Experiential

A look at the future of retail here in New Zealand, as we begin shopping again after COVID-19.

There’s probably no other industry that is going through as much evolution right now as retail. Customers are demanding more and more in terms of store layout, payment options in store, customer engagement and staff knowledge.

Design is a plan for arranging elements in such a way as best to accomplish a particular purpose

- Charles Eames

We have all seen them, you have probably all be in one of them, and you may even have eaten at one of them – pop-up shops and kiosks are ‘popping’ up all over the place and research indicates that consumers love them.

Experiential marketing has made it’s mark on the industry for a number of years now, and has become an important part of the ‘mix’; we’re even seeing marketing departments employ experiential managers.  As customers demand more interaction (read: entertainment), the need for a memorable experience becomes essential.

For a long time now, sampling has been an important ingredient in many brands’ launch recipe. It’s still a vital part, but we’re seeing some changes coming in as the strategy evolves.

Activating a pop-up store, sampling or experiential campaign in a shopping mall is a well proven route to getting your brand in front of a broad range of people. Malls offer almost guaranteed foot-traffic numbers, regardless of the weather. The variety of retailers onsite provide instant redemption of offers or bounce backs for brands wishing to drive awareness, launch products  or sample.

So what does the future look like for Brands wanting to engage with their customers?

As one of New Zealand’s foremost providers of brand experience and sampling campaigns, we thought we would take a look.