Target (Minneapolis) “has set the tone for investing in store design and experience over the past five years, resulting in their delivery of the best in-store shopper experience.”
That’s one of the takeaways from a new survey by ChaseDesign (Skaneateles, NY), which polled 1000 people aged 25-54 who were either the primary or secondary shoppers in their households.
A summary of the survey findings also credits Costco, Kroger and Dollar General for their own investments in creating better shopper experiences. Walmart, meanwhile, moved “well ahead” of Target in having the best app.
Other key findings include:
• Shoppers see 2022 as the tipping point for self-checkout, with shoppers citing it as the most used technology tool at physical retail. This means merchandising practices for retailers must change and adapt in order to sustain lucrative impulse purchases.
• Self-checkout joins QR codes and retailer shopping apps as the technologies that best help improve the shopping experience. More than two-thirds of shoppers use self-checkout at least occasionally, while 44% use the retailer’s shopping app and 29% use QR codes – all of which represent increases from previous years.
• A vast majority of consumers, 85%, will do more in-store shopping in 2022 than last year, up from the 79% reporting increased visits in 2021.
“Following nearly two years of building e-commerce into their buying patterns, shoppers are demanding a new physical store experience that integrates the digital benefits they’ve gotten used to,” says Joe Lampertius, president of ChaseDesign. “This means creating a more convenient, rewarding and fun customer journey through the store.
“For retailers, this means maintaining and even boosting their expertise in e-commerce and omnichannel in the context of their physical stores. It’s about having the right information presented to shoppers through the use of apps, QR codes, AR and VR, and other digital tech, so the in-store shopping experience can be as dynamic and convenient as online experiences.”