Market growing at 18% as solutions boost client turnover

The Digital Signage Summit at ISE 2019 was another significant success, with a record number of delegates gaining valuable insights into the dynamics and future of the sector from top level speakers from across the industry.

For the majority of consumers, digital signage is perhaps the most visible element of the audiovisual industry – and at the Digital Signage Summit, it became clear that it will continue to be a significant market.

Delegates heard that sales of large format screens – most typically employed in digital signage applications – rose 21% last year to 5.6 million. The market itself is said to have grown by 18% year-on-year, and is now valued at $14.6bn.

“It’s positive news,” said Florian Rotberg, Managing Director of invidis consulting, which jointly organised the summit with Integrated Systems Events. “Many other industries would love to have figures like this.”

That the market is growing is no surprise. At the Summit, it was revealed that some 80% of brands experienced an increase in sales of up to 33% using digital signage. Quick service restaurants report a 30% increase in order value when customers use smart vending, and 52% of travellers are more likely to visit a hotel that offers self-check in.

The digital signage sector is said to be experiencing significant disruption with changing consumer behaviours and expectations driven by the likes of Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google.

“These companies taught consumers to use touch, and now they’re trying to teach us to use voice and not to care about owning things, but to share them,” said Stefan Schieker, Managing Partner at Result MC. “That’s having a deep impact on the retail industry and how we use signage.”

Jose Avalos, VP, Internet of Things Group and Global Director, Visual Retail and Digital Signage at Intel, pointed out that it’s not just in retail where digital signage is having an impact, but also in areas like education.

“The Digital Signage Summit was, yet again, a great success,” said Rotberg, “and yet again attracted record numbers of delegates, many of them coming from around the world. The new location at the Hotel Okura provided us with the perfect platform to discuss trends and drivers away from the busy show floor, and our C-level speakers gave real insight into the state of the digital signage market and where it’s headed.”

The half-day conference featured experts and customers delivering market insights and presenting best practice, with delegates including integrators, solution providers and end-users. This year saw a particular focus on how complementing sensor-triggered and data-driven solutions add value to digital signage.

“Digital signage has long been a mainstay of the AV industry, and provides an outstanding example of all the things the industry is great at,” said Mike Blackman, Managing Director of Integrated Systems Events. “Once again, the Digital Signage Summit delivered real value to those who were there, presenting an unmissable opportunity for industry professionals to learn, discuss and network. The Summit has long been a key feature of ISE – and long may it continue to be so.”

The Digital Signage Summit ISE was produced in partnership with AVIXA, CEDIA, invidis consulting and ICTA (International Cinema Technology Association), and was sponsored by Nexmosphere. Technology partners were Hikvision, Improve, Temas and Transtech.

• Independent bakery and baking school, Bread Ahead, to open on world-famous Olympic Way
• Forms part of Quintain’s vision for a transformed retail and leisure offer at Wembley Park
• Latest addition to the line-up combines the tradition of baking with experiential activities

Independent bakery and baking school, Bread Ahead, is the latest retailer to join the line-up at Wembley Park, the £3bn urban development adjacent to the world-famous National Stadium. Delivered by Quintain, the scheme is creating a vibrant retail and leisure offer, with a curated mix of almost 70 new shops, restaurants and services. This is in addition to London Designer Outlet, London’s largest Boxpark and the recently announced Wembley Park Market.

Bread Ahead’s ethos of bringing quality baking and fresh daily produce to the masses will see it open its largest location to date, with a huge 11,000 sq ft, all-encompassing foodie destination set to open its doors to the public this autumn. The site will feature a 220-cover restaurant, deli, baking school and wholesale bakery and will be an enticing retail experience on the world-famous Olympic Way.

The latest addition will particularly appeal to Wembley Park’s growing community of renters at Tipi’s beautifully designed, lifestyle-focussed apartments. Quintain’s vision is for Wembley Park to become the largest build-to-rent single site development in the UK, with a full-time residential community of some 20,000 by 2027.

The bakery will be located on Olympic Way, adjacent to Tipi’s latest building, Landsby, and near to Alameda, opening in June. Both buildings offer a wealth of experiential activities and exclusive social spaces.

Bread Ahead’s customers will be able to see the bread they will eat as it is made and have the opportunity to learn about baking, allowing them to fully engage with the brand. This mixes the traditional craft of baking with the increasing trend for experiential activities that is transforming the current retail landscape.

Matt Slade, Retail Director of Quintain, said: “Bread Ahead brings a fresh dimension to our f&b offer and demonstrates the calibre of brands that are choosing Wembley Park. The bakery will be an anchor retailer for the area’s residents, whilst its world-famous products will be a draw for our national and international visitors. Wembley Park is a world-class destination and the addition of Bread Ahead will be a large part of the contemporary retail and leisure offer that so nicely combines with the area’s strong cultural heritage.”

Bread Ahead Wembley Park will be open from 7am – 11pm and will serve up an array of breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes, such as speciality sourdough pizzas, house specials and a variety of desserts. Also on offer will be a selection of grab-and-go items with a strong emphasis on flour from British wheat. This will include some on-site milling of traditional wheats stressing the niche capabilities of the company, positioning it strongly in baker circles.

Adding to the community appeal of the area, the brand will bring its renowned Baking School to Wembley Park, hosting a variety of year-round workshops, creating truly immersive experiences. Led by Bread Ahead’s bakery school tutors and offering an insight into artisan baking, the school with capacity for 15,000 students a year, will be an exciting addition to the residential and business community at the 85-acre scheme.

Renowned baker Matt Jones, founder of Bread Ahead, said: “Because of the stimulating spectrum of new retail and leisure planned at Wembley Park, a Bread Ahead in this location was an obvious choice. We firmly believe that a bakery forms an essential part of a local community, even in a modern metropolis. We took something very traditional and give it a new lease of life whilst making it accessible for all to enjoy. This echoes Quintain’s vision for Wembley Park and we aim to create a welcoming space for local residents, office workers and visitors to meet and relax over freshly baked food.”

Bread Ahead first opened in London’s Borough Market in 2013. This was soon followed by The Bakery School which opened its doors in 2014 with the intention of showing the public how easy it is to bake good quality bread. The brand has since grown with additional branches in Chelsea and Soho. The latest bakery will be located in The Village, one of four distinct new districts being created at the Wembley Park development. The aroma of freshly baked bread will add to the appeal, atmosphere and charm of the area.

Bread Ahead joins a Wembley Park line- up which is set to attract over 20 million visitors per year and a retail spend higher than that of Camden, London Victoria and Ealing Broadway once completed. National and international attractions, including Wembley Stadium connected by EE, The SSE Arena, Wembley, Boxpark Wembley Park and seasonal events, will sit alongside Wembley Park’s independent shops and restaurants to create a year-round experiential destination for local workers and visitors.

Just 12 minutes from Baker Street, 19 minutes from Kings Cross and 23 minutes from Waterloo, Wembley Park is one of the UK best connected districts and is serviced by the Jubilee and Metropolitan lines, as well as national rail from Wembley Stadium station to Marylebone and out to the Chilterns.

Agents for Wembley Park are Nash Bond and Cushman & Wakefield.

A North East shopping centre is helping visitors keep active while they shop, with the opening of a new pop-up.

Sunderland’s the Bridges has teamed up with Table Tennis England – the sport’s national governing body – and Everyone Active, to open a Ping Pong Parlour in the shopping centre.

Open to everyone and completely free to play, the new parlour is located on Walworth Way West and features four table tennis tables for visitors to enjoy while they shop.

The Ping Pong Parlour at the Bridges is one of more than 30 others in shopping centres around the country, as part of Table Tennis England’s initiative to encourage a more active lifestyle.

Andy Bradley, centre director at the Bridges, is confident the new pop-up will have great appeal for shoppers.

“We are thrilled to be working with Table Tennis England and Everyone Active, to bring a Ping Pong Parlour to Sunderland,” said Andy.

“Staying healthy and keeping active is something we are very passionate about at the Bridges so the pop-up is certain to be a fantastic addition.

“We are always looking for ways to improve our shoppers’ time at the centre and we hope the new table tennis area will give visitors even more choice of how to spend their trip.”

Keely Armitt, head of participation at Table Tennis England, is delighted with the new location.

“The Parlours are aimed at everyone – irrespective of age, ability or gender, and especially those who wouldn’t normally consider going out to play a sport, by reaching them in a place they already enjoy spending time.

“The Parlour will be available to pop into and play; completely free and without having to book”

Councillor John Kelly, Sunderland City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Communities and Culture said: “We are delighted that a Ping Pong Parlour has been set up in the Bridges.

“Free table tennis bats and balls will ensure that everyone is welcome to drop in and simply ‘have a go’.

“This initiative very much complements other city activities supported by Active Sunderland with the aim of getting people more active’’.

The Ping Pong Parlour initiative is one of a collection of Table Tennis England projects and programmes delivered with Sport England funding and support.

The other initiatives include Ping!, a street ping pong project which places hundreds of outdoor tables in public places of towns and cities; Loop, which introduces table tennis into the workplaces; and Ping in the Community, which provides table tennis opportunities for community organisations.

To find out more about Ping Pong Parlours, visit: www.pingpongparlour.net

For more information about the Bridges, visit www.thebridges-shopping.com

Looking to refresh their windows and instore display, lululemon briefed Lucky Fox with creating a versatile VM solution to reflect their store’s industrial feel.
Working with a palette of concrete and metallic, Lucky Fox designed and produced hanging and freestanding substrate structures with rivet edging in the windows framing the mannequins. A real concrete texture back wall provides additional interest.

Adding a pop of colour to the scheme is teal LED lighting, underlighting the plinths and framing the mannequins at different angles. Reflected by the stainless steel floor and side walls, the RGB LED lighting is interchangeable, allowing flexibility for different product colourways.

Part of the refresh was a redesign of their mannequin army display plinths instore. Lucky Fox created smooth concrete underlit plinths with stainless steel reflective tops. Produced at different heights to maintain sightlines, the flexible display allows for optional positioning.

TVC installs Peerless-AV® video wall mounts to ensure an outstanding finish for digital signage throughout the venue

Nature and technology merge at Lancashire’s new and original leisure destination, The Flower Bowl, incorporating over 30 wayfinding and entertainment screens supported by easy access video wall mounting solutions from AV technology pioneer Peerless-AV®. AV equipment supplier and integrator TVC Technology Solutions, was responsible for the installation, creating a fully integrated audio and visual experience for visitors to this latest must-see attraction located adjacent to the existing Barton Grange Garden Centre at Brock, Preston.

The brainchild of the award-winning Barton Grange Group of companies, The Flower Bowl is a unique, single-story, mixed leisure and attractions venue, including a curling rink, ten pin bowling alley, crazy golf course, golf simulator and multi-screen cinema all under one grass-covered roof. TVC began initial discussions with Barton Grange Group in October 2016 to help create this most impressive and unusual leisure venue, which sees AV technology integrating seamlessly with its surrounding natural environment. Completed at the end of 2018, The Flower Bowl is now officially open to the public.

TVC specified and installed a total of 19 x 32″ and 55″ Samsung Hospitality and Commercial LFD screens in high visibility areas of the venue for wayfinding and information sharing with visitors. A further 17 x 46″ Samsung screens are used to create striking video walls. In the main foyer, located outside the entrance to the cinema, is the larger 3×3 video wall used to display the latest movie trailers. Two smaller 2×2 video walls are positioned at the entrance to the shop, showcasing the Secret Garden Crazy Golf, and the Private Bar and Karaoke area. To provide easy access to all screens and to deliver the most professional screen placement for the individual displays and video walls, TVC chose Peerless-AV DS-VW765-LQR SmartMount® Full-Service Video Wall Mounts with Quick Release.

“For video wall mounts that are easy to install with reliable performance and quality finish every time, we go to Peerless-AV,” said Andy Greaves, Head of Commercial Sales at TVC Technology Solutions. “For this project, the displays needed to blend in with the landscape and architecture, and the mounts play a huge role in this, making the displays sit flush to the walls with no gaps or irregularities so all visitors see and engage with is the content.”

Specifically designed with a gentle pop out mechanism for quick service access, even for in-wall applications, the Peerless-AV mounts provide an ideal video wall mounting solution for displays up to 65″. These award-winning mounts are packed with installer-friendly features that allow for a single person install, including an easy hang keyhole wall plate for fast mount positioning. The tool-less micro adjustment at 8 points ensures precision display alignment, while the custom wall plate spacers provide perfect placement of each additional mount on the wall, eliminating installation calculations and guesswork.

Compact, lightweight Canon short throw projectors are installed within the curling arena to project eye-catching winter scenes through a virtual window to the outside world. Finally, a series of BOSE ceiling and wall mounted speakers help create the perfect acoustic atmosphere throughout the venue.

Carl Irvine – IT and Infrastructure of Barton Grange Group, commented, “The AV was an integral part of this venture when we first started discussions and seeing the end result make us very proud of our new creation. Most importantly, customers love their new contemporary leisure hub that shows passion and care for nature and the surrounding landscape.”

For more information about Peerless-AV products and solutions, visit www.peerless-av.com. Follow the latest news and updates on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and blog.

Strategic SaaS partnership consolidates powerful AI-automation capabilities to deliver exceptional shopping experiences

Ecommerce technology providers, Early Birds and Attraqt (LON :ATQT) have today announced a partnership that consolidates their best-of-breed ecommerce capabilities in search, personalisation and merchandising for retailers & brands. Early Birds’ omnichannel personalisation offering and reach in the French retail market combined with Attraqt’s global onsite search, merchandising and internationalisation expertise, will offer retailers new, integrated shopping experiences and further opportunities for commercial growth.

Both companies have mutually beneficial capabilities embedded in AI and automation and these are poised to offer retailers better conversions, improved operational efficiencies and ultimately more valuable experiences for their shoppers. The partnership comes at a time when many retailers across Europe are struggling to meet rising expectations of shoppers who demand the efficient, personalised offering of online shopping alongside the richness and curated inspiration of an instore experience.

The combined solution will enable retailers & brands to create a single, unified personalised experience across multiple ecommerce touchpoints such as on-site search, navigation, promotions, banners, email and other content elements. The underlying AI and machine learning platform will constantly learn and optimise the experience for the shopper. While many retailers are struggling to deploy and test the best AI-algorithm, Early Birds enables data science teams to deploy and test various native, open source and other commercial algorithms against each other and select the best performing algorithms for a particular use case. In addition, retailers will be able to curate specific experiences for high-traffic sites, landing pages or specific campaigns utilising Attraqt’s proven merchandising capabilities. Early Birds and Attraqt will further strengthen this combination of human creativity with simplified automation.

Early Birds brings together data & marketing teams on a best-in-class platform to orchestrate AI models in real-time and build personalisation strategies at scale. Embedded in the French retail market, Early Birds works with a range of brands.

UK-headquartered Attraqt deliver search and merchandising ecommerce solutions via the Fredhopper Discovery Platform. Attraqt provides over 240 global retail brands with mission-critical solutions around the globe.

John Raap, Chief Partner and Strategy Officer at Attraqt says: ‘We’re delighted that our partnership with Early Birds offers customers a rare opportunity to accelerate phenomenal shopper experiences in an omnichannel environment. This is a market dominated by vendors who tend to offer retailers an ‘either/or’ approach to expertise in search, merchandising and personalisation. Together with Early Birds, we can now confidently offer retailers an incredibly powerful toolkit of solutions across the customer journey– embedded in our mutual capabilities in delivering smart data insights and AI-automation.’

Laëtitia Comès, Co-Founder at Early Birds says: ‘Our partnership with Attraqt signals our maturity in the ecommerce market, and we are thrilled to be able to extend our reputation of being personalisation leaders beyond the French market. Together with Attraqt, our investment in developing and deploying the best AI-algorithms alongside this newly gained layer of sophisticated search and merchandising will certainly drive new standards for ecommerce experiences for our existing and mutual customers.’

Attraqt and Early Birds will launch their unified capabilities at One to One Monaco, 19th – 21st of March 2019 (Booth #F2J015)

Sloane Stanley has today announced phase one of the opening for popular chic cake and confectionary brand, Peggy Porschen, at 219 King’s Road. Boasting a prime corner position, the 2,400 sq ft Parlour marks the second site for the brand, after their debut in nearby Belgravia in 2010.

Peggy Porschen’s new flagship location spans across two floors of rooms, including a ground floor consisting of The Café, The Lounge, The Salon and a lower ground floor housing The Chelsea Rose Room and Pink Peony Bar. All rooms are located through the immediate café area which homes a custom-made, five-meter-long, glass patisserie counter displaying freshly baked treats.

Opening its doors with the café menu first, visitors can now explore the rooms and sample a whole range of cafes, cupcakes and confectionary as well as bespoke blend teas, coffees and champagne. With 64 covers throughout the rooms, Peggy Porschen’s second Parlour will ultimately offer an all-day-dining experience to perfectly complement the sweet menu and pick up on the exquisite detail for which the brand is known. The full savoury menu will launch in spring / summer 2019 in line with phase two of opening.

Mamas & Papas is partnering with John Lewis & Partners to supply a curated range of products on Johnlewis.com and in-store.

The initial range for John Lewis & Partners will include best-selling travel items, including Mamas & Papas award-winning Ocarro and Armadillo pushchairs, along with the new Flip XT³.

Riccardo Cincotta, executive chairman of Mamas & Papas, said: “John Lewis & Partners is an excellent partner for our business, as we share a common ambition to offer parents and parents-to-be products that are not only stylish but highly practical.

“This partnership will open up our range to a wide online audience and loyal shop customers. In time we expect to broaden our offering into other categories such as furniture and clothing.”

In addition to offering the full range at its Oxford Street store, a curated assortment will be in other John Lewis & Partners shops such as the Bluewater Park shopping centre in Dartford, plus outlets in Stratford, Cardiff, Norwich, Liverpool and Glasgow.

Caroline Bettis, Head of Buying for Childrenswear, at John Lewis & Partners, said: “We’re really excited to introduce this Mamas & Papas range and we hope our customers love discovering these products.

“From stylish pushchairs to changing bags and travel accessories, this is a great collection which will complement our other baby ranges.”

Mamas & Papas now operates 30 of its own stores and has more than 100 distributors in the UK and Ireland.

Liverpool ONE will be transported back millions of years – via the latest technology – when an augmented dinosaur hunt launches on 29 March for ten weeks.

As part of this interactive game, visitors will have the chance to chase Raptors, follow Apatosauruses and hide from the mighty T.Rex, as part of a new Dinosaurs Unleashed augmented reality app – a first for the city. In addition, there will be model dinosaurs on Chavasse-ic Park, real-life rangers on hand to help young visitors to get the most out of their experience and lots of surprises popping-up around Liverpool ONE during the 10-week ‘invasion’.

Grosvenor Europe (Grosvenor), which developed and part owns and manages Liverpool ONE, has teamed up with dinosaur educationalists, Teach Rex, who work with schoolchildren across the country bringing the pre-historic era to life in the classroom. The National Museums Liverpool is also working in collaboration with Grosvenor and Liverpool ONE, welcoming children to its Dinosaur Gallery at the World Museum in William Brown Street.

Alison Clegg, Director, Asset Management, Grosvenor Europe, added: “This app is one of the most ambitious and exciting enlivenment initiatives for Liverpool ONE to date. To be the first to bring this augmented reality to the city, and at such a large scale, highlights our passion to be innovative and to provide visitors with the best experience, ensuring Liverpool remains a vibrant place to be.

“Grosvenor’s collaboration with Teach Rex and National Museums Liverpool, also brings an important educational element to the event, but moreover, reaffirms how city stakeholders can work together to ensure city centres remain vibrant, mixed use destinations.”

Visitors will be able to download the app and collect points as they hatch dinosaurs from giant eggs within Liverpool ONE via a range of augmented reality features. Participants will even be able to play with their dinosaurs at home – and are encouraged to keep their pre-historic friends well-fed and well-exercised.

An example of the augmented reality experience can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/LiverpoolONE-T-Rex

To keep up to date with the latest news at Liverpool ONE, follow @Liverpool_ONE on Twitter.