British health and beauty retailer Boots has opened a new ‘wellness concept store’ in the heart of London; the first of a string of revamped shops to be rolled out across the UK.
The new store will display 300 brands, including innovative newcomers such as Fenty Beauty, across 3 floors. Shoppers can watch live demonstrations of products, before taking pictures in the Instagram zone or filming in the YouTube studio.
Tapping into consumer demand for sustainable options, the store boasts an impressive range of eco-friendly products and a ‘rehydration station’ with a free water tap. Boots pharmacy shoppers will be able collect repeat prescriptions from secure lockers, emulating the convenience of online ‘click and collect’ options.
Innovations like these show how retailers can evolve and create experiences in store that please digital native shoppers, whose interest in mobile-first, socially-conscious retail experiences has been well documented.
This evolution is reflected elsewhere in the beauty industry: various stores from MAC, to Bloomingdales, to Sephora feature dedicated hubs for impartial advice, make-up testing and selfie-taking—replicating the online world of beauty hauls, peer-to-peer reviews and online tutorials in which many young shoppers are immersed.
With recent research showing that Gen Z actually prefer shopping in-store, and with major retailers adjusting to their needs, is it possible that the younger generation might just be the unexpected saviors of retail?
Contributed By: Marta Formenton, Account Manager, Integer London
Image Source: Unsplash
