In a new monthly column, our retail trio – Mary Lewis from Penguin Ventures, Bethan Garton from CloudCo Entertainment and Hannah Redler from Retail Monster – share their latest insights on the world of retail and licensing.
With the arrival of spring marking the sign of new beginnings, it feels apt to be introducing a new regular contribution from the ‘Retail Trio’. We are delighted to be sharing our thoughts with you on the latest innovation, trends and collaborations we see at retail.
Although the economic climate in which we’re living in feels bleak, the industry we have a joy to work in offers glimmers of sunshine as retailers, brand owners and licensees jointly respond with ‘if the going gets tough the tough get going’. With retailers fighting for their customers pennies harder than ever, it’s a delight to see continually evolving concepts brought to our high streets, shopping centres and retail parks.
Seasonal moments are fast becoming more important to retailers to hinge activity around whether that’s Valentine’s Day, World Book Day or Mother’s Day which are now key moments in the retail calendar. This also includes moving away from perceived non-traditional gifting offerings such as LEGO’s Botanicals range as the company takes the lead on speaking to the kidult market. It’s interesting to see other toy brands taking artistic licence and going in this direction with Zuru recently launching a similar offering. They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery so it will be interesting to see if the LEGO faithful could be swayed when it comes to an alternative offering.
With Easter typically marking the sign of retail coming out of hibernation as we head out of the quiet first quarter of the year, it’s great to see how retailers are identifying ‘seasonal’ as a key driver. Possibly thanks to the hard to listen news agenda on repeat at the moment, we’re jointly looking to treat ourselves at whichever event is top of mind. Whether that’s extending Valentine’s gifting to your wider family circle or dressing your home ready for spring or Easter.
Speaking of preparing ourselves for spring, this is particularly true of garden centres as they start to bloom ready for what we hope is a bumper year. Home and garden seems to be holding up versus other categories and this is likely due to wanting that ‘feel good’ feeling when we’re in our own spaces. Some garden centre chains are reaping what they sow as they aim to differentiate themselves from the competition with some coming out as winners in Blue Diamond or losers such as Dobbies.
Blue Diamond’s partnership with National Trust seems to be going from strength to strength as the range is growing further to inspire keen gardeners. Staying true to their shared missions, the collaboration further extends the National Trust’s brand offering to like-minded customers while also encouraging footfall to Blue Diamond centres – with footfall being the gold dust retailers need in the hope of converting into sales.
When retailers and brands collaborate, the formulae to be in the best position to support future growth is to give it the best chance of success from the outset. In our noisy and busy lives when so much is being fought for our attention, brands need to shout the loudest to be heard.
An example of a collaboration that has stood out at retail has been from the team at Sanderson. Whether that’s the expansion of the William Morris offering at John Lewis or partnership with H&M Home; the team is doing a fantastic job of maximising the number of shop windows it’s featuring in while also offering retailers a differentiated offering. Team Sanderson has also done this with its Disney collaboration as it looks to appeal to the dedicated Disney kidult fans looking to tastefully feature their favourite franchise in their homes.
Another route to inspire consumers is by surprising and delighting and this is where pop-ups can prove a great avenue to excite shoppers and to kick-in that recognisable FOMO ‘get it before it’s gone’ mindset. Pop-ups also offer brands the chance to dip their toe in retail in potentially a new space but not commit long-term. Bethan had the joy of seeing this at work in the best pop-up she’s seen to date by La Bon Marche in Paris.
The brand offered a true 360 experience as it honed in on the theme of dogs where it really went to town or the kennels you might say. Across multiple floors the range was curated around this theme with everything from dog standees wherever you turned to a chandelier of bones. Licensed product featured from Peanuts and brands such as Barbour had displays to cater to dog owners. There were even on-site personalisation stations for your poop bags and dog collars. Plenty of inspiration to be had for those considering pop-ups as a route to engage fans. La Bon Marche got every element of this pop up right.
Although retail remains a tricky environment and at its core businesses are having to make difficult decisions to ensure they’re here for seasons to come, it still remains an inspiration to see how retailers are doggedly staying the course and refreshing their strategy to unlock spending. And with Easter in full swing, we look forward to seeing shoppers continue to treat their loved ones as in the toughest times we support one another more than ever.
And let’s hope with the recent changing of the clocks and the arrival of springtime sunshine it marks the start of brighter days ahead.
