Nikki Baird

Grocery Theatricals Put Under the Spotlight

July 28, 2010

FROM RETAILWIRE:
Enticing smells will increase spend and build loyalty. What you see, however, isn't always what it appears to be. Do you buy the argument that supermarket theatricals are a means of misleading the consumer or do you see them as an essential element of improving the shopping experience?      [more...]

I think the transparency aspect of the articles, vs. focusing in on retail theater specifically, are not really connected. As someone who maintained that Montgomery Wards was in part undone by the fact that it's really disconcerting to shop for women's apparel when it smells like tires, I can't argue the point that smell is an important part of the retail experience.

But I also can't argue that we seem to be on the cusp of our century's Upton Sinclair/The Jungle moment in terms of understanding where our food is really coming from and how not paying attention to that is having an impact on our bodies.

So, if the bakery is adding value to the bread by finishing off the bake, and that helps sell bread, I'm fine with that. However, I do think there are far more pressing opportunities for grocers than bread smell when it comes to creating a relevant, differentiating experience for consumers.