Luxury Retail and Digital Management, 2nd Edition

Chapter 9Customer Behaviour in the Store or Online

The thing is, I do not want to be sold to when I walk into a store. I want to be welcomed.

–Angela Ahrendts¹

Selling is essentially a matter of direct experience. Nothing will ever replace observing customers, their relationship with the products, the way vendors behave, and the interaction between these customers and the brand. Luxury brands know that customers are not passive spectators in awe of a brand and a product. They are key stakeholders in the relationship (which we will examine in Chapter 10). Therefore, observing how customers behave in a store is a crucial element for any vendor. This is true for all industry sectors, but especially in the luxury domain.

Unfortunately, not many studies have been published on the behaviour of customers in luxury stores. The vast majority of these studies are a collection of confidential information zealously guarded by each major luxury group for internal analysis and assessment.

However, if one looks at analyses of the mass market, and in particular of the fashion sector, one can draw some general conclusions about how consumers behave in a store. What one needs to look at in a sales point is not just the decor, products or customers, it is the way the experience unfolds: a customer experience that probably rouses all the client's senses and is part of what observers call the purchase ceremony. Is the client seated? Is the client comfortable? Does it seem like the client has plenty ...