New Retail Lab to launch at Glee 2017

Created by a panel of industry experts to bring something new to Glee, the Retail Lab is set to be the focal point of the 2017 show, and will be the exhibition’s interactive hub, offering inspiration and the latest trend information.

Unlike any previous features at Glee, the Retail Lab will be future-facing, providing visiting retailers with a long-term vision for their retail environments.

Focusing on consumer engagement, market insight and effective access to future-facing trend information, the Glee Retail Lab will be located at the very heart of the show. Combining interactive content, guided tours, and self-learning material, visitors will be able to arm themselves with content that not just inspires but will also drive them to action new retailing ideas within their own stores. The aim of all of this being to help retailers to grow both their offerings and business, whilst also targeting new customers.

Split into four sections, the area will focus on four key consumer themes as identified by Romeo Sommers, the Retail Lab’s creative director, and the trend experts at WGSN. These themes are: Well-being, Family, Community, and "Re-wilding."

The Retail Lab has been created to offer something that looks to the future of garden retailing, focusing on trends that are within touching distance; trends that will directly affect consumer spending habits in the near future. 

As consumers' spending habits continue to change and they become increasingly influenced by aspects such as environment, economics, and social consciousness, the role of garden retailers and the way they interact and appeal to their core markets is also changing. The Retail Lab recognizes that these changes are taking place, and is here to cut through the noise. 

The Glee Retail Lab will enable retailers to retail effectively, ensuring the longevity of their existing customer base, whilst also engaging with new consumers for a profitable future. From inspirational ideas regarding retail spaces, to new merchandising ideas, the Retail Lab will be unlike anything ever before seen at the show.

The ‘Lab’ will be divided into four unique sections that will work as stand-alone inspiration hubs, or together as a visual journey through the store of the future. Guided tours, info points, interactive content, and TV screens will also be supported by the onsite Retail Lab team who will walk retailers through the area, answering questions as they go.

The Horticultural Trades Association, associate partners of the Glee Retail Lab, will also have its own inspirational dedicated area, providing a networking and educational hub at the show. 

Glee’s seminar theatre - in partnership with Inside Retail - will complete the offering, bringing a daily schedule of top industry speakers together to tackle the big issues affecting the garden retail industry today.

Like all aspects of Glee 2017, the Retail Lab has been issued with its own branding identity. The icon itself takes inspiration from the Fibonacci Sequence. It represents the team of specialists working together to help you take advantage of new developments in garden center retailing. Specifically, the Golden Section which occurs throughout nature, and has a three-fold meaning:

• It represents growth, evolution, progression and trust 
  
• A scientific solution with organics origins 
  
• A natural mix of specific elements that create a perfect balance.

The four carefully selected colors represent the Retail Lab’s four themes: Family, Community, Re-Wilding and Well-being.