Sarah Jindal will lead a session at in-cosmetics North America on "The Future of Retail" on Thursday, October 24, at 10:45 am, in the Marketing Trends Theater. For more information on the in-cosmetics North America 2019 education program, visit: https://northamerica.in-cosmetics.com/
The global retail landscape is currently in a state of rapid evolution. No more so than in the personal beauty and skin care industries where traditionally the biggest brands have always been at the cutting edge of innovation.
In my in-cosmetics North America presentation, I’ll take a closer look at three main areas of retail and how we expect them to play out across regions.
The first is, of course, the evolution of brick-and-mortar. The media has dedicated lots of space to lamenting the demise of the traditional retail space. But the reality is that it has a new part to play—now focusing on consumer interaction and relationship-building as online brands move offline and the concept of the showroom takes over. At the other end of the spectrum, we’re also expecting to see the rise of automated, unmanned retail emerge—taking the human out of the equation to save time, and perhaps, money.
Next, we spotlight digital technology. It’s been an increasingly significant part of retail for the past few years, but the focus now needs to be on functionality. Smart technology, eye tracking and real-time analytics can offer brands and retailers major opportunities to customize the experience and guide the shopper in a seamless way. Smartphone apps allow for home measuring and monitoring paired with experts will, we predict, provide unparalleled personalization.
And finally, we see sustainability becoming inextricably linked with retail, facilitating a zero-waste lifestyle shift for consumers. How can brands offer something new and interesting that keeps the consumer coming back, but also contributes towards the greater good? Packaging-free, shopping local, home delivery... at in-cosmetics North America we will examine them all.