Retail Needs Augmented Reality Experiences, Not Promotions
Whether you agree with the idea that there is a “retail apocalypse” or not, retail is certainly experiencing a very high degree of change and disruption. It’s been going on for years, and will likely continue for years as well, as consumer technology continues its rapid evolution, and retailers find themselves forced to keep up. The difference between an apocalypse promoter and an apocalypse denier comes down to whether you’re an optimist or a pessimist. There are a lot of retail stores closing, and still more retailers who are declaring bankruptcy or outright closing their doors for good. Pessimists look at these trends and say the retail store is dying. “Apocalypse!” Optimists look at the same trends and say that retail is definitely changing, and the 20th-century store is certainly a relic of the past. However, some retailers are adapting, even as digital upstarts figure out the 21st-century model and start opening stores – stores which don’t look a lot like the stores that are closing. Retailers who don’t have the financial cushion that can support change file for bankruptcy, and even the retailers who have that cushion face a rocky road ahead, as they struggle to
