Revolutionising retail industry through technology

Retailing is as ancient as it could be. In UK, in 1950s, Sainsbury’s, one of the largest supermarket
chains, was the first retailer to shift paradigms in terms of shopping experiences. It offered ‘queue-less
shopping’ for customers to shop the store by pushing a metal trolley around the aisles rather than waiting
in line at a counter to be served. Later, through the 1990s, retail adopted a lot of change in terms of
services and offerings. Initially, stores focused on serving three classes of individuals. High-end stores
catered to the wealthy, while price-conscious department stores were for the middle class, and more
budget-driven brands such as Walmart served the low-income economy. These stores catered towards a
variety of their intended classes’ needs with products of similar quality and price. As technology evolved
and also as the middle-class economy continued to grow worldwide, a “new paradigm” has emerged.
The Industrial revolution introduced mass production and distribution. Ford began to produce large
batches in record time. Toyota evolved its manufacturing methods while still being cost-effective. Dell
helped pioneer mass customization to meet consumer desires.
Today, retailers are becoming increasingly dependent on customer experience innovations. This has led
to a ‘Transformational Age’ in retail. The consumer is clearly in the driver’s seat, enabled by technology,
constantly connected and more empowered to drive changes in their spending behaviour. “Anywhere
and anytime” concept has taken birth, giving consumers the flexibility to shop however, wherever, and
whenever they want. Technology is changing the way every industry used to do business by helping to
create efficiencies, save money, and provide better products and services. Retail businesses hence have
gone through drastic changes in a few years’ time by adopting technology to their advantage.
Innovations and transformations are occurring faster and at a greater magnitude than ever, which
requires manufacturers and retailers to balancing conventional performance metrics like growth,
profitability, and space productivity.
Mobile first:
Online shopping has become a common trend. Most recent projections suggest that more than 35
percent of all commerce will be conducted on mobile devices, and more than 80 percent of consumers
will use some form of mobile device and/or mobile application to drive purchasing decisions.
Showrooming – where consumers sample products while searching for cheaper versions on their phone
– is changing the way shopping decisions are made. Luxury has traditionally lagged in this area – 80% of
high-end fashion brands, for instance, have developed mobile websites.

For example, Harrods’ iPad magazine app features a make-up studio where customers can apply
make-up to selfies to test colour schemes and then purchase the result. Harrods’ The Make-up Studio
was designed for their magazine app and fit to format mobile devices. The steps begin with interactive
customization, and finish with a product pop-up for consumers to shop.

Carbon 3D Printing:

3D printing is a game changer for the retail industry. More and more brands are exploring 3D printing for
on-demand production, to create new avenues for customization, sustainability and creativity. It has now
become a necessity as competitiveness lies in delivering products tailored to the customers tastes and
needs in a speedy and timely manner. Through 3-D printing, there is faster production rate, cost
reduction, cutback on inventory and customised product creation.

Nescafe ,one of the most known coffee brands in the world, used 3D technology to give their customers
a surprisingly pleasant experience along with their coffee. The coffee jars waking up their clients. The
jars came with a 3D printed cap with an electronic alarm clock inside. The 3D printed cap lights up in red
and plays nice tunes to wake you up. To turn the alarm off, the jar has to be opened. And that’s the
moment when the smell of the coffee is released. For a retailer that means building a strong connection
between the brand and the client, by influencing their customer’s senses: hearing (the alarm music),
eyesight (red cap and light), touch (the 3D printed caps had different textures) and smell (of the coffee of
course). This is the creation of the ultimate customer experience and branding, achieved all thanks to
Additive Manufacturing. So is the example of IKEA with its 3D printed chairs, Adidas with 3Dprinted
soles, etc.

3D printing is also in trend in clothing. Fashion designer Julia Daviy unveiled one of the first-ever
wearable collections made of entirely 3D printed materials. Despite the fact it took over 300 hours to
create, it resulted in less waste and proved far less labor-intensive than other types of manufacturing. Iris
Van Herpen. The Dutch designer has a vast body of work in this field dating back to 2010. One of her
most notable pieces is the "Crystallization" top, which was 3D printed from white polyamide.