Burberry Regent Street pilots interactive technology
Burberry has unveiled one of the most technologically advanced stores in the UK.
Burberry Regent Street in London blurs the physical and digital world to create 'Burberry World Live', which claims to offer customers the physical expression of the brand's most innovative digital launches in recent times.
The launch of the landmark store today (13 September) comes in the same month that the luxury retailer issued a profits warning, saying sales had stalled.
The store's features include a 22ft-high screen, 500 hidden speakers and a hydraulic stage.
It also showcases RFID microchips – radio-frequency identification – in some of its clothes.
This means that when a customer wears the microchipped clothing, they can look into a mirror that transforms into a screen, which shows how the garment would look on a catwalk. There will also be a digitally enabled gallery and events space.
The store covers four floors and is the largest Burberry branch in the world.
According to Burberry, 1% of the value of all purchases made in Burberry Regent Street will go to support the work of the Burberry Foundation, its charitable arm.
Angela Ahrendts, Burberry chief executive officer, said: "Burberry Regent Street brings our digital world to life in a physical space for the first time, where customers can experience every facet of the brand through immersive multimedia content, exactly as they do online. Walking through the doors is just like walking into our website. It is Burberry World Live.
Christopher Bailey, Burberry chief creative officer, said: "Burberry Regent Street is one of the most architecturally and culturally significant projects we have undertaken. In renovating this iconic London building, we have worked with some of the UK's finest craftsmen to restore a wealth of historic features, at the same time as pushing the boundaries of digital technology".
http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1149851/burberry-regent-street-pilots-interactive-technology
MORE September 14, 2012 http://readwrite.com/2012/09/14/digitally-integrated-burberry-flagship-store-opens-in-london#awesm=~ooet6BgBcHXRRP
Burberry's London flagship store recently underwent a renovation that turned the 192-year old building into a digitally integrated showroom for the luxury fashion brand.
Last weekend, American Public Media's radio show, Marketplace Money, aired a feature about how some luxury brands are starting to hurt in the long-suffering economy even as inexpensive brands are thriving. One of the companies that saw a slide in earnings was Burberry.
Perhaps coincidentally, the company best known for its plaids and classic trenches wants to boost its status through digital interactivity. This week, after two years of renovation, the brand open the doors of its digitally integrated store, Burberry Regent Street, in London.
Burberry executives say they're "blurring" the line between the physical and digital, mimicking the online shopping experience in Burberry Regent Street. Many features on the site have a physical counterpart, from the live customer-service chats to interactive outfit suggestions.
Interactive signage greets shoppers as they walk in and displays key points in the building. Associates carry iPads with customer information, including past purchases and preferences. On the floor, certain articles of clothing and accessories carry RFID chips. These chips interact with store mirrors to show videos on craftsmanship or examples of what the items can be paired with.
At the end of the shopping trip, customers can check out through a mobile system a la an Apple Store, or go to a regular cashier.
Occasionally taking center stage in the store, quite literally, are "disruptive digital takeovers." At set times, thunder claps from all 500 store speakers, and on all 100 mirrors/screens, including those in fitting rooms, appears an iconic London downpour. (If you're a skittish shopper, may we suggest calling ahead to make sure you avoid these displays?) The rest of the time, models are shown walking from screen to screen, promoting the company's most recent line.
And, just in case you were wondering, the store does have WiFi.
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