Unforgettable experience for DFS customers
Enhancing stuff operations with computer vision and AI
Introduction
In premium retail environments, creating a memorable customer experience is crucial. Prompt assistance, personal interaction, and attentive service are key to fostering customer loyalty and maximising sales. However, large retail spaces often suffer from challenges like missed sales opportunities, ineffective staff coverage, and increased theft risks due to areas that are difficult to monitor.
DFS, Queenstown is a large mall featuring numerous luxury brands like Burberry, Alexander McQueen, Chloe, Cartier, and Moncler. A team of 20 sales associates rotates across different stores, and they are trained in all product areas to ensure broad product knowledge. Each morning, managers update floor coverage plans to address busy areas and adapt to the changing workforce, with all communication managed via Teams chat.
But even if the workforce if perfectly planned, here is a human factor: someone has a sick leave and hop turns our seriously understuffed.
Blind spots
Retail stores maximize the use of all available spaces by implementing zoning strategies. As a result, certain areas may inadvertently become blind spots.
Problem with Blind Spots:
In premium retail environments, creating a memorable customer experience is crucial. Prompt assistance, personal interaction, and attentive service are key to fostering customer loyalty and maximising sales. However, large retail spaces often suffer from challenges like missed sales opportunities, ineffective staff coverage, and increased theft risks due to areas that are difficult to monitor.
DFS, Queenstown is a large mall featuring numerous luxury brands like Burberry, Alexander McQueen, Chloe, Cartier, and Moncler. A team of 20 sales associates rotates across different stores, and they are trained in all product areas to ensure broad product knowledge. Each morning, managers update floor coverage plans to address busy areas and adapt to the changing workforce, with all communication managed via Teams chat.
But even if the workforce if perfectly planned, here is a human factor: someone has a sick leave and hop turns our seriously understuffed.
Blind spots
Retail stores maximize the use of all available spaces by implementing zoning strategies. As a result, certain areas may inadvertently become blind spots.
Problem with Blind Spots:
- Missed Sales Opportunities: In expansive retail areas, sales associates may not notice customers in remote or obstructed areas, leading to missing a sale opportunity.
- Security Risks: hard-to-monitor areas are vulnerable to theft.
- Complex Staff Coordination: managers must continuously monitor these areas and promptly notify staff if customers are present
Stuff rotation
At DFS, staff rotate across various stores to cover breaks, sick leave, and assist with different tasks.
Communication is managed through Teams: if a staff member is handling too many customers, they’ll message the group chat, and if a new sales associate needs help finding an item, they’ll also use the group chat. This creates a dynamic environment where staff must continuously adapt to changing circumstances.
Sales associates are involved in three + group chats and must frequently check their phones for updates.
Department leaders manage over seven chats, constantly monitoring queries from staff and responding to the most urgent issues.
At DFS, staff rotate across various stores to cover breaks, sick leave, and assist with different tasks.
Communication is managed through Teams: if a staff member is handling too many customers, they’ll message the group chat, and if a new sales associate needs help finding an item, they’ll also use the group chat. This creates a dynamic environment where staff must continuously adapt to changing circumstances.
Sales associates are involved in three + group chats and must frequently check their phones for updates.
Department leaders manage over seven chats, constantly monitoring queries from staff and responding to the most urgent issues.
Hypothesis
Implementing a Computer Vision-based solution to enhance staff coverage in luxury retail spaces will significantly improve customer service and reduce theft by providing real-time alerts for customer presence and movement in previously unattended or poorly monitored areas.
Implementing a Computer Vision-based solution to enhance staff coverage in luxury retail spaces will significantly improve customer service and reduce theft by providing real-time alerts for customer presence and movement in previously unattended or poorly monitored areas.
By utilising real-time video, our system designates specific alert zones within the store to monitor customer interactions with products.
When a customer enters one of these zones, an instant alert is sent to a sales representative, ensuring prompt assistance and engagement.
The system can:
When a customer enters one of these zones, an instant alert is sent to a sales representative, ensuring prompt assistance and engagement.
The system can:
- Notify staff about customers in the store
- Distinguish between customers and sales associates
- Analyse customer behaviour and interests
- Provide staff with relevant product information to enhance service.
Research
To validate the effectiveness of the proposed Computer Vision solution, comprehensive marketing research and stakeholder interviews were conducted. The marketing research involved analyzing competitors who have integrated similar technologies, and examining their approaches, successes, and challenges. This provided valuable insights into industry trends and customer expectations. Additionally, interviews with key stakeholders, including retail managers, sales associates, and security guards, helped identify specific pain points and requirements related to staff coverage and security.
Research into competitors has revealed that while there are existing solutions leveraging computer vision, few are tailored specifically for the luxury retail sector. This niche market requires specialised operations and presents a significant opportunity for innovation and differentiation.
Idea validation
To validate the idea, we spoke with store managers to understand their challenges with customer loss. Our questions were crafted to be neutral and avoid steering towards specific solutions.
1. How many customers typically enter your store each day?
2. What is the average spending per customer?
3. Can you estimate the number of customers you lose due to a lack of attention, perhaps because you were occupied with other tasks? (e.g., customers per day/month)
4. What factors contribute to losing these customers?
5. Considering the number of customers lost, how much would you be willing to pay monthly for a solution that addresses this issue?
To validate the effectiveness of the proposed Computer Vision solution, comprehensive marketing research and stakeholder interviews were conducted. The marketing research involved analyzing competitors who have integrated similar technologies, and examining their approaches, successes, and challenges. This provided valuable insights into industry trends and customer expectations. Additionally, interviews with key stakeholders, including retail managers, sales associates, and security guards, helped identify specific pain points and requirements related to staff coverage and security.
Research into competitors has revealed that while there are existing solutions leveraging computer vision, few are tailored specifically for the luxury retail sector. This niche market requires specialised operations and presents a significant opportunity for innovation and differentiation.
Idea validation
To validate the idea, we spoke with store managers to understand their challenges with customer loss. Our questions were crafted to be neutral and avoid steering towards specific solutions.
1. How many customers typically enter your store each day?
2. What is the average spending per customer?
3. Can you estimate the number of customers you lose due to a lack of attention, perhaps because you were occupied with other tasks? (e.g., customers per day/month)
4. What factors contribute to losing these customers?
5. Considering the number of customers lost, how much would you be willing to pay monthly for a solution that addresses this issue?
Customer Segments
- High-End Hotels and Resorts: Enhance guest experience and staff coordination in luxury accommodations.
- Exclusive Event Venues: Improve staff visibility and guest engagement at premium event locations.
- Art Galleries and Museums: Provide personalised assistance and secure valuable exhibits in large spaces.
- Luxury Car Dealerships: Ensure timely customer service and monitor high-value inventory.
- Premium Fitness Centres: Improve member experience and staff management in upscale gyms and wellness centres.
- High-Ticket Electronics Stores: Enhance customer service and security in stores selling high-value electronics.
- Boutique Real Estate Agencies: Offer exceptional service to clients in upscale property showings and open houses.
- Luxury Spas: Manage staff presence and guest experience in large, high-end spa facilities.
- Exclusive Private Clubs: Improve service and monitor areas in upscale private members' clubs.
- Custom Jewellery Stores: Enhance customer engagement and protect valuable merchandise in high-end jewellery shops.
A Value for the customer
Increased Sales: Helps capture sales opportunities by ensuring that sales associates are aware of and can assist customers promptly, leading to higher conversion rates and average transaction values.
Improved Operational Efficiency: Streamlines staff coordination and task management, reducing the impact of unexpected absences and making floor coverage more effective.
Enhanced Security: Reduces theft risks by monitoring all areas of the store and ensuring that no areas are left unobserved.
Reduced Communication Overload: Simplifies and consolidates communication, reducing the complexity and potential errors in managing staff and customer interactions.
Adaptability: Provides flexibility to adjust staff coverage dynamically, improving responsiveness to changing store conditions and customer needs.
Increased Sales: Helps capture sales opportunities by ensuring that sales associates are aware of and can assist customers promptly, leading to higher conversion rates and average transaction values.
Improved Operational Efficiency: Streamlines staff coordination and task management, reducing the impact of unexpected absences and making floor coverage more effective.
Enhanced Security: Reduces theft risks by monitoring all areas of the store and ensuring that no areas are left unobserved.
Reduced Communication Overload: Simplifies and consolidates communication, reducing the complexity and potential errors in managing staff and customer interactions.
Adaptability: Provides flexibility to adjust staff coverage dynamically, improving responsiveness to changing store conditions and customer needs.
Product Vision and Goals
Focus on customers, let us handle the rest
Enhance your store's sales and efficiency with our app. It keeps sales associates informed about customers in real-time, ensuring prompt and personalized service. Over time, it simplifies daily tasks and boosts operational efficiency, allowing your team to focus on delivering exceptional customer experiences.
Focus on customers, let us handle the rest
Enhance your store's sales and efficiency with our app. It keeps sales associates informed about customers in real-time, ensuring prompt and personalized service. Over time, it simplifies daily tasks and boosts operational efficiency, allowing your team to focus on delivering exceptional customer experiences.
Features priority
Name: Olivia
Role: Sales Representative in DFS
Experience: 2 months in the store
Background: Olivia is relatively new to her role, having worked in the store for just two months. She is proficient with most store operations but still encounters challenges, particularly with the stock and payment systems.
The variety of brands she handles, including Burberry and Alexander McQueen, adds to the complexity of her tasks.
Role: Sales Representative in DFS
Experience: 2 months in the store
Background: Olivia is relatively new to her role, having worked in the store for just two months. She is proficient with most store operations but still encounters challenges, particularly with the stock and payment systems.
The variety of brands she handles, including Burberry and Alexander McQueen, adds to the complexity of her tasks.
User Persona
Strengths:
Needs:
- Capable of managing daily operations
- Adaptable to new tasks
- Struggles with unfamiliar situations and new challenges, leading to nervousness
- Lacks confidence, affecting her proactive engagement with customers
- Finds it difficult to remember specific frameworks for different brands
- Reserved and hesitant to greet customers proactively due to uncertainty about her ability to assist them effectively
- Relies on a messy Teams group chat for support, leading to confusion
Needs:
- A more organized communication system to replace the chaotic Teams chat
- A way to control blind spots so she can work in the back of the house without worrying about missing a customer
- Simplified processes for notifying about breaks, peak times, and shifts
- Efficient methods for finding and receiving assistance with stock, security, and specific information
The product development began with the creation of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) designed to address key operational challenges in retail environments. The MVP focused on two core functionalities to improve staff coordination and customer service.
Scenario 1 : customer alert
A sales representative is working in the back of the store and needs to step away for a few minutes. During her absence, a customer enters the store. As the customer crosses the designated alert area, a notification is sent to the manager.
Olivia, the manager, has 10 seconds to respond to the alert. If she does not acknowledge it within this time, the alert will be redirected to the next nearest available staff member.
A sales representative is working in the back of the store and needs to step away for a few minutes. During her absence, a customer enters the store. As the customer crosses the designated alert area, a notification is sent to the manager.
Olivia, the manager, has 10 seconds to respond to the alert. If she does not acknowledge it within this time, the alert will be redirected to the next nearest available staff member.
Scenario 2: Peak-time alert
Olivia is managing five customers in the store and needs additional assistance. Normally, she would have to take her phone, open Teams, send a message in a chat, and hope someone sees it and can help.
Instead, the computer vision system recognizes this as a peak time and proactively prompts Olivia to initiate an alert to her team. She simply needs to press "Yes" on her phone to send the alert.
Olivia is managing five customers in the store and needs additional assistance. Normally, she would have to take her phone, open Teams, send a message in a chat, and hope someone sees it and can help.
Instead, the computer vision system recognizes this as a peak time and proactively prompts Olivia to initiate an alert to her team. She simply needs to press "Yes" on her phone to send the alert.
All nearby team members are currently occupied with other customers, so the system will not disturb them. The computer vision system detects that other sales associates are also engaged with customers and therefore notifies Ethan, who is free.
Ethan receives a notification marked "Peak Time" and has 10 seconds to respond. If he does not acknowledge the alert within this timeframe, it will be escalated to the manager.
Scenario 3
When a customer touches a bag in the store, the computer detects this as an indication of interest and sends a notification to Olivia with product information. Olivia receives a basic description of the item but can also submit a custom enquiry to address specific customer questions.
When a customer touches a bag in the store, the computer detects this as an indication of interest and sends a notification to Olivia with product information. Olivia receives a basic description of the item but can also submit a custom enquiry to address specific customer questions.
Visual design
The project involves designing a mobile application focused on receiving alerts and prompting users to take specific actions. The app must be friendly, visually appealing, and easy to use, creating a pleasant experience for all users.
The project involves designing a mobile application focused on receiving alerts and prompting users to take specific actions. The app must be friendly, visually appealing, and easy to use, creating a pleasant experience for all users.
Wireframes & Mockops
Wireframes were designed to establish the basic screen layouts and explore the visual style
Wireframes were designed to establish the basic screen layouts and explore the visual style
Mockups
Wireframes were designed to establish the basic screen layouts and explore the visual style
Wireframes were designed to establish the basic screen layouts and explore the visual style