4 Innovative Brands to Watch at This Year’s Future Stores Seattle
Future Stores is heading to Seattle June 19th - 21st and this year’s lineup features the creators of several brands who are winning big in retail. Here are four innovative brands to look out for:
Brand #1: INDOCHINO
The Seattle Store Safari takes place on Monday with cutting-edge spaces from INDOCHINO and Starbucks Reserve and the individuals who designed them. INDOCHINO’s VP of Design, Product & Store Development, Dean Handspiker, has recently received attention for flipping the retail script. INDOCHINO, known as an online brand, recently started opening physical stores where people can experience their made-to-measure men’s suits before buying. The Seattle store is the brand’s new flagship and is getting buzz for its open-concept design and personalized Style Guide customer experience.
Brand #2: Sugarfina
Who doesn’t want more boozy gummies in their life? Luxury candy retailer Sugarfina’s owner Rosie O’Neill set out to create a luxury candy boutique for adults, and since 2012 the company has grown to 38 stores worldwide with $25 million in revenue. Peter Garran of Great Hill Partners notes: "While many established brands are struggling in today's retail environment, Sugarfina is thriving due to their innovative products, distinctive branding, and unique, experiential approach to luxury confections." Rosie O’Neill knows how to make products and customer experiences that people will line up for- her rosé-inspired gummy bears once had an 18,000 name-long waiting list! At Future Stores Seattle, Rosie will share in her keynotespeech how Sugarfina looks at customer engagement, loyalty, and creating Instagrammable moments as the company moved from online to offline.
Brand #3: Nordstrom
Many in the retail industry have been closely following Seattle-based Nordstrom’s out-of-the-box moves in recent months: stores without merchandise, big investments in menswear-only locations, and new checkout methods. At Future Stores Seattle, Brian Gill, SVP, Technology will share what’s next in the brand’s pipeline. Powering personalization with technology helps Nordstrom better compete with Amazon. Customers go to Amazon because they know what they want, but Nordstrom designs for discovery: empowering customers to find out about products and brands they didn’t know existed. Nordstrom is actively investing in tech to empower this discovery, with recent acquisitions of BevyUp and MessageYes, digital retail start-ups that connect customers and brands in new ways.
Brand #4: Coach
Another retailer making big investments in innovation is Coach. Srinivasan Rajamanickam, Sr. Director, Technology Strategy & Architecture leads the brand’s digital store transformation, implementing OmniChannel strategies that connect in-store and online customer experiences. Under Rajamanickam’s leadership, Coach has pivoted, pulling their products from department stores and focusing more on the brand’s own stores. Made to order, monogramming, and Aptos-enabled integration of customer profiles have transformed Coach stores into marketing centers that build brand loyalty and one-to-one relationships with customers.