Nike gets close and personal

Brands are betting high on loyalty programs and consumer relationships these days. To understand its consumers better and offer them personalized solutions Nike is currently courting new technologies. At a recent opening of the brand’s destination store in Bangalore, Tarun Puri, MD, Nike India, said that shopping has become an interactive affair with consumers looking for individual solutions to their needs and not just any product. Also, with heart diseases and diabetes on the rise in the country, people have become highly conscious of fitness and health. There is a heightened sense of ‘what’s right for me’ among consumers. So the brand is trying to use technology to offer consumers the right solutions. The new destination store in Bangalore spread over 5,500 sq. ft. is the brand’s largest store in India. It’s bluetooth-enabled. There is also a running area in the store, where consumers can get their foot scanned. The foot scan is a pressure measurement system that gives out information on the kind of feet runners have so that they can match their foot type with the right kind of footwear.

Also, there is the ‘running space’ where consumers get the ‘Nike +’ experience wherein they obtain instant feedback on their workout. While the concept of experiential retailing has not caught on in India yet, globally it has been well-received, especially among fashion and lifestyle brands. According to Anurag Sehgal, Founder and Director, Experiential Design Lab, a firm that specializes in experiential marketing, Adidas stores abroad with ‘experience zones’ sell more than regular stores. Sehgal informs, globally, brands such as Prada and Nike have also tasted success with experience zones. These go a long way in building a relationship with consumers.