The expo floor was buzzing with industry leaders from both brick-and-mortar stores and eCommerce, delivering on the RICE22 mission of embracing “Where digital and physical retail connect.”
Vision Expo East was alive and well at the Javits Convention Center in NYC! Although many brands are still avoiding conventions, those in attendance certainly brought their "A" game.
Notably, Ray-Ban Stories. The product of a collaboration between EssilorLuxottica and Meta (formerly Facebook), Ray-Ban Stories are some seriously-smart glasses. They include a 5- megapixel camera to capture photos and videos, open-ear speakers, and a three-microphone audio array to deliver voice and sound transmission for calls and videos. The technological integration in these smart glasses becomes even more impressive when you see that they incorporated all of this technology without resorting to big-temple frames. Their booth was pretty sweet, too.
Consumers are demanding a better experience, and AI (paired with a multi-channel retail strategy) is helping many brands meet that demand.
Spy and Innovative teamed up in January 2020 after meeting at an industry event. After reviewing Innovative Marketing Solutions' unique approach to display design, Spy agreed to test the waters in Q1 of 2020 with some internal needs.
Spy Optics Display Program Circa 1997
In April 2020, Spy Optics (under the umbrella of Bollé Brands) engaged Innovative to help breathe new life into its brand through retail displays. As a future-forward brand with a twenty-year history, Spy was on a mission to regain a connection with its roots, its history, and its design ethos. While their product remained as cool (if not cooler) than ever, the team at Spy felt that the brand presence at retail had its “edge” sanded down too much, and they had lost some of the soul of the brand. Spy came to Innovative looking for a retail solution that balanced their needs for commercial viability, functionality, and creative disruption. Spy wanted a display design that reintroduced their product to the world and showcased their commitment to being a future-forward brand and style innovator. Innovative was thrilled to take on this challenge.
“You would know a coke bottle from a shard, Our SPY Orange needs to figure in prominently.”
- Chris Abbruzzese Vice President, Trade Marketing N.A. Bollé Brands, Inc.
At Innovative, we believe that collaboration is one of the cornerstones of a successful program design. We kicked off the project by discussing form factors, functionality, and budget parameters with the Spy Marketing & Design team and Innovative's Creative Design and Sales teams. After determining a high-level outline of the program's goal and addressing milestones and success metrics, the real fun began!
"We are looking for futuristic blended with elevated highly-designed experience, sleek and irreverent.”
- Chris Abbruzzese Vice President, Trade Marketing N.A. Bollé Brands, Inc.
Spy Optics Conceptual Design
Within two weeks, Innovative responded to Spy's needs with sketches of single and double-wide display towers that would serve as the flagship displays of the brand's retail presence. The design carefully balances a homage to Spy's past while future-proofing the display through modularity. The designs were well received and launched Innovative into the second phase of the project: counter displays, glorifiers, and a floor display for a flagship product launch.
Spy Optics Display Program Design
Innovative Marketing does more than just design displays. Innovative listens to their clients and builds retail ecosystems designed around their strategic goals and unique legacies. From our initial conference call to the first concept review, Innovative Marketing proved to us that they had invested the time to understand the Spy ethos.
Innovative's Creative and Engineering teams worked magic to incorporate colors, shapes, and materials that connect back to our essence. They knocked this out of the park- everyone in our domestic and international operations has been blown away! Innovative has earned our trust and has been given challenges with Bolle and Serengeti, delivering us stellar ideas at every turn. If you are looking for a POP partner that can conceptualize and deliver out-of-the-box solutions, I highly recommend you call the team at Innovative Marketing Solutions.
To all at Innovative, we love ya and hope we are part of each other's families for years to come!
- Chris Abbruzzese Vice President, Trade Marketing N.A. Bollé Brands, Inc.
Want to learn more about how Innovative can help you MAKE AN IMPACT AT RETAIL?
