The Middle East is a leading destination for luxury retail and fashion, attracting discerning shoppers from around the world. It is therefore no surprise that so many luxury brands have recognized this opportunity and have opened stores inside widely popular mega malls that offer the most elite customer experiences.
For brands to deliver the current customer expectations they need to live up to these popular trends in Luxury Retail
Personalized shopping experiences
What has become central to luxury retail is the personal retailing approach of clientelling where a store associate, supported by technology turns your shopping companion through the purchase stages, from browsing to transacting, up to selecting a way to pay for and receive the item and beyond.
With personalized recommendations supported by customers’ preferred methods of communication including WhatsApp, SMS, and email, more curated purchases boost basket sizes and reduce returns.
Luxury in-store sales to remain popular
As per a Dubai based report, almost 78 percent of luxury sales are predicted to happen offline by 2025 and with footfall increasing in the Middle East, stores in-store shopping or shop in shops is clearly a trend gaining momentum. This means that linking online channels to offline stores is essential for a continued shopping experience.
Shopping-from-anywhere
Even though in-store luxury shopping experiences remain popular, online shopping has gained traction in recent years. Changing demographics of millennial and Gen Z luxury shoppers – largely digital natives – are driving a modern, personalized service which they can access anytime/anywhere.
In fact, nearly 30 percent of global luxury sales will be online by 2025. Omnichannel presence is now a necessity to ensure customers’ needs are met no matter from where they shop.
Rise of sustainability
Luxury brands need to live by sustainability credentials with transparency and honesty at its core. And this is where the power of store associates becomes critical to the sales model. When customers request more information on the brands such as long-term effects of manufacture and recycling initiatives, store associates can direct them to the right data that is integrated across omnichannel platforms.
Immersive experiences
Meeting the needs of local luxury shoppers who crave unique in-store experiences will certainly turn out profitable. Memorable encounters and socially shareable retail interiors are key to retail success in the UAE as they bring hospitality and retail together in one location.
Products that tap into the local culture, while having an international look and feel coupled with immersive experiences provide a service that cannot be emulated online. This is why locals and tourists visit the stores to experience something new. Dubai particularly has the reputation of pushing the boundary between retail and new experiences to redefine the future of physical shopping.
Data analytics to monitor buying behavior
Investing in retail technology to collect customer data from every touch point and using data analytics to know why shoppers tick is a sure-fire route to drive business growth. Knowing your customers has never been more important. The shift in their attitude towards more thoughtful buying and a concern for the environment is driving buying habits and loyalty more than ever before. Loyal customers not only enhance repeat customs but also recommend their friends and family to buy.
BRANDS that deliver superior, personalized, and consistent experiences while handling customer data within the confines of privacy regulations will be the winners.
We at Abra, a trusted fit out company in Dubai, have been a major player in the retail fit out industry for almost three decades and we are geared up to help our clients with creating bespoke shopfitting, pop up stores and augmenting the overall retail interiors.