Of all the strategic work I did in the last 5 year’s with Macy’s, this was my favorite project because demanded all of my experience and design skillset (strategy, digital, print, environmental) while also stretching me as a leader.
After 2020, Macy’s began to realize a significant decline in the revenue produced by their Wedding Registry business. I co-lead an omnichannel exploration to reimagine what the digital and in-store registry experience might become and how these two channels might work together to benefit the customer and differentiate the brand.
From hosting discovery sessions, to journey mapping, crafting a strategy story and prototyping an in-store and digital Registry Lab experiment with 14 real engaged couples, we determined that this strategy could expect to produce a 3X increase in ARV (Average Registry Value).
Two days of cross-functional discovery workshop provided customer empathy, journey mapping, concepts and an aligned strategy to guide our project. Facilitating workshops like these became a frequent responsibility for me at Macy’s.
A strategy story established a differentiated position for the registry experience in relationship to the current brand platform and served as inspiration for the design of the prototype. It was also important early on to generate buy in with business leaders by showing how an experience like this might scale across multiple store formats.
This store is outside of Atlanta at Perimeter mall. The experience could only remain live for 2 weeks so we had to design with that major constraint in mind.
A flow map outlined a hybrid digital and analog experience that allowed us to test the impact of a unique digital mood board product for co-creating with customers. The test consisted of a digital survey to capture personalized style information, printed product cards that mimicked a potential digital counterpart, and a tabletop magnetic/dry erase board where combinations of cards could be assembled. Once the assembled board satisfied the couple, the consult took a picture and added the products to their registry the next day. This was THE highlight of the experience for all 14 couples. I also created a VERY simple digital mockup to sell the long term concept to executive leadership.
In-store treats and take-home tools like the registry guide brought practical and hospitable accents to the overall experience.
1. Value of in-store elements of a registry experience to the customer.
2. Digital and in-store tools to help customers make confident decisions.
3. What information is needed to effectively personalize a registry experience
4. Proportions of online and in-store components across the omnichannel journey.
5. Do customers find value in co-creating a vision with a Macy’s consultant?
6. Business impact of an interactive, human-centered registry experience.