Last week we welcomed five incredible panelists for “Taking Retail Offline”, the first of our BGP Presents events; discussing why fast growing retailers are strategically investing into new stores and locations.

We were thrilled to host founders and key figures from a mix of UK and international brands; Alfie-Lee Marcus from East London born menswear brand Percival, Niels Tange Mollman from international outdoor apparel brand Rains, Jessica Warch from sustainable jewellery creators Kimai and Lara Gibson-Chant of British brand incubator concept Brityard. We were also joined by Leanne Catterall, Director of Retail and Hospitality leasing at Canary Wharf, to offer a landlords perspective.

Our Brand Partnership Directors Harry Elliott and Lizzie Knights took the panel through a fascinating discussion about why they are strategically choosing to invest into in-store experiences and new stores over ecommerce; how they overcame industry challenges and what is coming next for their brands.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

STORE PRESENCE IS ALL ABOUT CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.

Many of our panellists customers are looking for an experience, not a transaction. Alfie Lee from Percival explained that they put a bar in their Spitalfields store – initially for friends, then for everyone. These visitors browsed, shared pictures online, bought products and told all their friends to come. It demonstrates how the level of customer experience a brand can offer in-store simply can’t be created online.

INTERNATIONAL BRANDS CAN GET LOST ONLINE.

Customer experience is key, and for an international brand without a big digital marketing budget, it’s incredibly difficult to stand out online. Niels explained that Rains expect to grow the brand organically from 21 stores globally to 40 within the next two years: “ Following the success of our latest opening in Dublin, we are continuing to expand in new geographical locations where we are currently unrepresented…..Here in the UK we are now under offer on our first store outside of London, in a location where we see correlation with the city demographic and our customer.”

LOCATION IS AN INVESTMENT WORTH MAKING.

Foot traffic, visibility, and knowing where your customer will be is the most important decision you will make in your store presence.

Lara Chant highlighted that this was a key insight behind the Brityard concept – to give new British brands the visibility that comes from their incredible location on Regent Street.

POPUPS REMAIN THE BEST WAY TO TRIAL A STORE CONCEPT.

Alfie Lee Marcus of Percival said:  “We came offline initially in 2021 to launch a collaboration with Champion. Following a huge success, we extended the pop up to showcase our Percival collection. 4 years later – Soho is now home to our London flagship and have since now opened our second standalone store in Spitalfields Market Shoreditch.”

STORE PRESENCE ELEVATES GROWING BRANDS.

Many retailers launch online and market themselves through social media – Jessica discussed the impact Kimai’s appearance on Dragon’s Den had on brand awareness. Kimai were becoming a fairly established brand and had secured their first store on Chiltern Street, Marylebone before appearing on Dragons Den but the publicity they attracted after the show really helped to boost their profile on a global scale. The brand is now looking to open physical retail overseas.

BE OPEN MINDED ABOUT LOCATION.

A destination’s footfall is fluid. Leanne Catterall from Canary Wharf explained how post pandemic, Canary Wharf’s shopper and restaurant footfall is 60% families, tourists and visitors rather than office workers. This evolution is reflected in the brands that want to take space there, with new openings from Newbie and Trinny London.

Our Brand Partnership team specialise in advising brands on how to elevate their brand through a store presence. With decades of experience and contacts that can open up unique opportunities, get in touch with them to discuss further or arrange a meeting.