IKEA packs an entire store into a 10.5cm x 8.8cm web banner
Swedish home products retailer IKEA has appeared on our virtual pages many a time, and recently we found cause to cover it again. The innovation this time? Something the company calls “the smallest store in the world” — namely, an entire IKEA store packed into a 10.5cm x 8.8cm web banner. READ MORE…
In Italy, site lets users crowdsource small and last-minute grocery deliveries
Late last year we featured Massachusetts-based NeighborFavor, a site that lets college students earn cash by helping each other with their shopping, and recently we came across a variation on that same premise in a different part of the world. Based in Italy this time, Milk, Please! is an online service that lets consumers crowdsource help with small and last-minute grocery deliveries. READ MORE…
Doughnut shop closes its doors each day as soon as it sells out
There’s nothing like a little planned scarcity to increase a product’s appeal, and we’ve seen several strategic uses of it over the years. Now joining that list is The Doughnut Vault, a Chicago venue that closes up shop each day as soon as its doughnuts sell out. READ MORE…
Pop-up store sells chocolate for good deeds, not money
Regular readers of Springwise will already be familiar with the numerous alternative payment models we’ve written about over the years, but this most recent example is perhaps the most heart-warming. Chocolatier Anthon Berg recently enabled customers to pay with a good deed, rather than cash, at a pop-up location called The Generous Store. READ MORE…
Supermarket scanner recognizes objects without barcodes
We recently reported on an innovation from Touchcode, which has developed invisible scannable tags to leave more space for content on printed products. Achieving similar results through different technology, Toshiba Tec has now created the Object Recognition Scanner, which reads items without the use of barcodes. READ MORE…
App delivers customers’ shopping history to staff as they check-in
Apps such as Brouha can already deliver deals to customers’ phones as they walk around a store, but now we’ve come across an effort from Neiman Marcus that takes that concept a step further. The US luxury retail store is now trialling its NM Service app, which provides sales associates with consumer data they can act upon in real time. READ MORE…
Fashion brand offers discounts based on shoppers’ social influence
Marketers have long known that consumers vary widely in terms of their influence over others, but today’s social networks are making those differences plain for all to see. Aiming to zero in on the shoppers with the widest social clout, Volga Verdi is a California-based fashion brand that offers its customers discounts depending on the number of friends, followers or fans they have on popular social networks. READ MORE…
Chinese website hands stock and pricing decisions to customers
Among the many opportunities presented by online retail, we’ve seen a wave of innovations aiming to hand more control of the process over to customers themselves. Body Shop Bids recently demonstrated the concept with its platform enabling car owners to solicit bids for repairs before choosing where to take their vehicle. In China, Handsup.cn now aims to hand power over to the consumer by asking them to recommend products they want to buy, as well as the price tag. READ MORE…
From Brooklyn, a curated source of locally made gifts
We’ve been writing for years about the power of local roots to give a product extra appeal, and recently we came across another notable example. Similar in many ways to the likes of A Vida Portuguesa and Canadian Blank, With Love, From Brooklyn is a company that curates and sells a variety of gift items that are made in its local area. READ MORE…
In Brazil, books sold through vending machines at pay-what-you-want prices
We’ve seen pay-what-you-want pricing implemented in a variety of product categories, including restaurants, advertising services and hotels. Recently, however, we came across another new effort — Brazilian company 24×7 Cultural recently launched an initiative enabling customers to choose the price they want to pay for the books sold through its subway station vending machines. READ MORE…
