New short-format video series celebrates visual merchandising and the creation of great retail experiences
BOSTON – (June 18, 2019) – One Door, Inc., the leading provider of cloud-based visual merchandising software, today launched “Off the Shelf”, a new video and content series showcasing retailers who are re-writing the rules of merchandising. Season one features one of the industry’s most disruptive retailers – SHOWFIELDS, “the most interesting store in the world”– and is hosted by retail veteran Andrew Smith.
SHOWFIELDS, which opened in New York City in December 2018, is a four-story retail store featuring dozens of brands. With their focus on curation, they give digitally native brands not just the space to showcase their products, but the visual merchandising guidance to create unique, immersive experiences that bring their brands to life. Smith, formerly the Head of Retail Operations for Telstra, works with the world’s leading retailers to reimagine and reframe their thinking on traditional retail.
A one-of-a-kind new content series, “Off the Shelf” features interviews with the creative minds behind SHOWFIELDS, including co-founders Tal Zvi Nathanel and Katie Hunt. In each episode, Smith and his guests walk the floors of SHOWFIELDS to explore industry trends and share how brands are thinking about merchandising and space planning in the new retail environment.
“Retail is in flux and brands are scrambling to figure out what their customer wants most,” Smith said. “SHOWFIELDS is a prime example of a thriving retailer that brings experience, brand and product together in one space. With a focus on the art of visual merchandising and the power it has over a store, they are the perfect retailer to showcase on the first episodes of ‘Off the Shelf’. We believe that by hearing from the leading thinkers and doers in innovative retail, that this series will provide visual merchandisers with the tools they need to reimagine the retail store of the future.”
The videos explore how three up-and-coming brands are exploring brick and mortar through the retailer’s unique store model. The brands include CITYROW, which provides at-home rowing machines and workouts through a mobile app; The Farmer’s Dog, making homemade, fresh dog food and treats; and Mother Dirt, skincare products made with live bacteria. Each brand worked with the SHOWFIELDS team to create unique flagship spaces for their merchandise.
“Retailers need to think beyond ‘experiential’ and must curate spaces for brands to truly thrive in modern retail. We’re proud that One Door and Andrew Smith chose us to help educate retailers, while giving them a fresh outlook on what’s possible,” said Katie Hunt, co-founder and CRO at SHOWFIELDS. “This series does a fantastic job of identifying the issues that visual merchandisers face and gives them the insights they need to move their ideas forward.”
Smith also shares his point of view on the current retail landscape and how the unsung heroes – visual merchandisers and space planners – fit into the puzzle of modern retail with informative written content for the “Off the Shelf” blog.
“There are retailers and brands differentiating themselves by creating amazing experiences that take advantage of the immersive nature of physical retail,” said Tom Erskine, CMO and SVP of Product at One Door. “‘Off the Shelf’ is all about celebrating those experiences and learning from those in our industry with a passion to re-write the rules of visual merchandising.”