Today everyone has multiple storefronts. There’s your catalog cover, your Web site home page, and, if you’re a brick-and-mortar retailer, your physical, real-world storefront.
What does your storefront say about you? Is it inviting? Does it give a first-time shopper an accurate idea of what your brand represents?
I decided to visit the new wing of the Natick Collection to see what the storefronts of some of the latest tenants said to me. The Collection is an upscale expansion of an existing mall, where a number of high-end retailers make their suburban Massachusetts debut.
My first stop was Ruehl. I have to say, the last time I was this disoriented during a shopping trip was when I wandered into the old Sanrio/Hello Kitty store in San Francisco while severely jet-lagged.
The store is dark and moody, full of small rooms and twisting corners, with ominous corridors that lead into more small rooms and twisting corners. I nearly bumped into walls several times just trying to find my way out.
The clothing mix appeared to target young adults. I popped onto Ruehl.com to find out more about the brand (an Abercrombie & Fitch spin-off, I discovered on Google). And I learned
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