Paying Attention - A Crash Course in Creativity conducted by Tina Seelig at Stanford University. As part of the class assignment, I visited six stores. This presentation shares my shopping experiences and revelations of what I saw directly and what I felt and noticed in these stores. This led to some interesting insights and opportunities that I wanted to share

1. Are You Paying Attention
Assignment 2- Prepared for the class
A Crash Course in Creativity by
Neeraj Kulkarni

2. Goal: Paying Attention
 Six Stores
 Experiences – Insights
& Opportunities
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3. World Market
Background
 Offers wide variety of goods from across the
world such as rugs, furniture, candles, dishes,
plates and alcohol
 Offers artistic and cultural accessories
 Also famous for handmade and environmentally
stable merchandise
 Generally known as a cheaper option to “Pier
One”
 Generally found in a big shopping center in your
city
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4. World Market – What I Saw
 Open Door Policy
 Outside Sale sign shows that
furniture items are running
currently at 25% discount
 “Look and touch” aspect with
clear labeling helps customers
to access variety of products
 “Global Bazaar” feel with bright
colors and colorful displays and
lighting through out the store
 Point of sales clearly displays
the new arrivals, current items
on sales, popular products for
the season, highly purchased
products etc.
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5. World Market – Insights/Opportunities
 From a task driven sales force to a
customer driven sales force
- Sales reps were more busy
managing merchandise, putting
things in place, carrying things
than helping customers out
 Theme centric rather than product
centric” approach to sales
- Since most customers who shop
here are “global curious”, an idea
would to convert the shopping
experience to themes like “Design
your own Japanese Kitchen” or
“African living room” with featured
items together. Such creative
selling approach can create unique
cross/up-selling opportunities 5

6. Harris Teeter
Background
 Supermarket chain with presence in Southern
States
 Started as a family run business
 Though it started as a “working class” family
store. Now it is generally perceived as a store
appealing to higher income families
 Famous for its VIC loyalty card and other loyalty
card programs
 “ Your Neighborhood food Market” is a
prominent brand slogan along with the “My
Harris Teeter” jingle
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7. Harris Teeter– What I Saw
 Open Door Policy
 Brightly colored sleek floors
with bright lighting, open
spaces for walking/browsing
and clear department signage
 Branded departments like
Fisherman’s market, Farmers
market, Fresh Bread etc. which
creates an experience of
multiple store shopping within
one store
 Point of sales clearly displays
the customer policies for
returns, complaints, refunds
etc. which improves brand trust
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and loyalty

8. Harris Teeter – Insights/Opportunities
 Harris Teeter needs to reinforce the
belief that it is truly a neighborhood
food market
- It offers 10% discount to UVA
students and employees in
Charlottesville. However that sign
is displayed on a small billboard
on the side and needs to be
creatively advertised at key places
inside the store
 Higher emphasis on organic and local
produce support
 Not sure if the Starbucks cafe adds any
value to their “neighborhood” store
image. They would be better served
with local affiliations like “Shenandoah
Joe” in Charlottesville and other places
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9. Bed Bath & Beyond (BBB)
Background
 National retail chain focusing on merchandise
related to bed, bathroom, dining and kitchen
 Nothing more to add… it is a boring store
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10. BBB – What I Saw
 Strangely the entrance door is
placed on the side rather than
at the center
 Store floors and carpeting
change randomly
 The products are labeled and
sales/discounts are clearly
displayed.
- However the product
arrangement and accessibility
leaves a lot to be desired and
often you need to turn sharp
corners, bend or look way up
to search for items
 Customer representatives are
somewhat helpful
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11. BBB – Insights/Opportunities
 More aggressive online/e-commerce
focus
- Integrating the offline and online
shopping experience to provide
convenience and variety
 Inside the store, they should have
more in-store TV ads which help
customers see the value of the product
and make the shopping decision easier.
 Currently the BBB shopping experience
and their brand image can be
described as “BORING”. They need to
bring some fun and exciting things
associated with the brand like the
“Space Shuttle Endeavor” stopping by
near its LA store
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12. Barnes & Noble(B&N)
Background
 Largest chain of book stores in the country
 Widest selection of books, magazines and other
publishing material under one roof
 Traditionally a brick and mortar store model, it is
now shifting to a strong digital network providing
vast selection of books, magazines and DVD’s
online
 Recently also came out with Nook – its digital
ebook reader
 Biggest competitor - Amazon
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13. Barnes & Noble– What I Saw
 Dark brown wooden door
entrance symbolize the
traditional look and feel
 Was delighted to be greeted
with “Welcome to Barnes &
Noble” greeting by the
customer representative at the
door
 Aisles of books again provide
the experience similar to a
college library – especially
when you see people squatting
on the floor reading books
 Well organized sections,
knowledgeable staff and a
coffee complete a great “Back
in College” experience
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14. Barnes & Noble– Insights/Opportunities
 Aggressive online, social and mobile
experience especially to the online, tech
savvy millennials
 Unlike the shopping process in Amazon,
people can actually read(sample) a few
pages/chapters in the store. This is a big
advantage which enables the customers
to be happy(loyal) and cuts down the
returns. Needs to be highlighted in ads.
 The café, collegial reading/learning
atmosphere provides the intangible value
of people re-living their college
experience. Emphasize it!!
 B&N does not advertise extensively its
book clubs and in-store readings. But that
is something Amazon cant really compete
on and can create enormous social
currency for B&N 14

15. Plow & Hearth
Background
 Major Retailer focusing on furniture, home
furnishings, lawn and garden accessories
 Famous for its hearth and fire place accessories
 Traditionally a big player in catalogue and mail
order sales, it is also getting more aggressive
online
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16. Plow & Hearth – What I Saw
 White doors, American flags on
certain products and traditional
décor inside and outside the
store
- warm colors emphasize the
feeling of comfort and good
living
 Friendly customer service
representatives
 Cluttered floor space. You really
need to be in a “Search and
Discover” shopping mood here
 People often sit outside in their
rocker chairs, lounges and
benches to relax which is a
great promotional talking point
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17. Plow & Hearth – Insights/Opportunities
 Randomly kept furniture items makes a
difficult shopping experience especially
when people are looking for convenience
and orderly shopping experience (e.g.
competitors like Crate and Barrel, IKEA,
Pottery Barn)
 Great collection for higher end comfort
shoes – a big selling point and not
commonly known or advertised much!!
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18. Blue Ridge Mountain Sports (BRMS)
Background
 High end Outdoor equipment retailer with
regional foot print
 Opened its first store in the city that I currently
reside – Charlottesville, VA
 11 select locations in VA, TN and NJ
 Serves the performance needs for the local
outdoor enthusiasts and adventurers
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19. BRMS – What I Saw
 Bright prominent signage, nice
floors and fancy displays
definitely draw your attention
from the outside
 Big high performance brands
like Patagonia, North face,
Mountain Hardware, ArcTeryx
etc. are available
 Well lit, well laid-out, clear
labeling associated with
assurances of high
performance, high quality
products
 Highly knowledgeable staff who
will help you in product
selection and share personal
experiences
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20. BRMS – Insights/Opportunities
 Actively manage the loyal community of
hikers, bikers, runners and music lovers
which are great brand ambassadors of
the store
- No loyalty card or a comprehensive
email/social/mobile program to tap
into the their loyal store customers and
also attend their various music shows
and events
 Point of Sales leaves a lot to be desired
with no reference to their new arrivals,
featured products, discounted items or
any brand communication related
material
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