Automation is changing the retail experience, and architects are guiding retail tenants and developers toward more innovative and tech-forward retail concepts. David Sheldon, VP of engagement at Retail Design Collaborative, sat down with us to talk about why automation is becoming the leading trend in retail, how it is impacting the market today and how he expects automation will have a lasting effect on the retail market.

GlobeSt.com: You have named automation has one of the dominant trends impacting the retail market today. Why?

David Sheldon: Automation is headlined with a statement that we have learned from our research with our clients: 'Everything inconvenient will change.' It is about making things simpler and more convenient and readily accessible for consumers to engage with brands. That is affecting how we design for our clients.

GlobeSt.com: Can you give me some examples of how automation is impacting retail today?

Sheldon: I think that automation, machine learning and adaptation are affecting retail and architecture in two ways. One is in the back of house, which is everything that you don't see as a consumer. That is the automation of how things get moved around. In ecommerce, the automation industry has been redefined and reimagined by groups like Amazon. In a store, automation has changed how a brand uses a point-of-sale engagement with a customer. The thing that I find interesting with automation is the gallery experience with retail, and what happens once you order your goods. I don't know if that gallery experience is here to stay or if it is an in-between trend. There is something really interesting about the experience of walking into a store and buying something that will then be delivered to you later.

I was just on site at Westfield Century City touring the property and seeing what their innovations are for the property. Their parking experience is now managed through an app, and when you drive up to the gate the app has your credit card info and a camera looks at your license plate, which is tagged in your profile. When you leave, it recognizes your plate, and you are charged the parking fee. Another interesting, albeit predictable, innovation that Westfield has done is to consolidate all of their tenants under one umbrella as a point of sale for the sheer purpose of collecting data on their consumers. Westfield can now predict the trends of its consumers and offer different sales.

GlobeSt.com: You mentioned gallery or showroom retail is just a trend. Is that the onset of a more permanent retail store?

Sheldon: There is going to be a byproduct that comes of it. One store that I like to highlight is the new Nordstrom Gallery store on Melrose. A typical Nordstrom store is 140,000 square feet, approximately, and this one is 3,000 square feet. It is all about service and hospitality and the Nordstrom brand. However, the process of buying something and having it delivered later creates a weird gap of experience in retail. I am not sure that process will be here to stay. I think that is a trend. The byproduct of what is happening that may stay is the downsizing and shrinking of a store. Nordstrom going from 140,000 square feet to 3,000 square feet is a signal that we are overstored, and we know that. I think that this evolution will yield a byproduct of some brands shrinking the in-store experience and still being able to hit their sales globally.

GlobeSt.com: How will shrinking store footprints change the retail experiences that we know today?

Sheldon: The question is: is the drive and shop mall experience going to change? We certainly see a resurgence of street retail. You can look at Abbott Kinney and La Brea in Downtown L.A. Street retail is shifting again, and people don't want to spend $5 to go park at a mall and walk to get to their stores. I am a little confounded with what the future of the mall is in that respect.

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Automation Drives Change in Retail Design

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