By Jeff Trachsel, CMO for NextWorth Solutions

Most consumers are so addicted to their smartphones that a clinical term is now dedicated to the psychological attachment people have to their devices: nomophobia, short for no-mobile-phone-phobia. This may sound like a joke, but the fear of phone separation is a real growing trend that should make retail marketers sit up and pay attention.

Consider the impact of this “new normal” on retailers. Now more than ever smartphone owners and price-sensitive shoppers are using smartphones while in store to price shop and make better informed buying decisions. In fact, 36 percent of U.S. smartphone users use devices in store to compare prices, according to one comScore study of 3,598 smartphone users. 

Brick-and-mortar retailers are battling with technology as it takes customers out of stores and drives them online. But rather than throwing in the towel, retailers of all sizes should instead embrace nomophobia as an opportunity to grow customer satisfaction and boost sales.

Below are three actions that retail marketers can take to make the most of nomophobia.

One: Play nice with mobile.

One study from comScore of nearly 4,000 smartphone users also found that 27 percent of respondents read customer reviews while in the aisles of a store, 23 percent call, email or text family and friends for feedback and 22 percent read product details on their device. For retailers, this means developing a mobile-friendly version of websites is crucial.

As a result of Google’s Mobile-Friendly Update earlier this year, creating a mobile-friendly site is more important than ever. Google’s new algorithm gives a ranking boost to sites and pages that are mobile friendly, pushing those sites further up in the results. With mobile-friendly websites retailers can deliver on a customer’s desire for easily accessible information in the palm of their hand, which can lead to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Becoming mobile friendly can also bring about the need for a mobile app. In fact, 55 percent of shoppers who responded to Cisco’s fifth annual retail survey said they will use a retailer’s app while shopping, and 34 percent claimed to use a third-party app for the same purpose. With a mobile app, retailers can effectively cater to customers’ needs for convenience and efficient shopping. Apps can effectively deliver special offers, or money-saving coupons once customers walk in the store. Retailers can also offer utility services that would otherwise need to be researched on a customer’s own time including interactive store locating tools, information on store hours and customer service contact information.

Two: Promote early device upgrades.

Mobile-friendly programs can tie a customer’s love for smartphones with his or her love for shopping. For example, retailers can leverage in-store trade-in programs to accelerate a customer’s device upgrade timeline. Device trade-ins have become well known by consumers who are looking for ways to upgrade to the latest and greatest for less. Well-timed trade-in promotions can help retailers cut through the clutter during new device launches, while increasing foot traffic from buyers looking for money-saving specials tied to new technology investments.

Retailers looking to motivate mobile-obsessed customers should embrace an online presence to amplify in-store promotions, and offer customers mobile promotions that can only be redeemed in store. Promoting in-store trade-in through digital channels ensures the trade-in messages reach consumers who are tied to their smartphones, then helps to drive them in store. By catering to consumers who want the latest and greatest device, retailers are encouraging more spending and boosting foot traffic to stores.  

Three: Encourage mobile payments.

With the emergence of smartwatches and new payment methods – particularly Apple Watch and Apple Pay – mobile addiction is at an all-time high. Within 72 hours of its launch, 1 million payment cards were activated on Apple Pay. With a mobile payment structure that is simple and secure, Apple Pay has created a new breed of shoppers seeking out retailers that accept this new form of payment. Retailers that don’t offer Apple Pay, or another form of mobile payment like Google Wallet, risk losing shoppers.

Forrester Research projected the mobile in-person market, or people using phones to pay in-store, to be valued at $6.8 billion in 2015. This new form of payment is fast, easy and easily accessible, which means traditional retailers must find ways to work mobile payment into brick-and-mortar locations, or lose the ongoing battle to ecommerce. 

Today’s consumers are more mobile obsessed than even before, making mobile shopping and targeting the “new normal” for retailers. Providing services such as trade-in that help customers upgrade for less, enabling mobile-friendly websites and apps and embracing mobile payment options are all ways retailers can leverage this trend to boost customer satisfaction and drive higher sales.

About NextWorth Solutions, Inc.

NextWorth Solutions has been defining, running and optimizing trade-in programs for major retailers nationwide since 2006. The NextWorth Solutions team has more than 100 years of combined experience in the CE trade-in industry. Its unique combination of expertise, team and platform enables it to provide unparalleled trade-in support and experience to its partners, driving their key business objectives. Through the delivery of turnkey in-store and online trade-in platforms, NextWorth Solutions is fundamentally changing the way people buy, own and disown consumer electronics.

Canada’s first Brunello Cucinelli location will open in downtown Vancouver, along with the city’s first free-standing Strellson and Versace stores. All will locate in the retail component at the base of the 745 Thurlow tower, which is currently under construction. All retailers will open either later this year, or in early 2016. 

The main floor retail component of the 745 Thurlow Street development is now 100% leased. 745 Thurlow is a 25 storey office tower encompassing 400,000 square feet at the southwest corner of Thurlow and Alberni Streets. The tower is designed to achieve LEED ‘Core and Shell’ Gold certification – the first office tower in downtown Vancouver to do so. 

All tenants at 745 Thurlow were represented by Stan Vyriotes and David Wedemire of DWSV Remax Ultimate Realty Incorporated. Larissa Jacobson (604-661-5066) at Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP is handling retail leasing at 745 Thurlow. 

Brunello Cucinelli will open in a 2,700 square foot retail space with a Thurlow Street frontage. Referred to as the “King of Cashmere”, the Italian luxury fashion brand was founded in 1978 and sells womenswear, menswear and accessories. Although known for its luxurious cashmere apparel, the brand has expanded to include non-cashmere fashions including leathergoods, bags, shoes, and sportswear. The company is headquartered in a 14th century castle on the top of a hill in the middle of Italy’s Umbria region, and it donates 20% of profits to its charitable foundation, and pays workers wages that are 20% higher than the industry average. According to its website, the brand is “firmly rooted in quality excellence, Italian craftsmanship and creativity”. Brunello Cucinelli currently operates 15 U.S. locations in Aspen CO, Atlanta, Bal Harbour FL, Beverly Hills, Chicago, Costa Mesa CA, Dallas, East Hampton NY, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Manhasset NY, New York City, and San Francisco. All cities have one free-standing Brunello Cucinelli location except for New York City, which has three. 

Upscale Swiss menswear brand Strellson will open in an Alberni Street-facing retail space measuring just over 2,200 square feet. Founded in 1993, Strellson is Switzerland’s largest menswear manufacturer. Owned by Holy Fashion Group, it produces mid-to-high priced menswear (both dressy and casual), accessories and related products, targeting men in the 25 to 40 age range. It retails in about 40 countries. It currently operates two free-standing Canadian locations – a flagship at 170 Bloor Street West, as well as a location at Toronto’s Bayview Village. Strellson confirms that it will open at Yorkdale Shopping Centre next year, and the brand is considering a location in Ottawa. Strellson shops-in-stores are also in a handful of Hudson’s Bay stores. The brand currently has no locations in the United States. 

Versace will open a 1,875 square foot store at 745 Thurlow’s corner retail space. The Italian luxury fashion brand was founded by the late Gianni Versace in 1978, and it is seeing a resurgence as it opens stores around the world. Upscale Vancouver-based fashion retailer Leone currently features a Versace shop-in-store, and Versace Home opened last summer in Vancouver’s Gastown area. Currently, Canada’s only free-standing Versace fashion store is at Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre, which opened late summer of 2014. The brand currently has 16 free-standing locations, and sources at Versace confirm that a number of new U.S. stores are planned, including a 5,000 square foot Chicago flagship. 

745 Thurlow’s three luxury retailers will join other brands in Vancouver’s Luxury Zone such as Prada, Dior, De Beers, Burberry, Escada, Hermes, Tiffany & Co., Jaeger-LeCoultre, Moncler, Montblanc, Omega, Gucci, Louis Vuitton and others. Sources say that a number of premium French and Italian brands continue to negotiate for retail space in the immediate area, including at the Shangri-La Hotel as well as an Alberni Street-facing retail complex to be built at 1040 W. Georgia Street. 

Sources say that Brunello Cucinelli has also been in negotiations to open an outlet store at Vancouver’s McArthurGlen Designer Outlets, scheduled to open this summer. Sources also say that Brunello Cucinelli is seeking retail space in Toronto and that several months ago, it passed up the opportunity to lease Benetton‘s former space at 102 Bloor Street West. Vancouver-based fashion brand Kit and Ace has since secured that space. Cucinelli continues its hunt for Canadian real estate and rumour has it that a Calgary store could also be in the works. 

The following is a list of 37 retailers which are either new to Canada, or expanding their operations nationally. Although some of these retailers have recently been discussed in Retail Insider, many are new and haven’t been mentioned until now.

The list is sponsored by Vancouver-based Peregrine, which custom designs and fabricates retail, display, furniture and architectural features for some of the country’s top retailers.

Canadians are spending online, but not with Canadian retailers. Remarkably, online sales in Canada are forecasted to almost double between 2014 and 2015. According to Virtual Logistics Inc., Canadians are purchasing from multinationals such as Amazon, Costco and Walmart, with most of the remainder from out-of-country retailers. Canadian businesses are doing “very little” to combat this according to Virtual Logistics, as they are not mobile-friendly, few have websites, and some lack any web presence whatsoever. 

Some of the numbers in the infographic below are staggering. Canadian online retail sales are expected to grow from $22 billion in 2014 to $40 billion in 2015, while only 12-13% of Canadian businesses sell online. Average Canadian online spending is on the rise, and the number of Canadians shopping online continues to grow. In 2014, it’s estimated that 1.5 million Canadian households shopped online for the first time, and that about 76% of all households have shopped online. 

Virtual Logistics estimates that only 46% of Canadian businesses have a website, and that only 41% of small businesses have a website. Only 19% of Canadian retailers have websites optimized for mobile, while 56% of Canadians are smartphone users.

Given that almost 70% of all online purchases made by Canadians were bought from retailers outside of Canada last year, it’s time for Canadian retailers to re-examine or in some cases, examine ecommerce strategies. 

For more on this and other topics, visit Virtual Logistics’ blog:  www.blog.virtuallogistics.ca

Canada’s largest women’s shoe hall has relocated and expanded. Located within Hudson’s Bay’s Toronto Eaton Centre flagship, the expansive footwear department recently re-opened on the store’s second level. 

The original 27,000 square foot shoe hall opened in the summer of 2013, and was located in the western portion of Hudson’s Bay’s ground floor. It has relocated to provide much needed retail space for Hudson’s Bay’s westward expansion, as the store shifts to accommodate Saks Fifth Avenue. Saks will occupy almost 33,300 square feet at the east end of the building’s ground-floor. 

The new 30,000 square foot second-level women’s shoe hall features a similar, modern look to the former ground-floor footwear space. A variety of price points are included, including a section devoted to ‘The Room’ shoes, with prices into the thousands from designers such as Azzedine Alaïa, Gianvito Rossi, Christian Louboutin, Nicholas Kirkwood, Lanvin, Giuseppe Zanotti, Sergio Rossi, Brian Atwood, and others. The footwear department replaces part of Hudson’s Bay’s second-level men’s floor, which has since moved upstairs to occupy the building’s entire 100,000 square foot fifth floor. 

Although substantial, the new footwear department occupies only about a third of the second level of the Toronto Eaton Centre Hudson’s Bay building. The western most section of the floor houses some women’s moderately-priced clothing, and its eastern half is currently under construction to house Saks Fifth Avenue’s new men’s floor. 

Toronto-based luxury firm WINSTON is looking to hire a full-time International Sales Director position. 
 
Client and Position Overview: As a lavish, contemporary fashion label based in Toronto, Ellie Mae‘s focus is on designing beautifully constructed, on-trend women’s jackets and outerwear fashioned from the finest Italian fabrics and yarns in tune with an of the moment client.

The label is searching for a passionate, enthusiastic, and fashion-savvy individual to join it on its journey to success. The brand is currently looking for an International Sales Director to join its team. 
 
The role includes, but is not limited to the following;
•  To build and maintain relationships with the brand’s clients and expand the present client base in both Canadian and U.S. markets, 
•  To manage future sales development in the U.K. and E.U.,
•  To manage future sales teams as well as future procurement and management teams,
•  To manage order placement, including reorders,
•  To oversee invoicing of clients and follow up with payments (previous client relationship required),
•  To manage the showroom, handle appointments, and orders,
•  To represent the brand at international trade shows (travel required),
•  To maintain and provide support for all purchase orderprocessing, from the time of placement, through shipping,
•  To be responsible for monthly sales performance reports, 
•  Proficient with Joor systems, Access, and or other similar systems, 
•  To be the main point of contact for all inquiries about the brand, including to liaise with PR and Editorial,
•  To assist in any ad-hoc requirements.
 
The Ideal International Sales Director is success driven with high-level communication skills. The candidate must have a minimum of 5 years of previous experience and is proficient with all the above requirements. The ideal candidate thrives in a fast-paced environment and does not require constant direction.
 
In order to be considered for this role candidates must meet the following requirements;
•  Entry requirements for the U.S., U.K. and E.U.,
•  Provide U.S. and Canadian contacts within similar market striation,
•  Tech-savvy, proficient with Microsoft Office, and order systems,
•  Must have the ability to travel and support a growing team.

If you feel you meet the above requirements, please send your resume and cover letter to: info@winstoncollective.com