Tripling down on collaborations: retail
Target first established the retail collaboration trend 25+ years ago and has continued to popularize it ever since, bringing high fashion to its customers through collaborations with such renowned brands as Isaac Mizrahi, Diane von Furstenberg, Lily Pulitzer, Joanna Gaines and Ulta Beauty. Each partnership is supported not only with an exclusive and/or limited-time assortment, but also a physical change in the store environment, ranging from dedicated endcaps to full, branded shop-in-shops. Target’s success has paved the way for other brands to follow suit.
Retail couple: Burberry and Minecraft
Burberry’s 2022 “Burberry: Freedom to Go Beyond” capsule collection with popular video game Minecraft was inspired by the brands’ shared affinity for the natural world. In pop-up stores around the world, large screens signaled the introduction of the collection with replicas of the game’s pixelated digital landscape. Minecraft players were given access to matching digital wearables from the collection for their game avatars to wear.
Tripling down on collaborations: restaurants
In the restaurant sector, Yum! Brands has championed the collaboration trend by co-locating Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, Pizza Hut and WingStreet, and Taco Bell and KFC over the years. The co-location strategy has not only reduced real estate and operating costs for the brands, but it also has enabled Yum! Brands to diversify its offerings and expand its reach.
Future vision for branded triple-play environments
As this trend of brand partnering continues, the future could see an even more dynamic brick-and-mortar experience. Technological innovation will enable brands to meet consumers’ needs on a near real-time basis. Physical retail spaces may no longer have fixed roles but instead be designed with the flexibility to be transformed more frequently.
For example, imagine that a retail environment was cohabitated by different combinations of brands each season or quarter. What if consumers could build a head-to-toe wardrobe from 3 or more brands in a single fitting room? What if this multi-branded space evolved over the course of the day? What if it changed according to the mode or mindset of each consumer who walked in?
