Earlier this week, we had an opportunity to do something we don’t usually do here at COG, we attended a media day at the new Futureshop.ca Retail Store in North Vancouver. Given we are a Canadian focused site, and Future Shop is Canada’s leading Electronics Retailer, it made sense to check this out. Future Shop has been providing electronics to Canadians for 30 years, and given that the majority of our audience buys electronics, games, movies, and many other items that Future Shop sells, we thought it would be great to see this new idea in retail/online shopping and how they are combined.
As the name states, Futureshop.ca Retail Store is a new concept. It combines “Brick & Mortar” stores with e-commerce. Future Shop’s online business is large as it is among the top three most-trafficked retail sites in Canada. They also have 149 traditional “Brick & Mortar” stores across Canada. Most Future Shop stores are anywhere from 25,000 to 30,000 square feet in size. The new Futureshop.ca store is 5,000 square feet, quite a departure from the regular stores. What was clear during our time at the new store was that shopping at this new store will not be your traditional big-box electronic store experience. Larry Richardson, the Senior Manager for Retail Operations explained what was new and so different.
The first thing you will notice when you walk in is that the store is quite open with clean sight lines and a very modern feel. What was quite interesting is that the Product Experts who are on the floor are cross trained in everything in the store, so the guy in the TV section can walk with over with you to the camera or gaming section to answer your questions. It’s a neat little feature at a Future Shop branded store as I know more then a few people who have shopped at one of their big stores to only come out frustrated as they have had to go from person to person to get their answers about many different products. I should note that in the Futureshop.ca store mobile phones and ConnectPro, their services, installations and repairs team, are the only area where there are dedicated experts given the how quickly their categories are growing.
Technology plays a big roll at the Futureshop.ca store. All the staff carry tablets with them. This allows them instant access to any information on products, as well as the ability to demo products on the floor. They can also get e-mails directly sent to them by you, if you have a question about a product you looked at with them, or bought with their assistance. The tablets are also wired into the store system and should you want to check out a TV or listen to a new receiver, they will instantly pull up a demo for you to watch or listen to right from their tablet. This is twofold as not only does it highlight what you want to see or hear, but it also highlights technology that is entering homes as we speak. Wireless streaming is huge and having the store show off this technology with the products in the store is very interesting to say the least, and something I think customers will appreciate. I know I was quite impressed.
Given the smaller footprint of the store, there are fewer products on display then in a bigger store, but this is where the power of Futureshop.ca comes into play. The items in the store are generally the more popular ones. You can see these items in the store, and play with their features, then, if you want to look at anything different, you can access the many in-store tablets and check out Futureshop.ca for products and/or product information. You can even utilize the Product Experts to help you with your online research.
An example they gave is that you want to buy a TV. You can walk into the Futureshop.ca store and look at up to 44 different models of TVs. Once you find a model that your interested in, you can purchase one from the store (they have a 3,000 square foot warehouse in the back) or you can do further research online to find the exact size or extra features you’re looking for, and then order it online. You can then have the product shipped to your home or to any Future Shop in Canada, including the Futureshop.ca store for pick-up. Of course you can do your online shopping from home too and have the product shipped directly to you or to a Future Shop store, but the main difference can’t talk to Product Experts in the new retail store who can help you make a more informed decision. Shipping is free for on almost everything over $20. Delivery to a store is free too.
The style of shopping options, and support, offered at the new Futureshop.ca store is something that I have not seen in use before, let alone have experienced. The in-store tablets that you can use also have bookmarks of Future Shop’s competitors, including online companies, and they will match any price that you find, including online. I know that I like to compare prices when I shop, especially online, and to have this feature on the in-store tablets so readily accessible is a sign of Future Shop’s commitment to win your business and offer you the best prices. And who does not like the cheapest prices you can find, right?
Of course as this is a Future Shop through and through, they do carry the new release movies and games on “New Release Tuesday”, and a short time after. It wouldn’t be a Future Shop if they didn’t would it? Feel free to head on in and buy the latest Xbox 360 or PS3 game and then go home and play.
What really struck me during my time at this new store was the commitment this Canadian Company has to provide us, the consumer, with alternatives in shopping for electronics, and all the many other products they carry (e.g. mattresses, r/c cars, luggage, etc.). Of course we here at COG have focused on the electronics and media end of things given that our audience is into gaming, movies, and all that is related to it (e.g. TVs, Receivers, etc.). I think this is a really neat direction that Future Shop is taking. At this time the new store is not a change in their overall strategy, but it is a new style of store that allows them to enter into markets they have not gone into before, and in our case here in British Columbia, that new area is North Vancouver.
At the end of the day this combination of online and in-store shopping is interesting to say the least, and I think it is something we should all pay attention too. How many times have you shopped online wishing you could see the product, or something very close to it, but could not. Add to that the ease of shopping in a store so open and technologically advanced, and you have even more reason to check it out.
A big thanks goes to Elliott Chun for inviting us to see this new concept, and another thanks goes to Larry Richardson for taking the time to talk to us about what the store offers and how it can help all of us (COG and COG readers) in our electronics shopping. Of course I can’t ignore the rest of the Future Shop team of Andrea Farnell, Christopher Bennett, Robert Pearson, Nikki Hellyer and Thierry Hay-Sabourin, who where there offer up input to our questions as well. If you are around North Vancouver this weekend (November 2 – 4) then head on over and check out the new store (1049 Marine Drive). It’s the Grand Opening weekend and there are lots of contests and surprises to be had for customers who show up.
