Recently, we were asked "if wedding fayres actually make any money, & how resilient they're likely to be."
The ask came from someone who had attended a wedding show as an interested observer, and hadn't noticed a great many customers in the time they were there.
While the wedding industry is not our focus, challenges to all sectors, including retail, absolutely falls under our strategic leadership focus.
The wedding industry, in particular, is very much feeling the impact of people buying formal wear through vintage, thrift, and low-cost online retailers, because it is more affordable.
However, many of those people, particularly brides, still want an "experience" as part of their wedding preparations, which is something wedding retailers used to give as a loss-lead, knowing they'd sell high-mark-up dresses as a result of the "pamper day experience", and make a plentiful amount of income from even just one session.
Online retail, and its contrast, a focus on shopping sustainably, isn't going to go away.
Neither is peoples' desire for their wedding to be an experience that extends around the day of their wedding ceremony.
So, the future of events retail, particularly the wedding industry, is going to be about selling experiences, rather than items.
The ask came from someone who had attended a wedding show as an interested observer, and hadn't noticed a great many customers in the time they were there.
While the wedding industry is not our focus, challenges to all sectors, including retail, absolutely falls under our strategic leadership focus.
The wedding industry, in particular, is very much feeling the impact of people buying formal wear through vintage, thrift, and low-cost online retailers, because it is more affordable.
However, many of those people, particularly brides, still want an "experience" as part of their wedding preparations, which is something wedding retailers used to give as a loss-lead, knowing they'd sell high-mark-up dresses as a result of the "pamper day experience", and make a plentiful amount of income from even just one session.
Online retail, and its contrast, a focus on shopping sustainably, isn't going to go away.
Neither is peoples' desire for their wedding to be an experience that extends around the day of their wedding ceremony.
So, the future of events retail, particularly the wedding industry, is going to be about selling experiences, rather than items.
This "experience retail" is going to extend beyond events, and into the wider, general retail sphere. This isn't just down to the impact of the cost of living on peoples' shopping habits, or the perceived dominance of the online space; it's also going to need to happen in order to address the challenges AI will pose.
What AI can't do - and will probably never be able to do - is provide the unique, unquantifiable, random, quirky human element of focused interaction.
That's where experience retail comes in.
And why it has to be accessible and inclusive.
What does experience retail look like?
You enter a large, open-plan ground floor space. Automatic doors, their glass covered in light decorative adhesive panels, slide quietly open, to high-finish, smooth flooring.
The space flows through discreetly differentiated areas; a silk screen here, an entryway formed by two stands hosting elaborate vase displays there, hanging voile curtains, glass pebble fountains, A1 canvas backed photography.
When you booked this experience, you were asked what your style preferences for relaxation venues were, and what your thoughts about the vibe of your wedding were; you are welcomed by a greeter dressed in a way which matches those preferences; formal suit and tie, relaxed smart casual, or outrageously idiosyncratic.
Likewise, you were asked about your musical preferences, and relevant music is playing quietly in the background.
You are taken to a discreet, comfortably furnished changing area, almost a full-sized room within the space, which is well lit, with a variety of accessible seating options, and supports to assist wheelchair users to stand. This is where you will change into the dress, suit, or other "big event" outfit you have already purchased, perhaps from a vintage store, a thrift/charity shop, or an online retailer.
When you emerge from the changing room, you are guided to a section of the space which is dedicated to a wide array of jewellery. Everything from classic, simple formal, to bright, bold, contemporary quirk is on offer. There are loose gemstones, loose beads. Loops of chain, leather, hemp, dance in shades of gold, silver, taupe, and oxblood. You can run your fingers through the beads and gems, feel the texture of the pendants. A tailored style consultant moves through the displays with an ornate tray, picking out a selection of necklaces, chokers, bracelets, earrings - drop, stud, and huggie - cufflinks, brooches, and tie clips. They approach, and invite you to consider the items they've selected, discussing, with true professional knowledge and artistic grounding, how each complements or accentuates your outfit, highlights your own unique style, or communicates something about the wider concept of your event, your relationship, or your personal story.
The experience is repeated with flowers, perfumes (for both of these, you will have been asked about sensitivities, allergies, and fragrance profiles when you booked your experience), food and drink options (again, allergies and texture/flavour profile preferences will have been noted when you booked your experience.)
Finally, the walls turn into a display of venue and honeymoon location options, accompanied by a selection of music, in your identified taste profile, performed by independent musicians who would be available for your event (your dates, prospective or fixed, were taken when you booked your experience, and have been confirmed with the venues and artistes). A console table by the doors holds brochures for every location and performer featured on the display, so you can consider those which made the greatest impact at your leisure.
These experiences are pre-booked, with the full cost paid upon booking, and they are exclusive to an individual parties. Outside of these booked events, the ambience and offerings change theme daily, a kind of permanent pop-up shop:
Masculinity Mondays - various expressions of masculinity, from the sublime (minimalistic formal) to the ridiculous (80s fluidity)
Taco Tuesdays - relaxed, laid back, and all about casual chill time with friends.
Wild Wednesdays - all about the exotic, unusual, and even outrageous
Traditional Thursdays - formal, including neo-formal and vintage/retro (gothic, steampunk, etc.)
Formal Fridays - traditional and minimalisitc
Shoot-out Saturdays - 80s-90s retro arcade themes
Sensual Sundays - for all things feminine
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What AI can't do - and will probably never be able to do - is provide the unique, unquantifiable, random, quirky human element of focused interaction.
That's where experience retail comes in.
And why it has to be accessible and inclusive.
What does experience retail look like?
You enter a large, open-plan ground floor space. Automatic doors, their glass covered in light decorative adhesive panels, slide quietly open, to high-finish, smooth flooring.
The space flows through discreetly differentiated areas; a silk screen here, an entryway formed by two stands hosting elaborate vase displays there, hanging voile curtains, glass pebble fountains, A1 canvas backed photography.
When you booked this experience, you were asked what your style preferences for relaxation venues were, and what your thoughts about the vibe of your wedding were; you are welcomed by a greeter dressed in a way which matches those preferences; formal suit and tie, relaxed smart casual, or outrageously idiosyncratic.
Likewise, you were asked about your musical preferences, and relevant music is playing quietly in the background.
You are taken to a discreet, comfortably furnished changing area, almost a full-sized room within the space, which is well lit, with a variety of accessible seating options, and supports to assist wheelchair users to stand. This is where you will change into the dress, suit, or other "big event" outfit you have already purchased, perhaps from a vintage store, a thrift/charity shop, or an online retailer.
When you emerge from the changing room, you are guided to a section of the space which is dedicated to a wide array of jewellery. Everything from classic, simple formal, to bright, bold, contemporary quirk is on offer. There are loose gemstones, loose beads. Loops of chain, leather, hemp, dance in shades of gold, silver, taupe, and oxblood. You can run your fingers through the beads and gems, feel the texture of the pendants. A tailored style consultant moves through the displays with an ornate tray, picking out a selection of necklaces, chokers, bracelets, earrings - drop, stud, and huggie - cufflinks, brooches, and tie clips. They approach, and invite you to consider the items they've selected, discussing, with true professional knowledge and artistic grounding, how each complements or accentuates your outfit, highlights your own unique style, or communicates something about the wider concept of your event, your relationship, or your personal story.
The experience is repeated with flowers, perfumes (for both of these, you will have been asked about sensitivities, allergies, and fragrance profiles when you booked your experience), food and drink options (again, allergies and texture/flavour profile preferences will have been noted when you booked your experience.)
Finally, the walls turn into a display of venue and honeymoon location options, accompanied by a selection of music, in your identified taste profile, performed by independent musicians who would be available for your event (your dates, prospective or fixed, were taken when you booked your experience, and have been confirmed with the venues and artistes). A console table by the doors holds brochures for every location and performer featured on the display, so you can consider those which made the greatest impact at your leisure.
These experiences are pre-booked, with the full cost paid upon booking, and they are exclusive to an individual parties. Outside of these booked events, the ambience and offerings change theme daily, a kind of permanent pop-up shop:
Masculinity Mondays - various expressions of masculinity, from the sublime (minimalistic formal) to the ridiculous (80s fluidity)
Taco Tuesdays - relaxed, laid back, and all about casual chill time with friends.
Wild Wednesdays - all about the exotic, unusual, and even outrageous
Traditional Thursdays - formal, including neo-formal and vintage/retro (gothic, steampunk, etc.)
Formal Fridays - traditional and minimalisitc
Shoot-out Saturdays - 80s-90s retro arcade themes
Sensual Sundays - for all things feminine
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Interested in how to create an inclusively designed experience retail setting? Book consultancy services with The Productive Pessimist; email:
theproductivepessimist@yahoo.com
theproductivepessimist@yahoo.com
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