The harbingers of spring are already appearing and with them, the round dance for growth, renewal, and rejuvenation begins. Much like nature's cycle, this period of blossoming also finds resonance in the retail arena, where the infusion of art sparks new business opportunities and resonates with diverse customer segments.
Escaping the Decline: Understanding the Retail Maturity Circle
In the trajectory of a retail format's maturity, the journey unfolds through distinct phases, commencing with "Growth" and progressing towards the "Rationalization of Competitors". These initial stages hold significant potential for shareholder value creation. However, as the sector enters the "Maturity" phase, the focus shifts to strategies aimed at:
Developing new formats
Applying new business models
Entering adjacent markets
Art’s role transcends brushing up the aesthetics, fitting into a preset interior design, turning retail into concept stores, or other rather superficial projects. Art can have a major impact on business success, art emerges as a catalyst and fosters business development and return on investment even if these moves might not be measured with conventional KPIs initially.
The pollen itself: Art as innovation
Incorporating art means a solid proposal to make a stance against impersonal retail and challenging established notions of retail in the evolving landscape of digital-analog convergence and shifting consumer behaviors. This paradigm shift underscores the essence of personalization—manifesting brand identity and ethos through visual representation. The ultimate goal is to hold and keep the client’s attention, staying top of mind until they take the desired action.
Setting standards: Gentle Monster
No matter where Gentle Monster knows how to play the art card well and stands out as a paragon.
Let’s get physical: Digital diversity pollination
While the future of retail is undoubtedly digital, a nuanced perspective unveils the potential of digital experiences to enrich physical encounters. Digital platforms offer a wealth of inspiration, yet the prevalence of social profiling can constrain exploration, confining consumers to pre-curated content. Leveraging the strengths of digital encounters to enrich physical spaces fosters innovation and elevates consumer experiences, thereby redefining retail standards by creating surprising formats, not only new ones.
Setting standards: Corso Como
Oldie but goldie! Corso Como exemplifies the enduring appeal of multicultural spaces, underscoring the viability of diverse retail models.
Pollinating excitement: Cultivating artistic engagement
Creating an environment of engaging and inspiring people’s sense of discovery through revolving experiences with the brands and artists of tomorrow – this is how art should pollinate retail. Curatorial strategies offer consumers alternative visual identities. As art is very unique and needs to be contextualized within spaces to create real engagement, using art in your business makes a difference. Excitement makes a difference. Hence, breaking away from consumer expectations and constantly surprising them with novelties and inspiration is the way to think.
Setting standards: K11
K11 core values are art, people, and nature. Championing since 2008, Adrian Cheng created a sustainable “art x commerce” business model.
Embracing art in retail necessitates courage—the willingness to depart from traditional market research methodologies and metrics in favor of artistic intuition. While daunting, this leap of faith often yields profound rewards. Initiating small-scale projects represents a low-risk entry point, fostering a culture of experimentation and innovation.
Yours truly,
Margot
A&P sidenote: Fancy a call? Don’t hesitate.
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