Physical stores key to retail technology revolution

Physical stores play a central role in technological innovations now being rolled out that will change how people shop in the future. The accumulation of data by retailers is driving many of these changes, enabling chains to know their customers’ tastes and sizes — and also enabling them to change prices by the hour, depending on demand and competition, notes The Washington Post.

“The retail sector is going through a fundamental change as companies find new ways to use data and intelligence,” Greg Jones, Microsoft's director of retail industry solutions, told the newspaper. “Artificial intelligence is now a part of the fabric, and we’re seeing faster adoption of new technology than ever before.”

Though online retailers can adjust prices instantaneously, it currently takes physical retail chains hours to make such changes across all their stores. New digital technology will enable brick-and-mortar retailers to do this now at the touch of a button.

Accumulated customer data will give retailers knowledge of the sorts, styles and sizes of merchandise they can promote to each customer. Digital mirrors in stores will display images of the customer wearing various outfits, accessories and cosmetics.

“Customers will buy 200 percent more when they see a whole outfit,” Michelle Bacharach, co-founder of FindMine, an automated outfitting technology firm, told the paper. “With algorithms, we can automate what is normally a slow and painful process.”

Moreover, smart carts and robots will be guiding customers to the precise aisles and shelves where the merchandise they seek is stocked.