Comfort can have different meanings. It can mean physically comfortable, with soft seating and moderate temperature. Or, a person can be mentally comfortable, where a space is calm, safe, and welcoming. In a retail context, store design can play a large role in making customers feel more at ease. Have you ever walked into a […]
Designing More Comfortable Retail Spaces Read More »
Retailers and food operators are finding it harder to find new locations with strong growth potential, as much of the population growth is happening in congested urban centers, and the majority of great locations are already occupied. This phenomenon is not limited to North America, as many countries have too many stores, and are seeing
Renovate or Relocate? Six Things to Consider Read More »
Retail is taking a turn down a curious alley. Many brands are opening retail concept stores that defy all logic by having nothing for sale. From pop-up shops, to “guide-shops,” to showrooms where customers can play with the latest products in a branded environment, retailers are suddenly feeling oddly comfortable pushing less sales and more
Why Experience Stores are on the Rise Read More »
Does the design of your store or restaurant reflect your brand’s personality? Or is it out of sync with the message that you want to convey? Retail design is a physical representation of a brand that shapes customer experiences. Lighting, color, materials, fixtures, layout, commercial retail graphics, and digital signage all influence perceptions and express
Using Retail Design to Bring Your Brand to Life Read More »
SLD recently won Silver at the Shopper Innovation Awards for our work with China Zheshang Bank (CZ Bank) in the In-Store Engagement category. The annual awards, produced by strategy, celebrate the best in retail-focused campaigns as well as consumer packaging. “We are extremely proud of the work we did with CZ Bank and to be recognized by strategy is a honour,” says Jean-Pierre
SLD Wins Silver at Shopper Innovation Awards Read More »
The investment in developing a new supermarket design is significant, and the risk is enormous. With most supermarket and grocery chains consisting of thousands of locations, converting to a new concept can be laborious and span many years. On average, most good operators renovate about 5 to 10 percent of their stores per year, putting
What is the Lifespan of a Supermarket Design Concept? Read More »
In the spring of 2018, we conducted an online study as a precursor to a more extensive NXT branch of the future neuroscience and VR study. The goal of this research is to better understand customers’ definition and perceived value of an immersive experience across a wide range of retailers. Fill out the form below
Retail Immersive Experience Defined Read More »
If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it makes sense that ugliness should be as well. However, some brands are almost universally regarded as unappealing when compared to competitors. Many of those ugly packages, websites, and environments develop cult followings from loyal customers, much to the frustration of brand managers who pour their
Shikatani Lacroix has won a Gold APEX Award at the Digital Signage Expo (DSE) for designing an immersive restaurant bar experience for Boston Pizza. Shikatani Lacroix received a Gold APEX award in the Food & Beverage category, selected by an independent panel of 10 industry experts and journalists. The award was presented at the DSE 2018 APEX awards gala
Shikatani Lacroix Wins Gold APEX Award Read More »
Our recent stealth attrition study identified that customers today are more willing to switch banks or consider purchasing a new service from a competing bank. This behaviour is exacerbated by increasingly easy account opening and on-boarding processes thanks to technology and improved back-of-house systems. With so many elements to consider when it comes to growing your bank’s
Rating the Curb Appeal of Your Bank Branches Read More »
A trend that is bubbling up in neighborhoods across the continent is the resurgence of the corner store, that’s more than just a place to buy milk. There are community hubs that double as meeting spots. There are delis and bodegas that boast daily line-ups for their legendary sandwiches. And there are urban reinventions of
Hot Trend: The Corner Store as a Destination Read More »
The customer journey is one that starts well before customers open an account, and continues, repeats, and ideally builds loyalty throughout the relationship. Certain touch points along that journey can become routine experiences or signals that customers come to expect and associate with the brand. Pleasant rituals can help to build stronger relationships with consumers and repeated
Three Great Ways to Welcome Branch Customers Read More »
Crafting a ‘Branch of the Future’ Design Strategy in the Digital Age As the role of branches continues to evolve, banks and credit unions alike are wrestling with big questions about their retail strategy. How do you ensure your branch network remains relevant with today’s digital consumers? Should you consider alternative branch formats, and if
Financial Brand Forum 2018 Read More »
The convenience of Amazon Go – a completely automated shopping experience, free of cashiers, queues, and check-out counters – hasn’t quite materialized as quickly as promised. When the retail giant first announced its ambitious concept, it promised to bring the idea to the public by early 2017, but so far the project seems to be floundering. While
How Retailers Will Compete with Amazon Go Read More »
There is a growing trend for banks to partner with millennial-friendly retailers in the hopes of driving traffic and relevancy for their branches. From credit unions to large banks, such as Capital One’s foray into cafe experiences that rival some of the best coffee chains, the allure of finding a complimentary partner to drive branch
No, Your Bank Doesn’t Need a Coffee Shop Read More »
Jean-Pierre “JP” Lacroix of Shikatani Lacroix Design shows how technology has blurred the lines between the physical and digital world, both in the store and in the retail design process. The firm uses VR tools to do fast iterative design of retail environments and test them with customers. A digital shoe display knows which pair of Adidas one is examining in the
Building Stores for the Future – Where We Buy Read More »
Grocery chains, food specialty stores, even convenience stores and gas stations are serving up hot meals to millions of hungry, hurried customers – 2.4 billion meals in 2015 as a matter of fact. From Loblaws’ bakery-cafes serving coffee and cupcakes, to food halls with servers and salad bars at Whole Foods, grocers are tapping into
Should Supermarkets Launch their own Foodservice Brand? Read More »
In the increasingly competitive world of foodservice, brands are looking for every possible advantage they might be able to leverage, including design. Numerous brands are undergoing make-overs: Taco Bell, KFC, Subway and Arby’s are only a handful of the big names that are currently rolling out more contemporary, less generic designs. The trend is quite
Most Effective Restaurant Design Elements Today Read More »
Suzanne Cluckey of ATM Marketplace wrote about Jean-Pierre Lacroix’s presentation at the 2017 Bank Customer Experience Summit: Some years ago, the president of [SLD], a company that specializes in brand strategy and customer engagement, sat in a meeting with senior leadership at Kodak, a client company. He was there to present research on a promising new business segment —
Branch Transformation by Design Read More »
Breaking Branches – Learning Lab For the unprepared, branch transformation can be a Herculean task. That’s why Jean-Pierre Lacroix, an expert in brand transformation, and Stephen Griffin, who led the transformation of Regions Bank branches, will lead a workshop on breaking (and rebuilding) branches at BAI Beacon. A select group of attendees will have the opportunity
