Reconnecting with consumers on the high street

December 15, 2021

In brief

While ecommerce grew exponentially in the past year, consumers still value in-store shopping that meets their desire for relevant experiences.
Traditional ways of enticing people to retail stores/restaurants/pubs, where margins are typically higher, are not sufficient.
CPGs should explore differentiating their brands with experience-led direct-to-consumer concepts. Five approaches are discussed.

Consumers still crave in-person shopping experiences

Ecommerce grew exponentially during the pandemic, and many consumers plan to continue using it in the future. For brands and retailers to encourage consumers to return to typically higher-margin physical channels, they must utilize what makes that shopping compelling to people. Research shows consumers continue to crave retail experiences in physical stores that are creative, in-person, physical experiences.

The traditional CPG-retailer-consumer model is constrained in delivering the tailored and immersive experiences consumers want. To take advantage of the opportunities ahead and re-engage with consumers, brands must differentiate themselves with bold new strategies in the physical world.

Experience-led direct-to-consumer retail concepts can help entice consumers to return to the high street.

How to get started

Brands must be very intentional about their physical location to realize its true value. What is the intended experience? Who is it serving? What is the consumer value? There are new and established physical concepts to explore and determine which may best align to their strategy: flagship, store-in-store, pop-up, mobile store and vending machine. Any of these concepts must also be complemented by a comprehensive, multi-channel approach in order to minimize sales cannibalization and generate value for other channels.

In the right situation, experience-led stores can help attract consumers back to the high street.

To understand more about the 5 retail concepts and considerations for each, download the first edition of The Consumer, below.