Marketing 6.0

CHAPTER 6Building Extended Realities: The Immersive Experience in Real Life

Despite the significant growth of e‐commerce, physical retail channels continue to dominate sales. In fact, e‐commerce only accounted for less than 15 percent of total retail sales in the United States in 2022 (US Department of Commerce). Similarly, in China, the world's largest e‐commerce market, e‐commerce's share of total retail sales is still below 30 percent (Euromonitor).

Even technology giants such as Apple and Amazon, recognizing this trend, continue to prioritize their brick‐and‐mortar strategies alongside e‐commerce. Apple, renowned for its customer experience–centric approach to its products, extends this philosophy to its physical stores. In fact, Apple holds the distinction of having the highest annual sales per square foot among retailers, generating an impressive $5,500 compared to Tiffany & Co.'s second‐place figure of $2,900 (based on CoStar report).

Meanwhile, Amazon consistently explores and strengthens its presence in the physical retail space. The record‐breaking acquisition of Whole Foods in 2017 exemplifies this commitment, with Amazon subsequently expanding the chain to more locations and enhancing the shopping experience by implementing Amazon checkout technology. Furthermore, Amazon has experimented with various store formats under its brand, such as the food‐focused Amazon Go, grocery‐centric Amazon Fresh, and fashion‐oriented Amazon Style. By closing underperforming stores ...