out all the ways that retail might be changing within a single city block.