The 2015 Best Of international Retail trends by the Altavia Watch team. 5 main trends identified: 1. Retail entertainment era 2. Line are shiffting in food retail 3. Delivery service triggers retail revolution 4. The onslaught of the mobile sector 5. Brick is the new black for premiums brands

1. BEST OF 2015
Thierry Strickler – avril 2016
English version

2. RETAIL
ENTERTAINMENT
era
Lines are shifting
in
FOOD RETAIL
DELIVERY SERVICE
triggers retail
revolution
The onslaught of the
MOBILE SECTOR
BRICK IS THE NEW
BLACK
for
premiums brands

3. The RETAIL
ENTERTAINMENT
era

4. ALTAVIA
Extraordinary
experiences
The rise of
surprising
marketing
85% of consumers say they are willing to pay 25% more for a better experience
(source Influencia).
Customer experience has become a major challenge for Brick and Mortar.
Providing an experience is a main condition to nourish the relationship between
customers and brands.
We are now witnessing a metamorphosis, stores have become the place of
purchase since the 2010s, they gradually became places of service, experience and
relationship.
What does offering an experience represent to consumers? It’s a prerequisite to
take the path of success, the experience offered is a competitive advantage, a new
frontier to stand out from the competition.
The challenges of Brick and Mortar is to surprise, amaze, but also to reward
customers.
Many examples of remarkable instore experiences now exist, provided by various
retailers. They are one of the responses to generate traffic, and exist in a very
competitive commercial market.

5. ALTAVIA
Undiz unveils a new
store concept
A small area but a great stock in
the basement. A constraint that
inspired a new store concept for
Undiz ( Etam Group). Called "
Undiz Machine" , this concept is
based on pipes connecting the
stock to the sales floor.
Customers can access the
products which are sent in
capsules, through interactive
screens, It is a new shopping
experience that Undiz is testing ,
based on a playful and engaging
consumer experience.

6. ALTAVIA
The The North Face has engaged
some of its customers by mixing
fiction and reality. As usual, the
brand uses one of its shops to
promote itself and increase store
traffic.
For this event, customers of The
North Face are invited to
experience a simulated sled dog
race through an oculus rift , when
suddenly , real huskies are attached
to the front of the real sled and start
running with great speed in the
shopping center.
The North Face organises sled dog race in
shopping malls

7. ALTAVIA
Shoppers can now take part in
a life-size version of the world-
famous Monopoly board game at
three of the emirate’s most popular
malls.
To play, shoppers must spend at
least Dh300 in the participating
malls and then show their receipts
to the registration desk, where they
will be given a voucher.
Games last between eight and 10
minutes, with organisers expecting
35 to 45 games played each day.
The player with the most points will
win Dh500.
Life-size Monopoly with cash prizes comes to three
Dubai malls

8. ALTAVIA
The ‘Boost™ Energy Lab’ consists
of two areas, the ‘Display Zone’
which highlights the functionality
and design of the Boost™, and the
‘Experience Zone’, in which visitors
can experience the running shoe
while wearing it. The Display zone
focuses on the Boost™’s
cushioning, represented by acrylic
cylinders, and expresses the
formation and movement, and the
play between cohesion and
explosive power of the energy
capsules with a moving light
installation.
Adidas Boost™ Energy Lab
pop-up store

9. ALTAVIA
A full scale PAC-MAN opens in
Hong Kong
The Hong Kong shopping center The
Peak Galleria has launched a full
scale PAC-MAN.
With yellow helmets , customers have
to avoid the ghosts of the maze with as
in the famous video game.

10. ALTAVIA
In Cologne , a mall dedicated to outdoor sports offers to try theproducts
in real conditions
Globetrotter Koln is a shopping center
dedicated to outdoor sports.
A cave where it constantly rains
verifies that the tents are truly
waterproof. A climbing wall, a cold
room and a dark corridor to test the
efficiency of the lamps are also part
of the place.
Globetrotter is also equipped with an
anthill, and an aquarium full of
jellyfish. The soundtrack of the store
that broadcasts the cries of birds and
insects really gives the feeling of
being transported in the nature.

11. ALTAVIA
It is at the height of the crisis in 2009
that Adrian Cheng launched his first
K11 in Hong Kong, having studied
and explored for two years the
expectations of new wealthy
consumers.
"They do not want to go to
shopping malls without
personality or character, in which
we find the same brands, they want
something else, a revolution of retail
space, a trip to the imaginary".
This first test, which involves mixing
artistic performances or exhibitions
in vegetable gardens, but also
shops, was very successful.
In China, the billionaire Adrian Cheng invents a new
type of mall

12. ALTAVIA
Tommy Hilfiger is introducing virtual
reality headsets into its stores
around the world, allowing its
customers to experience 3D runway
shows before immediately shopping
the collections.
“From the incredible set and music
to exclusive backstage moments,
consumers will be able to watch the
clothes move and see the collection
in the original show environment –
it’s a compelling and interesting
elevation of the traditional shopping
experience.”
Tommy Hilfiger stores to give customers
virtual reality experience

13. ALTAVIA
Uniqlo imagines an expérience mixing digital display and neuroscience to help
customers choose their t-shirt
Users place their head in a helmet
incorporating a sensor measuring
their brain activity while are
broadcast on a screen in front of
them, 10 clips supposed to embody
different states (calm , anger... ) .
Depending on the brain responses ,
the algorithm analyzes the client’s
mood and displays on the screen a
selection of t-shirts. Then, still
measuring the brain activity of the
user in front of these choices , it
displays in fine
"THE » perfect shirt

14. Lines are shifting
in
FOOD RETAIL

15. ALTAVIA
An identical
basic offer for
traditionnal
players
Historical food distribution players are jostled by new and numerous proposals.
Gradually their hegemony crumbles, it is clear that these actors all have
virtually the same offer: products, prices, services, promotions. The basic
contract offered to their customers is exactly the same!
The Food distribution sector has reacted very late to the digitization
of their industry. Of course, they have muscled and diversified the services
offered : Drive, e-commerce… But again with very similar proposals. It is
therefore not surprising to find as new leaders of customer exprience in
food distribution pure players such Cdiscount, a historical distributor of high
tech and leisure products (K. Salmon investigation and Uptilan December
2015).
However, traditional retailers move the lines and try to reinvent themselves with
new proposals. The ultra urban proximity shops reinvented
by Casino, Franprix Mandarin or Made By Rewe for example.
New concepts also offer innovative customer journey such as Waitrose, Iper,
Tesco Extra.
However, a door opens for Pure Players who propose a different offer, with
new services.

16. ALTAVIA
Opportunities
seized by new
players
New entrants have developed proposals with new value propositions. New
premium concepts like Eataly, Causse Vintage Belgium or Germany Edeka den
propose a different customer experience: visit / eat / carry.
The premises are remarkable, products are authentic and the customer journey
proposed is seductive.
New food consumption trends (short circuits, organic, collaborative ...) are now
integrated in new concepts by many players.
They provide agile responses and are very focused on value-added services.
HandPick, for example rethinks how to shop, the Californian start-up has become
known for its ability to analyze data in the field of food and to use this information to
compose meals that fit kit the identified needs.
Another trend has emerged in 2015: the appetite of marketplaces for food
distribution. Amazon announced in July 2015 its willingness to enter the French
market. Uber launched Uber eats in the USA. Alibaba, the Chinese e-retailer has
sold in a single day 90,000 fresh lobsters during the 11/11/15 commercial event !

17. ALTAVIA
Bilder & De Clercq, the surprising concept reinventing
catering
Both a supermarket and a caterer,
Bilder & De Clercq opened its first
stores in 2013.
Considered by some as one of the
most amazing and innovative
concepts in 2015, the Dutch brand is
based on meal solutions rather
than products.
It sets on 7 tables 14 recipes chosen
by chefs and all of the dosed
ingredients for customers to stage
and perform at home.

18. ALTAVIA
Run by Health Aims, the organic
supermarket offers organic
produce, cosmetics and daily
essentials.
Green workshops such as tie-dye
and DIY recycled paper are held
regularly on the same floor.
The supermarket’s interior design
puts forward the idea of
environmental protection through
various aspects.
The shelves and walls are decorated
with compacted recycled cardboards
and spare planks, while some small
shelves are presented on old
bicycles.
The Green Atrium Supermarket
Hong Kong

19. ALTAVIA
The new client experience invented by
SPAR
SPAR has decided to actively invest in
high-tech innovations that customize
the experience for each client.
Advertisements incorporating QR codes,
SMS generated by geolocation… Spar
attracts customers through advanced
technology. It keeps them in stores to
promote sales there by using NFC tags
that provide information on products and
allow department managers to be
informed of the availability of
products instantly.
" Rather than analyzing who our
customers weekly, monthly or bi-
annually , we do it at every transaction ."

20. ALTAVIA
Southern Cooperative has
introduced a new store format at its
branch in Freshwater on the Isle of
Wight, where it has concentrated on
introducing local personality and
products while making access
easier for local shoppers.
Like many seaside communities,
Freshwater is popular among older
retired people and young families.
The store has been given wider
aisles to make access easier, and
low shelving fixtures to make it easy
to see around the store. Attention
has also been paid to layout and
product adjacencies to help shopper
progress easily through the space.
The Isle of Wight’s local
Co-Operative

21. ALTAVIA
Kroger Co. is about to open a new
store brand focused on fresh
produce, food preparation advice
and high-quality prepared foods.
The store will offer customers
“fresh, affordable” local produce
and meat and local craft beer and
wine. It will feature plenty of fresh
food – some of it already prepared –
that it describes as “unique culinary
experiences and taste adventures,
with tasty meals made fresh in our
kitchen.”
Kroger spokesman Keith Dailey said
the only information he could share
now is: “We are always testing new
innovations and concepts for our
customers.”
Kroger launches a new fresh food
concepts

22. ALTAVIA
« D’ici » the belgian supermaket in which 50% of the products come from
less than 50kms away
Pineapples from Costa Rica, Spanish
tomatoes , pears from Italy ... the
shelves of our supermarkets are filled
with products shipped in large cargo
ships. The impact on the planet is
terrible ! Especially since it is
possible to source almost mainly local
products .
This store’s goal is to encourage the
emergence of a purchase behavior of
local food products.
To do this, 50% of the proposed
offer comes from local producers.

23. ALTAVIA
A new grocery shopping app named
HappyFresh launched today in
Kuala Lumpur.
The app lets consumers order
groceries directly from offline
supermarkets, and the startup
claims orders can be delivered in as
little as one hour.
One of the differentiating qualities of
HappyFresh’s service comes from
the fact that each order is fulfilled by
personal shoppers who are
permanently based at the partner
stores. The app lets users schedule
the arrival of its one-hour delivery
option a few days in advance, giving
shoppers a fixed time that they
need to wait at home.
Grocery delivery app HappyFresh launches in Southeast Asia
with fresh funds

24. ALTAVIA
Based in Dubai, Fruitful Day’s
business model is simple:
delivering seasonal fresh fruit
straight to your workplace. The
company was founded by a group of
friends who partnered with
Baker & Spice founder Yael Mejia to
gain industry insight and to cultivate
relationships with local and regional
suppliers.
We source our fruit from across the
region, choosing the best of what
each country has to offer. The region
has a rich history of fruit that many
people don’t have the opportunity to
experience and enjoy.
Fruit delivery company launches
in Dubai

25. ALTAVIA
.
Amazon prepares it’s offensive on food in
France
Amazon France approached food
manufacturers to reference their
products.
Internationally, the pure player tested
the sale of food online and traditionnal
retail solutions such as a « drive ».
In the US , Amazon Fresh is present in
Seattle , New York and California. It is
both a delivery service and an online
marketplace.
Clients have access to a conventional
food supply , combining fresh and dry ;
they can also , through the site, place
an order with small local shops and
even restaurants in their neighborhood

26. ALTAVIA
UBER launches UberEats, a delivery service already active in a dozen
cities
UberEats does not work exactly like
traditional delivery applications.
Instead of giving a choice of countless
products , Uber offers three or four
proposals and a changing menu every
day. This reduces delivery time ,
since the dishes are prepared in
advance.
Uber has several advantages : the
UberEats service is available directly
in the Uber application. It also has a
large number of cars available for
delivery of meals at lunch and dinner
time.

27. ALTAVIA
With the explosion of allergies and
food intolerances ,
a start-up offers an innovative service
through its website allergobox.com to
help families living with these
constraints in everyday life.
The concept is simple : after creating a
profile on the site and entering any
allergies and food intolerances.
The search engine then finds food and
recipes, according to the profile.
Allergobox, a platform that addresses the problems of
food allergies

28. ALTAVIA
Aussie Farmers Direct has created
an innovative way to shop
groceries online using a virtual
shopping app.
Online retailer Aussie Farmers
Direct has launched a virtual
shopping experience that aims to
transform the way Australians shop
for food and groceries online.
“We wanted to make an app that
completely reimagined the online
shopping experience “.
AisleOne is the result: a true virtual
shop optimised for touchscreens
that makes customers feel like
they’re physically standing in a
supermarket.
Aussie Farmers Direct Launches
Virtual Store

29. ALTAVIA
Carrefour’s 2.0 Summerdrive
Last year, Carrefour opened a pop-up
drive on the sea front of Knokke in
Belgium . The retailer is renewing the
experience and integrating additional
services such as :
7 times more products, orders ready in
2 hours and free home delivery in
electric vehicles.
The drive also proposes healthy and
fresh meal solutions. Consumers will
find fresh sushi prepared daily in the
Knokke Carrefour Market. All orders
placed before 14h will be available two
hours later.

30. DELIVERY SERVICE
triggers retail
revolution

31. ALTAVIA
Service based
revolution
Delivery has become a focal point of the customer relationship.
Customer expectations on delivery services include timing but also associated
services offered. 85% of French surveyed highlight for example the importance
of tracking, 87% want information by e-mail, 51% by SMS (source: State of
e-commerce Delevery 2015). It is important for retailers to offer a shopping
experience in multiple scenarios in order to maximize customer satisfaction as a
whole.
New modes of delivery have emerged in recent years. Amazon has launched
a service-based revolution by imposing on the market a qualitative delivery
service (fast, safe, economical) which is becoming a standard for all
customers. Multiple initiatives have emerged after the explosion of solutions
such as Drive, and Click & Collect, withdrawal lockers are now available in
many outlets.
A revolution is underway, tomorrow the retailers-logisticians will meet the new
expectations of connected clients. Technological innovations are expected :
drones, terrestrial drones, mobile warehouses ... Start-ups, web giants and
retailers undertake heavy investments and ingenuity to invent the future delivery
modes.
A hotspot
of the
customer
relationship

32. ALTAVIA
Target launches same day delivery in Chicago with
InstaCart
Target expands same day delivery
service in the city of Chicago through
its partnership with Instacart
application.
The US retailer Target continues to
deploy its same day delivery service
of groceries, adding the City of Chicago
to the list of cities eligible for this
service. To do this Target extended its
agreement with the mobile application
Instacart like it was done before with
Minneapolis and San Francisco.

33. ALTAVIA
Houra.fr launches one day delivery
in 1h
While in conventional supermarkets,
delivery time can be up to four hours
after the checkout, Houra.fr reduces
delivery slots to one hour instead of
two. From 7am to 22pm , 27 slots are
now available 6 days out of 7 .
This new service meets a
unanimous request from the
e- consumers : according to a study
conducted by Ifop for Get it'Lab in
March 2014,
90% of surveyed customers found
interesting the possibility to choose
the date and exact time of delivery.

34. ALTAVIA
CDiscount has started to offer its
customers a same day home
delivery service.
The item must weight at least 30
kilos and the order must be placed
by 2 PM. Once these conditions are
fulfilled, household appliances and
furniture will be delivered to the
consumers between 7 PM and 11
PM.
Simultaneously the timeframe can
be reduced on demand in order to
get delivery between 9 PM and 11
PM.
Cdiscount delivers heavy products within
24 hours

35. ALTAVIA
The home delivery service, already
available in Spain and the United
States, has been launched in
thirteen German and Austrian cities.
It will soon be possible to order the
famous "Whopper" without moving
from the sofa.
The fast food chain Burger King
launched a full-scale home
delivery test in Germany and
Austria.
“Our customers’ demand to be
offered a home delivery service is
huge”. The service, offered six days
a week, allows consumers to order
their menus from home.
Burger King launches home delivery in
Germany and in Austria

36. ALTAVIA
Relais Colis, a major player in the
sector of home delivery, and
Deliver.ee, an urban mailing
network, announced the set-up of
"Relais chez Vous", a new delivery
service trialled in Paris for La
Redoute and Cdiscount.
The offer, a partnership between
Relais Colis and the start-up
Deliver.ee, allows to have a courier
delivery and enables consumers to
choose the delivery place and time,
including evenings and week-ends.
New courier service for La Redoute and Cdiscount’s
customers

37. ALTAVIA
Darty officialises its 3 hours
delivery service with Colisweb. This
service is aimed at customers
ordering online as well as those
going directly to pick up their
package from the store.
The delivery service Colisweb works
for purchases of household
appliances up to 30kg.
The store pick-up service is open to
every kind of purchase.
Customers can also book an
appointment to have their purchase
delivered on the same day or within
the next seven days.
Darty offers home delivery in less than
3 hours

38. ALTAVIA
British e-retailers’ most impatient
customers will now be able to track
their delivery in real time with an
indication of the delivery time within
approximately a 15 minutes window.
The new service called “Follow my
parcel” will therefore allow Asos
customers to receive an email or a
text message on the day of the
delivery, indicating the timeframe
when their parcel should be
delivered.
Asos launches real-time
order-tracking

39. ALTAVIA
Amazon announced the launch of
Amazon Flex, the service which
allows individuals to become
couriers for the e-commerce giant.
As it is no secret that sharing
economy is soaring, the service
embraces current market trends.
Amazon promises drivers to offer
great flexibility, giving possibility to
work on schedules of 2, 4, 6, or 8
hours a day, and publish the time
schedule in advance (up to 12
working hours per day).
Amazon offers individuals to handle
deliveries

40. ALTAVIA
Uber is about to partner with
traditional merchants as well as e-
commerce websites.
The decision reflects the rapidly
changing nature of its business
model, as well as a desire to
strengthen its position against giants
such as Amazon.
The transportation network
company already experimented the
delivery of various products to
several places in the USA, including
meals.
With UberRush the company even
offers bike-delivery in New York and
New Jersey.
Uber “advocates“ merchants against Amazon’s
hegemony

41. ALTAVIA
The Swedish car manufacturer
partnered with Nordics leading
logistics carrier and communication
agency PostNord, Nordics leading
baby articles and toys online store
Lekmer.com and online grocery store
Mat.se, to launch the first ever
itinerant delivery service allowing to
have toys, gifts, and Christmas
grocery delivered directly to the car.
The system aims at some point to
restore Christmas’ magic by removing
the most unpleasant aspects
associated with Christmas purchases,
such as the race to find a parking
space, the crowds of stressed out
people, or the disappointment arising
after a failed delivery.
Volvo delivers Christmas shopping purchases straight
to your car

42. ALTAVIA
Last July Amazon launched its first
on-demand 3D print on the market.
Nowadays Jeff Bezos goes further:
Amazon patented a model allowing
to print items, books and services
on demand on delivery trucks in
order to shorten the logistics cycle.
The patent also includes prints on
logistics or delivery centres which
are located close to consumers’
homes.
The service adds up to Amazon
Prime and could impact 50% of
American households by 2020.
Amazon patents its 3D printers within its delivery
trucks

43. The onslaught of the
MOBILE SECTOR

44. ALTAVIA
Transactional
leverage
The average share of mobile transactions on e-commerce purchases in the World is
35%, with Japan, the UK and South Korea showing the best performances. 24% of e-
commerce transactions were done through a mobile device in France during the third
quarter of 2015, in other words 1 out of 4 purchases! This corresponds to a 26%
increase from the first quarter of 2015!(source : criteo)
Mobile devices growingly become the bridge between customers and brands. On one
hand customers are seduced by the “shopping functions” offered by their
smartphone. 64% of mobile users consider it as a precious ally to find a point of
sale (source: Mobile marketing consumer report 2015), 24% use it to compare
prices, 26% to take pictures of items in-store.
Mobiles are the tools used for mobile to store strategies deployed by the most
innovative retailers. Apps become conversational, engaging (ibeacon) and service
providers.
In 2015, retailers refined their mobile strategy, by displaying “events bricks” in their
mobile app. The aim is to provide a strong answer during commercial events (Black
Friday in the USA, Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year...) as well as offering mobile
apps adapted to a specific region.
The retail sector understood the benefits of thinking “mobile centric” to engage and
increase customer’s loyalty or attract a prospective client within the point of sale.
Mobile-to-store
strategies
improvement
Strong
relational
leverage

45. ALTAVIA
Pizza buyers are flocking online to
order – but the desktop site is no
longer their first port of call. Rather,
hungry customers are now turning to
the mobile app to order.
Domino’s Pizza UK & Ireland today
said that its app had overtaken
desktop for the first time to
become its most widely-used
sales channel. Some 51.6% of all
online sales were placed via the
Domino’s app in the first half of its
financial year. The pizza delivery
company said ecommerce sales in
the first half of its financial year were
24.4% ahead of the same time last
year.
Domino’s Pizza says its app is now its biggest
sales channel

46. ALTAVIA
25% of AuchanDirect sales are
done through the brand new mobile
app, which transformation rate is
double of its website.
AuchanDirect’s mobile app was born
in April 2014. 18 months later the
distributor was more than satisfied.
Alexandre Mulliez, Innovation and
Cybermarket Marketing Director
stated in an interview: “25% of our
sales are done through the app
and its transformations rate is
10% higher than on the website:
20% instead of 10%.”
How mobile boosts
AuchanDirect’s business

47. ALTAVIA
Macy’s is leading the flock of
retailers seeking to educate
customers about mobile-specific
offerings ahead of Black Friday,
asking shoppers to enable push
notifications as well as location-
based settings prior to walking into a
store.
The retailer is rolling out its Macy’s
Black Friday Walk In & Win
campaign to enable app users to win
some of the one million dollars’
worth of prizes up for grabs, which
include trips to New York City as
well as digital gift codes.
Macy’s helps shoppers make the most of mobile
opportunities

48. ALTAVIA
Gift-buyers hunting for the best deals
Thanksgiving weekend are
increasingly relying on their mobile
phones to provide assistance in a
number of ways, a fact Walmart has
clearly caught onto.
With users of a retailer’s application
typically among its most valuable
customers, Walmart shrewdly
introduced the deals available on
Black Friday early to these users.
The retailer will also making deals
available on Walmart.com on
Thanksgiving morning before stores
open, reflecting how consumers are
getting a head start on holiday
shopping by using their phones to
shop without having to remove
themselves from the holiday’s goings
on.
Walmart adapts to Thanksgiving’s new mobile-driven
reality

49. ALTAVIA
Sainsbury’s has created a mobile
app to help its in-store shoppers
find items quickly and check out via
the app.
Dubbed ‘SmartShop’ it enables
customers to scan in shopping lists
at home. Once they get to store, the
app will show a map locating their
chosen items around the store and
they will pay via their mobile phone.
“The majority of people still do most
of their shopping in supermarkets
and that’s a trend that will continue,
but we need to make our
supermarkets more convenient for
people who visit often to do a
smaller shop”.
Sainsbury’s pilots in-store mobile checkout app as part of ‘mission
based’ store overhaul

50. ALTAVIA
Starbucks is accelerating the rollout
of Mobile Order & Pay in response
to strong results, with the service
now expected to be available at all
company-owned stores by the end
of September as well as on Android
phones for the first time.
The service, which enables
customers to place an order before
arriving at store, is driving
efficiencies and enabling each store
to complete more transactions.
Starbucks accelerates Mobile Order & Pay rollout as
success escalates

51. ALTAVIA
7-Eleven is the latest in a growing
lineup of retailers that has entered
the mobile loyalty space.
Just launched on the 7-Eleven
mobile app is 7Rewards, an
expanded customer loyalty platform
that rewards customers with a free
beverage for every six cups
purchased.
“We have customers who come in
every morning, like clockwork, for a
fresh-brewed cup of 7-Eleven
coffee, while others regularly treat
themselves to a Slurpee or Big Gulp
drink”.
7-Eleven launches mobile loyalty
program

52. ALTAVIA
This technology allows to geolocate
the customer in the store and send
tailored messages to his/her
smartphone related to the shelf the
customer walks past.
Customers who installed the app
receive a initial notification asking
them to activate the
“shopping assistant” function to
enjoy Monoprix offers. If they agree,
they get geolocated once they are
within 300 meters of any store
associated with the operation.
The iBeacon technology then
intervenes within the store.
Once the smartphone gets the signal,
the C-wallet app reacts and triggers
the appropriate notification.
Monoprix tests iBeacon terminals within
stores

53. ALTAVIA
Asos’s general manager for China,
Daniel Jenks, commented :
“Asos is dedicated to delivering the
best possible experience to our
customers in China, and the launch
of our apps, backed by Red Ant’s
expertise, is a significant step
towards ensuring they receive a
high-quality, mobile-first service
which meets all of their needs in an
increasingly sophisticated
marketplace.”“
“We’re delighted with the results so
far and in the space of a few weeks,
app downloads and sales have
exceeded our expectations to form a
substantial mix of our sales.”
Asos launches mobile apps for Chinese
market

54. ALTAVIA
Virgin Hotels Chicago is tapping
Gap Inc.’s Reserve In Store
capability to enable guests to shop
via its mobile application or site
and have their new wardrobe
delivered to their hotel rooms, in a
reflection of how mobile-enabled
delivery continues to open up new
opportunities for marketers.
“Accessing Gap’s styles and our
Reserve In Store technology through
mobile is essential,”.
“Today’s expectation is that
information, entertainment,
shopping and services are
available at the touch of a button.
Virgin Hotels turns mobile into shoppable Gap closet for
guests

55. ALTAVIA
Facebook wants to make its users
buy clothes and other products
thanks to their smartphone without
ever leaving their application. In
order to strengthen its e-commerce
position and compete with Amazon,
the social network announced that it
was testing several functions
allowing users to buy products
directly via its mobile app.
Firms on Facebook will be able to
present their products and sell them
directly on their Facebook page.
Users will be able to make their
purchases thanks to a “BUY NOW”
button which will be available
worldwide.
Facebook strengthens its e-commerce position thanks to
its app

56. BRICK IS THE NEW
BLACK
for
premiums brands

57. ALTAVIA
Make the
brand
appealing
Existing in the eyes of the customers is a growing complex challenge for retail
brands. Customers are surrounded by infinite sources of attention. Nielsen study
confirmed that a growing figure of customers don’t hesitate to place online
orders involving shipping from abroad, two thirds of Europeans also make
international purchases (79% of Italians, 73% of Germans, 59% of Frenchmen).
Likewise, premium brands go through the same process even though they already
are well known. It becomes primordial to stimulate multiple contact points to continue
being prominent in the eyes of the customers. Surprise to better commit its
customers is the imperative driving premium brands to offer surprising and playful
physical stores. 2015 flourished with examples such as Burberry opening the
Thomas Café and Sonia Rykiel turning one of its stores into a Library-Café.
The purchasing place is undeniably a main asset. It becomes an interpersonal
place, where the customer wants to maximise his/her pleasure. It allows to nourish
the brand’s concept, create value, delivering a unique and complementary
experience.
Stimulate
brand’s loyalty
Multiply
channels to
meet the
customer

58. ALTAVIA
Endless rows of books, a coloured
carpet with mischievous designs,
ambiance lighting… Unlike what it
may first seem, an old granny’s
library, it is in fact a clothing store at
the heart of Saint-Germain-des-
Prés, Paris.
Reinvented by artist André Saraiva
and Paradis’ publication Director
Thomas Lenthal, the store turned
into a hybrid place between a
coffee shop and a library for one
year. This pop-up store now
contains more than 40 000 books at
the customers’ disposal. London and
Tokyo stores should soon follow the
same trend of transformation.
Sonia Rykiel’s shop in St Germain-des-Prés turns into a library-coffee
shop

59. ALTAVIA
Within its gourmet restaurant, bar
and night-club
GOLD, Italian luxury brand Dolce &
Gabbana reproduces gold in all its
forms. GOLD is a unique place
which features within two-storeys a
bar, bistro and a night-club on the
ground floor and a gourmet
restaurant upstairs. The brand logo
is omnipresent, on the floor, walls
and furniture, and reflects thanks to
numerous shimmering surfaces. The
fully golden design immerses the
client in an opulent, ostentatious and
quite relaxed universe. Gold is an
anagram within D&G, and D&G itself
is an integral part of Gold.
Dolce & Gabbana’s Gold restaurant in
Milan

60. ALTAVIA
Burberry, as many other luxury
brands, has joined in the trend of
opening brand Cafés: the brand
opened its “Thomas” coffee shop,
named as a tribute to Burberry’s
founder, Thomas Burberry.
The coffee shop, ideal for tea-time,
is an integral part of the Burberry
shop.
The brand’s products, used as
decorative items, can
simultaneously be purchased.
The newly extended store also
offers a gift corner to allow clients
to customise the items they seek to
buy.
Burberry’s café Thomas

61. ALTAVIA
Few hundred yards from its new
flagship in New York, Ralph Lauren
opened its
Polo Bar. Select and refined, it is
the perfect place to live the whole
brand experience.
The universe is present on the
restaurant’s walls through multiple
decorative elements drawn from the
world of sports and mainly polo,
along with many horse
representations, the other brand
symbol.
The polo player, the brand’s logo,
gives his name to certain dishes and
even physically walks through the
restaurant.
Ralph Lauren extends its lifestyle to its
own bar

62. ALTAVIA
Luxury goods house hopes
1921Gucci can attract new
customers amid a wider slump in
demand.
First it cut prices by up to half in
China. Now Italian luxury fashion
label Gucci is trying to whet Chinese
appetites for its products with a true
taste of the “old country”.
The trend was largely led by the
change in consumer behaviour, from
the pursuit of brands, to the product
itself, and now to lifestyle.
With new Shanghai restaurant, Gucci serves up taste of Tuscany to
grow sales

63. ALTAVIA
The uncluttered and minimalistic
style of these stores – with
predominantly black and white
colours, handwritten text, plays on
symbols like the logo’s smoke or
star designs, as well as on codes
with a name that actually means “le
pain grillé” (“toasted bread”). It
simultaneously carries the
designer’s style, and the Asian
perception of French lightness
and elegance. l.p.g. Cafés are more
than a restaurant and offer an
immersion within a typical
representation of the French “Art de
vivre”.
Le Pain Grillé in Hong-Kong, a typically french bakery in the
Agnès b store

64. ALTAVIA
The LVMH Group has recently
launched 2 new Cova shops, a
patisserie-coffee shop and a gift
shop in China.
The Luxury Group became the main
shareholder of Pasticceria
Confetteria Cova in 2013, acquiring
80% of the shares at an estimated
amount of 15M euros.
In Milano, the historical patisserie is
in Via Montenapoleone, along with
the famous pastry shop Marchesi,
controlled by the Prada Group.
LVMH opens a Cova patisserie
in Beijing

65. ALTAVIA
The firm, known all across the world
for its ultra-comfortable cars, is now
interested in
home interior decoration.
Therefore Mercedes-Benz
revamped its business travellers
dedicated apartments.
Inspired by S-Class interiors and
Maubach, Mercedes-Benz radically
rethought the decoration of its six
apartments of
100 m² each located in the very
select district of Kensington,
London.
Mercedes-Benz redecorates its London
flats

66. Altavia Watch is a blog daily monitoring information about
international disruptive innovations within the field of retail
communication.
Altavia Watch is led by the Market Intelligence Lead from the
Altavia Group, along with the contributions from our agencies in
Europe and Asia.
Altavia Watch follows a rigorous editorial line structured around the
following five universes:
Retailers information, Commercial activation,
Shopper Experience, Retail innovations and Retail by
Altavia Watch also provides a daily newsletter featuring
the top international retail news.

67. Thank you