New York: a city pulsating with life. The hub of North American fashion and the centre of the American dream. Anything can happen, anything is possible, if you can dream it; New York is the place where ideas can turn into reality.
On a recent trip to New York (my first) it is clear that retail innovation is alive and well. From FAO Swartz, to the many Fifth Avenue boutiques, to a virtual retail playland in Times Square, there is something for everyone. Walking the streets, you notice people toting high end paper bags with rope handles – plastic bags seem to be reserved for the rest of the world, as they simply would not do in this fashion Mecca.
As a student of retail, I noted a few brilliant concepts that I think would make for an interesting read. The first thing I noticed walking up to renowned toy retailer FAO Swartz, was nothing much aside from the swarms of people coming in and out (word of mouth seems to be working as that’s how we ended up there.) It was a nice storefront, nothing crazy just the confident gold block letters set in a red sign above glass doors. A nice touch was the teenager dressed up as an English guard welcoming both the expectant children and the tourists wanting to catch a glimpse of the keyboard used in Tom Hanks’ movie ‘Big’. One thing, however, that did not go unnoticed, were the sheer number of families sitting outside on the benches after what was most certainly a long shopping day with those nice red neatly folded paper bags transporting their recently purchased treasures.
It wasn’t until I entered the store that I began to realize what was really going on. FAO Schwartz was living its mission to ‘be a source of wonder and a trusted resource for each new generation’. It wasn’t about moving inventory (though that does happen at the speed of light) it was about the experience. Many retail gurus speak on the ‘retail experience’ and how it is vital to ensure retail success. Well, FAO Schwartz not only understands this, but has put it into practice… big time. For those of you who haven’t had the opportunity to experience the store yourselves, it is two stories tall and divided up into departments according to interest –the Harry Potter area offers all the newest Hogwarts paraphernalia, the Hot Wheels section is where little ones can design their own cars, the plush toy area had life-sized animals for the wee ones, and the list goes on and on...
The two ‘sections’ that clearly had the most activity – and surprise surprise, some of the most expensive products - were the Barbie and new born sections. This is where ‘the experience’ kicked in to high gear. Walking up to the Barbie department, the buzz from young girls and their moms was so contagious, I couldn’t help but want to be a part of it. This is where shoppers can sit down in front of one of their many workstations and get busy designing their very own Barbie. The customer is the creator. From her hair and skin colour, her clothes, jacket, accessories and shoes, one can go through the interactive touch-screen program to pick out exactly what you want. After the creator falls in love with the Barbie, the price pops up on the screen. Jenny, my doll, would have been a mere $57US. Once you purchase it they will create it, call your name and there you have it – your unique Barbie. While waiting, you can even hang around with all the other eager new owners and watch your very own doll walk down the runway with the caption ‘designed by Sonja’ on two very large screens by the POS. I even found myself excited when I saw my ‘Jenny’ make her way down the runway in the outfit I had selected… and I’m 29 years-old; some things don’t change.
Like a store inside a store, the 6-8 staff at the 800 square foot Barbie station were all wearing pink and clearly fit the part of Barbie designers. That’s a staff to square foot ratio that many would be envious of.
Down the hall, in another 300 square foot section of the store, there were 3 more staff members dressed up as doctors and nurses. We had entered the newborn section. This section was like nothing else I have ever seen. Having recently been to the hospital to meet the newest edition of my friend’s family, I felt I was back at Lions Gate inspecting a new little one. Behind a glass wall, two rows of 15 infants were lined up in little new born beds just waiting to be claimed by their new mom. Behind the glass, the nurses dressed in little white dresses and nurses caps, would pick up the baby that you point to, hold it up to the glass like a real child and let you decide if that’s the one you would like to take home. If you decide it is, they will take it over to the weighing station, weigh the baby and teach the new mom how to change the diaper.
Once that is done, the nurse picks up the baby, gives it to the doctor while the new ‘mom’ (most often a 6 year old girl) sits in the big white ‘mom’ chair and is shown by the doctor (stethoscope and all) how to hold the little one. While the new mother is meeting the baby for the first time, the doctor fills out the birth certificate and all the pertinent information for the new family. All this for just $80US, and the line up was long!
Experiences are what it’s all about. It’s what makes Times Square’s M&M store so popular, as the 20 foot tall peanut M&M becomes the Statue of Liberty while the 15 foot tall chocolate M&M tries to negotiate one of New York’s fire escapes, anything is possible. We still wondered why anyone would need an M& M toilet bowl cleaner or earrings, but it’s easy to get caught up in buying in on such an environment. We went for the experience and wouldn’t you know it, we ended up buying something.
So many of these ideas are possible for those businesses with deep pockets – or so I originally thought. Yes, it requires a huge amount of capital to lease a location in one of the busiest shopping districts in the world and populate a store with very excited and engaged staff; however it is the creativity of the retailer that really sets the great ones apart. This trip made me think of some great independent retailers back here at home, who go out of their way to set up play areas for the kids, throw parties for their best customers and write hand written notes to those who do business with them. Sure, New York with its resources and vibrancy offers some pretty amazing retail experiences, but it’s about the creativity and boldness of a retailer that really makes a business stand out. After all, a hand written birth certificate and two minute parenting lesson with a purchase of a new baby is simple, yet brilliant.
