Kohl’s: Ethnographic Study

Armed with a $50 gift card from my mother in law (a big Kohl’s fan), I ventured into the Land of the (allegedly dying) Big Department Stores.

Here I am in my ootd (outfit of the day); the goal here is to mix well with the Kohls crowd AND do my best to make sure the athleisure trend doesn’t die out)

Kohl’s is not my place, and I immediately was reminded why: the lightning is all off, the shopping flow is all off, the confusion mode is on through.

As I made my way through rows of every possible clothing item for every possible season and occasion, it struck me that just because we CAN produce 100 kinds of flip flops, does it mean we should. Or at least we should not try to display them all in one store.

Retailers, especially the struggling ones,  shouldn’t just throw more and more items at customers, hoping that something sticks (aka will make its way into the basket).

In retail, like in fashion, sometimes paring it down is the best, if only to stop confusing your customers and allow them to make the damn choice!

Of course, it is hard to limit your offerings especially when you have an expensive real estate, like Kohl’s or Sears. I do not have a ready answer to the ‘too much room too many products’ conundrum. Whoever solves this issue will be hailed a retail hero.

Now, random takeaways:
1. $65 face cream in a land of $9 bras???

Bliss offered 50% sale for face products, but still! Wouldn’t make more sense to have Bliss’ former owner Marcia Kilgore’s more affordable brand Soap and Glory here? Oh, wait, Walgreens snatched it already. Too bad.

On the upside I saw a LOT of testers in the cosmetic area. I usually stay away (other people’s germs!) , but a tester can make me pull a trigger aka purchase the item if I am hesitant.

The fragrance wall also offered a lots of bottles to try. Good.

2. Fashion was generally ok.

I found many fashion offerings on point. If you make it through aisles upon aisles of confusing lines you will come across something you like. I do not appreciate Kohls’ quality (most stuff was polyester; spandex used in sports clothing felt cheap) , but the actual fashion was on trend.

The pj shirt here would not stand out at Nordstrom BP section.

3. Think more about what goes with what.
Or as I said, just because you CAN put some impulse buy here, it doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

Jelly beans and pans? Even Marshalls don’t mix these two. 

 

 

 

 

Why not some cooking mixes? Big gifting bags for these who will buys a pot set for a wedding or a housewarming party? Cooking books? A wall of kitchy fun cups? 

Or for Saint Nicholas’ (patron saint of merchants) sake, install a touchable screen that helps me find something in this confusing store. I will even take a short video explaining differences between each pot you have.

Eventually, I got two bras (on sale, $9 each, which is the standard Amazon price I paid last time I got this brand: Hanes’ Bandini) and a Sony Headset from a “Limited Quantities” section (I am very aware that a little sticker proclaiming scarcity made me grab this particular item).

I did like to see that  I (allegedly and depending how you count) saved around $50. It’s a clever marketing trick, but I did feel better about my smart shopping afterwards.

Retailers definitely underestimate the customers’ desire to feel like we did a good thing going shopping. The purchase regret, that sinking feeling when you do bring the bags home and are not happy with how much you spent and what you bought is a big issue why people do not go shopping brick and mortar more.

Online shopping just seems to make me think like I am a smart savvy shopper more than department stores shopping trips ever can. Will try to ponder more about it in another post.

Afterwards, I walked through Sears (can’t wait for the big liquidation sales… it’s a mean but honest sentiment.) The place was surprisingly empty: a too literal and ironic retail genie just granted me what I asked for at Kohls: space. However, it felt weird; next week, I have to return a Xmas present (coat) to Sears’ Lands’ End, so I will try to put this very subjective opinion in a statement that might more descriptive/helpful.

Then I grabbed some essentials at Target (these three stores are under on roof at this particular mall). At Target I was gracious for the clean organization and aisles that organically guide me from one shopping list item to another.

And then I was done with the Big Boxes. I stopped by Trader Joe – the Aldi of the suburban middle class and picked up some steaks. The cashier was the friendliest of all the service people I came across today; it was nice to do some small talk after spending the whole morning with nobody approaching me or commenting about the shirt I was touching or a bag I was eyeing.

Wondering if it’s just me who really likes to hear  “what  a great choice! What you picked is very popular; glad you got it while we still have it.” or more consumers are going to stores in the pursuit of this feeling of acknowledgment.

I feel like the next post about what emotional needs modern brick and mortar shopping CAN fulfill is going write itself. Stay tuned.