Fresh perspective is the tinder that can spark inspiration. Too many retail executives spend too much time at their desks without getting out and looking at the bigger picture. Retail is a real estate business and in the quest for converting human desire into profit, the world’s biggest retailers are in a cathedral-like arms race to capture the hearts and minds of their audiences with their biggest investment - their stores.

Retail leaders who promote the broader geo-political exploration of retail experiences by their high potential executives are also well rewarded by their rapid development. The legendary retailer, Marvin Traub, who pioneered the theatre of retail at Bloomingdales Department Store in the 1970s and 1980s, said “The priority of any CEO is training a team, so as I identified people I thought were talented, I became very interested in their careers to try to help them grow. And I was always very proud of the fact that we had a team that all thought alike. Whether I was there or not, they would approach things.” Traub was a passionate advocate of having his executives travel internationally to markets where the brands his store was selling originated. Through his own experiences, he believed this type of first hand cultural insight gave his executives a competitive edge that transposed itself into his stores.

With a trusted guide, exposing your team to real life cutting edge relevant retail execution not available in their local environment can provide the spark to consider new opportunities in you own business. In the true spirit of Traub’s manifesto, Scott is a seasoned retail traveller to some of worlds most innovative retail cities and in particular within Japan and Spain which he believes have the most socio-urban relevancies to Australian retailers. He unashamedly admits to being an accomplished retail thief when it comes to new ideas from overseas but encourages all retail executives to travel with purpose in the pursuit of inspiration. Let him guide you on a tour of the world’s most important and creative shopping streets.

”Online-only” retailers can also benefit from an exploration of the physical retail environment and we can tailor explorations for this purpose. Our specialised local knowledge of these destinations also means we are able to identify “off-piste” districts that may have relevance to your industry where niche brands are innovating on a smaller scale.