The Sensory Secrets to Creating a Luxury Retail Experience with Felix Johnson

Absolutely. So I'm actually going to start with when I was a little kid. So I used to spend so much time at the mall with my mom and my grandmother and aunt, we would spend an entire Saturday just shopping. And I was just so obsessed with not just the clothing and the product, but the experience. And I said to myself, I want to have a mall when I grow up. Oh, I love that. Yes. Now, mall didn't happen because, the landscape of retail changed. Yeah, and it's ever changing.

Yeah but, I started to work in a mall myself when I was in high school. It was called Hecht's, which is now Macy's. Oh, okay. I was actually a Ralph Lauren specialist there. I was one of the top sales people. I was really excited about that. Very cool. But that was my first parade into the retail business. Yeah. I also wanted to be an architect and a plastic surgeon, all these things. But going into that, I said, you know what, there be something to this.

Went to school, studied fashion a little bit, studied finance, but I found myself going back to retail again after working for a bank and getting laid off. Okay. So it was a pivot. Yeah, it was holiday season. I remember it was December 2007. I'm looking for something. Banana Republic is hiring for a manager. I haven't been a manager in retail before, but I've managed banks. So, and I love fashion, so maybe there's something to that.

I got hired there during that holiday season, which is probably the worst time to start a holiday position in retail. And that was the beginning of my retail management journey. I was there for several years. I worked in D.C. and Philadelphia, kind of working my way around to building different businesses in different locations. And I ended up moving to New York, working at Macy's Herald Square for several years. And just, it runs the gamut of every retailer imaginable.

So I've worked in specialty, fast fashion, I've managed H& M, I've done Outlet for Tadashi Shoji, I've done Alexis Vitar jewelry, I've done Dior and Prada, so department stores, Saks, Nordstrom, I've pretty much been everywhere in retail.

A lot of great experience that you're definitely leveraging today. Yes. So tell me, how did your experience with big boxes like Banana Republic, Nordstrom, Saks, shape your approach to creating The FELIX Experience? I would say that there's a few pieces to that. One thing that I noticed throughout those experiences is that what was missing was the representation of different types of people that create brands and the luxury space specifically, especially with department stores.

I questioned why. Why is there not more? Yes, heritage brands are amazing. The Dior, the Louis Vuitton, the Fendi, Gucci, so on and so forth. But where are the brands that are young and trying to get into the business? Why are they not represented? The other piece was I learned the three P's of retail, which I found so important. People, process, and products.

So understanding how to manage all those things, merging that with finding and discovering new brands and bringing them to people created The FELIX Experience. Very cool. And so what do you do at The FELIX Experience? How do you help brands? So The FELIX Experience is all about a curated multi sensory experience where we bring together both sometimes heritage brands and also emerging brands to create that luxury shopping experience that I feel that all customers deserve.

Oh yes, I agree. I love it, how fun. So speaking of luxury, how do you define luxury in today's retail landscape, especially considering the shifts in consumer expectations and the rise of digital shopping experiences? Great question. So for us at The FELIX Experience, luxury, we define with beautiful craftsmanship. Beautiful, elevated, luxurious materials. Also, a story that's inspired by something, somewhere. Yeah. And the most critical piece is the in person shopping experience.

And with that, to answer your question about the digital shopping piece, something that's interesting to know that I'm not sure that people understand how important in person shopping is. It's been said that 80 percent of luxury goods are purchased in person on a global level. So yes, digital shopping is important and it's part of the landscape of retail today with any products. The in person piece is what really creates the urgency the story, it's elevating all those pieces.

It's being greeted, it's being offered a glass of champagne, it's someone understanding who you are as an individual, what you have to offer the world and how they can bring you products that compare, are comparable to that. You can't do that online. No, you can't. It's just total disconnect. And so 80 percent of luxury still bought in person.

Yes. Yeah. So I think that we can sometimes hear headlines and feel like everything's going online and I'm missing out and I'm losing market share, but really we want that in person experience. I feel like the consumer wants to feel amazing and have that connection. And especially from the luxury market, I feel like you really do want to experience that. You're spending a certain amount of money. Exactly. So I need someone to, walk me through and guide me through this.

The history of the brand, how you make these products. Why am I paying this price?

Yeah, exactly. Okay. That's so good. Now, can you share some practical tips for independent retailers to create multi sensory shopping experiences that connect customers with exclusive and unique brands? Sure. So with multi sensory experiences, the first thing to think about is who is your customer? What inspires them to buy and how can they interact with your product using their five senses? What's the scent of the experience? What are they tasting? Is it a nice glass of bubbly?

Is it a light bite like a tuna tartare? Something like that. Are they able to touch and feel those fabrics? Are they able to engage with it? Try it on and play with it? Have a better understanding of it, how it fits into their life. What is the way it's displayed? So all of those things are truly important in creating the experience, but you do have to understand who they are to know what elements and how to integrate those elements. Yeah, for sure.

It makes me think the scent aspect makes me think of, because we were talking about D.C. You're in D.C. and there is a boutique hotel that I stayed at like 20 years ago. And they had this scent where I had to ask the front desk, like what is that? Can I buy that? Is this a signature? And it was like a leather with a lavender. And I think like, I want to say tobacco or something, but that doesn't sound like it would be, but it was amazing.

And I correlate that back to that experience and I can see it. I feel it. Everything is so like it was yesterday for me. And so having our retailers think about those five senses, and really identify. I actually have a friend who's a photographer and she has a signature scent. A candle to represent her brand. Like, what do you think about things like that of a signature scent or something that the retailer can really, Oh, hello, fly. That could really be memorable with what would you?

I think it's so important. So this is not a luxury brand, but it's an iconic brand that's known for the scent. It's Abercrombie. Everyone knows that scent that store it and they turn it into a fragrance. Yeah, and it's something that makes that experience memorable. And I think it's not just about luxury either. Any type of product you're selling, you want the experience to be memorable. Yeah, in some sort of way.

But scent is a great way to do that because the scent memory that we have recall so many beautiful things, and that's something that you want to ignite in your customers. Yeah, it's true. And music too. Are you a fan of music? Absolutely. So something that we make sure we do in our shopping experiences, we like to stay with music that's at least 165 beats per minute. Oh, okay.

So there's been studies that like in the 150 to 200 range, people are the most engaged because it keeps them moving, but it's not too fast to where they're distracted. Yeah and it's not too slow to where they have no sense of urgency. You want them to move through and feel excited about it. That is a really good tip. How do you know that like the beats? Research just okay, there's some research.

So there's actually great resources online where you can find some what are some hit songs that fall within this beat per minute? So to give people a reference we also use DJs Okay, which makes it easier. So they know and also having a theme. So the sonic of a brand is also memorable. If you think of any type of brand, the streaming platform Tubi, they recently created a sonic for their brand. Or even we know the Netflix sound. We know the Hulu sound.

So those are the things that you want to think about to do for any type of brand.

Yeah, that's smart. I love it. That's so good. Now we're filming this in August of 2024. So what are your thoughts on the recent Saks acquisition of Neiman's and what lessons or insights can independent retailers take from this and apply to their own business? I would say the funniest thing about this acquisition is I knew it was going to come for many years. Both companies have been going through lots of changes. They've gone through lots of different owners over the years.

They, it always felt like they could never figure out what to do or where to go. And what really changed was the new millennium with ecommerce. How do we insert ourselves into this business that we've never been in? And there are some, and I'll use Barney's as an example as well. Who has shuttered, unfortunately. That was something that they struggled with. They were late to the game and Saks has built a great ecommerce business, but again, luxury goods.

Only about 20 percent are sold online, right? So that really can't propel your business forward. So understanding how, again, to engage those customers in person is important. I would say the biggest lesson that can be learned from this for independent retailers, it's to stay private. That's really a big lesson because if we look at any of these retailers that have gone through changes, whether it's being bought out, whether it's filing bankruptcy many times.

Or whether it's they're completely closing down. None of them are privately owned. Yeah, changes it. Changes a lot of things. And the importance of that is the agility is really key. Yep, in this business. And when you have a lot of shareholders involved, there's a lot of people to answer to. Yeah. But if it's just your private company, if you need to change something on the fly, You can do it. Yep. Well, that's, I think one of the beauties of our independents is that they don't have it.

They can make it their own. They can decide if I want to add an experience to this or if I want to change something like the agility is key.

Yes. Yeah, so smart. All right. Felix, are you ready for the resilience round? Yes. Okay, best business book. Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter by 50 Cents. Ooh. And that book is all about agility and adaptability. Yeah, yeah.

Okay, I gotta check that one out. That's awesome. Best retail technology like an app or software? HubSpot.

Ooh, yeah, good one. How do you keep up with the ever changing retail landscape? Listening to the customer. And also, Business of Fashion is great and Retail WIRED.

Okay, yeah, good ones. To help retailers be stronger, more rooted in success, what's a foundational best practice for enhancing customer experience? Personalization. So back to what I was saying earlier, it's really about understanding who your customer is. I remember, just quickly, I did this game with my staff at Banana Republic many years ago. Do you know your customer? And I would challenge them to give me three facts that they learn about each person they engage with each day.

It was a contest, but I think that's something to keep in mind. Yeah. Well, I recently heard at a conference, it's not about what you sell, it's about what you heard. Like really, what did you learn? What did you hear from the customer? And making sure that you taking notes of that and reaching out and clienteling through those things.

Yeah, it's all about what you hear. So good. If you had to start your business all over again, what's one thing you'd do differently? Nothing. Oh, I love it. So if you asked me 10 years ago, I would say I would start as soon as possible, but I would not know everything that I know now. All the growing pains that you have to go through with starting a business and building a business are necessary. Every single piece of it.

Yeah, I so agree. So good. Finally, what do you think the future of independent retail looks like? I think it's gonna continue to grow. It's really again important to stay private and we're going to see more and more retailers have the room to come into the space and make it their own because as digital shopping does evolve and grow, people want to come in person to have a unique experience. Yeah, and independent retailers can do so. Yeah, they do. That's awesome.

How can people connect with you and learn more? So we are at The FELIX Experience on Instagram. You can also check out www. thefelixexperience. com. I love it, thanks for being here. This is such a great conversation. Awesome. Everyone remember that I'm rooting for your success. Have a great week ahead. Bye. Okay. I have exciting news to share the Rooted in Retail Mastermind is launching this January.

It's your chance to connect deeper with me, the retail pros from the show and an incredible community of resilient retailers, both online and in person with several meetups throughout the year. Get on the waitlist at rootedinretail.com/waitlist and don't just listen to the show. Be a part of the magic and grow your store with us. I hope to see you there.