my life, I’ve wanted to know what the future held. Would I find lasting love?
Would I win the lottery? Perhaps, as a
member of the retail community, you too, have wistfully longed to know what
2010 and beyond will bring. And that’s why there are psychics, intuitives and
for our businesses…futurists?
Future Exploration Network and a self-described “futurist” has answered our
prayers (I think) with the release of his Top 10 Trends of the 2010s. Some of
these are a bit much, but entertaining all the same.
decide…
large majority of it being fairly useless. Should I tell
you? The future is now – in this regard – baby.
2) Global brain. The tremendous amount of media will have us interacting
in global ways. The earthquake in
can link and support one another globally in a snap.
will telecommute and work remotely. I love this one! I’ve been doing this
for years, and have noticed the trend increasing with each passing year.
How will this impact retail? Maybe more VPs and CEOs working from their
mansions in the hills?
supreme. We’ll no longer waste energy the way we have in the past. This is
a no-brainer – the Earth practically demands it from us. And retailers are
heeding the call left and right.
cultural mix will appear in every aspect of our lives, leaving behind very
rigid and segmented cultures. Fashion and retail already bring this to us
daily. It will be fun to see how it continues to evolve.
6) The
"The sheer weight of China’s
burgeoning economy together with India’s rise will change the
business world’s center of gravity. The Far East will fund the continued profligate spending of the West. The weightless economy
based on innovation, media, and professional services will dominate growth," said Dawson.
7) Vanilla Sky.
Bio technology will become more commonplace – think designer babies, life
extension (a la Tom Cruise in "Vanilla Sky") and customized medicines. Perhaps it
will also mean personalized fragrances and apparel in retail stores…
Robots for Everyone! This is where it gets a bit too sci-fi for me. We’ll have
household robots. Sure. They’ve been taunting us with this possibility since
E.T. I think we know better. Or…do we?
The sci-fi fantasy continues.
this means? Perhaps our robots will
shop for us at Saks and Macy’s?
Gap.
separation. This is a common economic risk, so how will we bridge the gap?
Laptops donated by Dell for every man, woman and child? It’s a thought.
While it’s fun to speculate, it’s even more important to follow our intuition
in our everyday business dealings. That and pay attention to crazy futurist
predictions. Because if robots do end up being the new “in” thing, you don’t
want to be left out of the loop.
-
Heather,
Sounds like a lot of gobblety gook in that article. I am always fascinated at how much STUFF people who write about "business" spend their time addressing, so much of which is either speculative or non-business related. A lot of what is mentioned has been ruminated on for a long time as you point out.
But item #10 is especially important. Both parts are true. But what I think is essential to retailers is how technology can attract or promote business. Isn't that really the issue?
Social networking, SEO, web presence, etc., are all so much fluff if someone doesn't make sure they somehow lead to more sales. That's why we think our area, Window Video Systems, is so essential and potentially rich. It allows for Direct Marketing, POP Display that, if properly implemented, should lead to more SALES. If it doesn't lead to more sales, or reduced costs, then it is only technology, and potentially a distraction. More effective, more attractive, more powerful DISPLAY is one area technology can really benefit retailers and customers alike.
Excellent post Heather!
I could respond to all of these at length but did want to mention something on the One Culture one. Living as I did back in London around the time the European Union thing got going in full force an interesting thing happened. Once the walls came down (literally in one famous case) and the entire community became one with a shared currency there was actually a backlash. In fact it might be fair to say Europe is more nationalistic and fiercely patriotic on a country by country basis than it ever was…nothing like a little global homogeneity to get people pulling out the flag and protecting the things which make us all so very different.
Christian,
I love your perspective here! Grass is always greener, right? One would think connection would be better, but perhaps we need some of that healthy separation.
Thanks for posting!
Look forward to seeing you on Retail Design Diva more. Same to you Ed!
-Heather
qoute:
In truth, no one really knows the actual path of the future. While it’s fun to speculate, it’s even more important to follow our intuition in our everyday business dealings. That and pay attention to crazy futurist predictions
BINGO! you said a mouth with that, well actually more than one because that spoke volumes, yes we do need to speculate on whats to come, but to always remember our past can change what path we take towards the future.