posted on
June 17, 2008 at 09:24AM
My best shopping experiences:
1. My most recent impressive experience was at Costco. First time visiting the store. I do not have a membership card but a friend does and we went there to shop for a cookout. I was looking at purchasing some steak and as I am not a meat eater, I had no idea which kind was good for grilling. I asked for help from an associate nearby. All I expected was for him to tell me the 'name' of the meat to look for. But instead, he came out of his work area and personally showed me the better meats for grilling and why (the marblizing) they were best for grilling. I was completely blown away by the associate's excitement and full knowledge about meat. I think he could have talked about it for an hour if I had the time.
2. The Buckle offers alterations for jeans....especially important for us short people.
3. Martin and Osa (a fairly new apparel retailer for men and women from American Eagle), have the season's 'must-have' looks posted inside the fitting room. They also have a call button to be able to get immediate assistance in the fitting room.
4. Nordstrom...excellent customer service. Great retailer to aspire to. This weekend they had a live DJ in their shoe department. Though we were shopping for father's day, the shoe department and the men's department was swamped with shoppers.
5. Husband shops mostly at Banana Republic, Nordstrom for work attire...they are consistent to him. Easy to shop, consistent fit, same key silhouettes which he needs every season and fun updated fashion pieces. Men appreciate the details in the otherwise basic items (polos and khakis at these retailers always offer something 'new' in the details). Other than these two retailers, the basics or seasonal items he feels comfortable getting at Target...which is conveniently located 10 minutes from our house. Same distance as Sears. However, Sears is at the mall (not convenient).
6. Whenever we have ever 'needed' something last minute, it seems it's Target we go to. Target is the place we go to buy what we need to prepare us for a funeral, party supplies for a birthday party, for our toiletries, for half our groceries, for men's and kids' swimsuit, for kids clothes, for birthday party present, greeting cards, bicycles, outdoors fun equipment, back to school shopping, Easter candy, Halloween candy. I realize some of this, Kmart or Sears might carry...but not all this at one place...also, they are not conveniently located 10 minutes from home and not in a mall. Also, both Sears and Kmart are just not a fun and pleasant environment to shop in. Sears hardlines looks much better than the apparel side.
7. When shopping last week, retailers such as Bloomingdale's, Forever 21, Nordstrom, American Eagle, macy's, all had hip music which keeps shoppers motivated and focused on shopping when it's uplifting and fun music.
8. Was at Great Indoors last week to purchase new bedding. The store looked magnificent except it was missing color. Styles (of the bedding) are outdated. If you look at Crate&Barrel and Ikea, they have inspiring and uplifting color. Also, there was no kids area. I think this is a big miss. Pottery Barn Teen is growing...another big opportunity. In times of economic slowdown, kids and teens are priority and parents keep spending on their kids. I left Great Indoors feeling uninspired.
Overall, the trend is about customer service and focus, personalization, and control over your time and space (or convenience). I can't say I have had any of the above experiences at Kmart or Sears.
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