Those darn millennials. When they’re not telling me how much they really enjoy that goofy Zooey Deschanel iPhone 4 commercial, they’re explaining just how old fashioned physical mannequins are in this day and age. This may explain why Macy’s is preparing to go digital with their latest in-store advertising gimmick. If mannequins are being phased out to make room for digital displays, how am I suppose to fall in love with the sultry Egyptian trapped inside one? The modern world is so complicated.
In a shareholder meeting on Friday, Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren discussed several projects that are currently in the works for the department store, one of which involved replacing mannequins with digital displays that can be updated on the fly. Instead of hiring a merchandizing expert to come in and make them look all pretty and fancy, someone sitting at a computer can quickly replace summer clothing with, say, a winter ensemble. Honestly, the decision to go digital makes perfect sense, especially when fashion can change at the drop of a hat.
Lundgren also discussed placing tablets throughout the store to inform customers about items that aren’t currently available at that particular location. In addition to these newfangled contraptions, Mayc’s plans to roll out news ways to contact customers via social networking sites, a “new generation of price checkers” on the floor that also have the power to suggest sales, and, last but not least, digital displays that can be utilized in areas where space is limited.
Macy’s isn’t the only company looking to make some technological changes to their stores. Brazilian fashion retailer C&A recently unveiled hangers that display the number of likes a particular piece has received on Facebook. Whenever a customer “likes” an article of clothing that’s featured on the company’s official page, it is reflected on the item’s hanger in-store. That way you’ll never make a bad wardrobe decision ever again. Yeah, right.
For those of you hoping to find true love magically locked inside a mannequin, you’d better act fast. Your significant other is in serious danger of becoming obsolete.