Store of the Future, is our core belief: Hozefa Attari, Co- Founder Networkbay

This Lockdown is seeing many behaviourial changes, post the lockdown many consumer habits will change. Today NetworkBay launched its ‘Retail Day:1’, contactless retail the future.  Even after the lockdown is lifted, consumers will still be apprehensive about stepping out and visiting stores. The footfall would be very low. China is a precedent of this consumer behaviour pattern. With the emergence of the online platforms that empower the consumer whilst ensuring their safety, engagement will be driven more on the basis of the ‘experiential’ rather than ‘material’. The post-covid retail environment will surely be a default online retail preference.

A recent survey by National Retail Federation (NRF) deduced: • 9 in 10 consumers have changed their traditional shopping habits • More than 50% of consumers have ordered products online that they would normally purchase at the store • Nearly 6 in 10 consumers say they are worried about going to the store due to fear of being infected Some of these changes would be temporary while others will be permanent. As the community moves beyond the survival mode, the digital-adoption momentum is likely to carry forward and become permanent. As a matter of fact, consumer behaviour will be dependent on 2 factors – the reluctance to mingle in crowded public places and higher propensity for digital adoption. While the survey by NRF represents finding in America, but the human sentiments resonate with the changing behaviour across the globe.

A Nielsen study unveiled in March 2020 looked at the retail purchase in traditional, modern and e-commerce channels, and evaluated consumer attitudes. It tracked this behaviour for several weeks from the time the disease first surfaced in India till the country went under a lockdown. First, it observes an increase in consumer interest in health and hygiene products, leading to purchase of safety items such as hand sanitizers and face masks. As the disease spread, consumers started stockpiling their pantry with shelf-stable food and broader assortment of health and safety products. Store visits went up and the basket size expanded. The quarantine stage, followed by restrictive living, led to a rise in online shopping, fewer store visits, purchase of essential goods

The aforesaid data and research excerpts imply that it is time for contactless retail experience for brands and it is here to stay.

At the launch MediaNews4U spoke to Hozefa Attari, Co-Founder, Networkbay and Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman and CEO, FCB India

Philosophy of Networkbay?

NetworkBay combines the strengths of some of the leading global retail design, technology and service brands to build every retailer’s and brands “Store of the Future”. Our core belief is that by creating this platform of best in class partners, we can deliver transformational retail experiences.

You are talking about a virtual marketplace, is it one size fits all?

No, every retail product has a different customer journey be it a car or a shoe. However, for each of these categories, there are tremendous possibilities to redefine these customers buying journeys to reflect the post covid scenario. Our objective with ‘Retail Day 1’ is to work with each brand, figure out what their biggest barrier to purchase is, and develop a new journey that combines design and technology to transform their retail experience.

There are certain products where touch and feel is necessary, say make-up, how will it work for them?

Even for categories for make-up for example, we are seeing a huge adoption in technology. Brands are now using Augmented Reality, for example, to allow cosmetic customers to put on their favorite shade of lipstick by looking into an augmented reality-powered Ipad. (Just for your reference take a look at this video.

Things like grocery is already a big hit in e-commerce, how will you enhance consumer experience?

While e-commerce of grocery is a big hit, we feel that soon customers will still want to go into physical stores to browse products. Of course,  they need to be assured of their safety and for that, there are quite a few solutions that one can deploy. Forex. Contactless checkout where you don’t want to stand in queue and you don’t have to come in contact with the cashier or the product you purchased.

 How is FCB strategizing this communication?

Rohit said, “With the launch of ‘Retail: Day 1’ a special initiative to ‘manage, redefine and transform’ the retail experiences in the post-COVID era, we aim to work closely with brands and retailers to adapt to the new retail environment.

Our research shows that shopper behavior will dramatically change in the future. Even though retail stores may be open, customers who shop there will not engage with the stores as they used to. The footfall would be very low. Retail needs to urgently reinvent itself for the post-COVID world. We’re hoping that with our RETAIL DAY 1 initiative, we are able to help our clients rapidly build back their business as we provide an opportunity for brands to adapt to new normal with the new enhanced contactless retail experience”.