Rachel Shechtman, founder of Story, shares insights into how she built a successful experiential retail concept and eventually integrated it into Macy's. This episode reveals the power of strong vendor partnerships and a customer-centric approach to physical retail, offering valuable lessons for brands looking to innovate in the brick-and-mortar space and navigate large-scale collaborations.
Key takeaways
Cultivate obsessive vendor partnerships: Story's success was built on deeply collaborative relationships with brands, treating them as partners rather than mere suppliers.
Embrace experiential retail: Physical stores can thrive by offering unique, curated experiences that go beyond transactional shopping, encouraging discovery and engagement.
Adapt your small business mindset to large corporations: Shechtman demonstrates how entrepreneurial agility and a focus on mission can drive innovation even within a massive organization like Macy's.
Leverage pop-up models for testing and scale: Utilizing temporary retail formats allows for continuous experimentation with themes, products, and partnerships, providing valuable data and maintaining freshness.
When Rachel Schectman founded Story, she wanted to create a space for experimenting with retail. At a time when many people were skeptical about the future of physical retail, Schectman believed, and proved, that a carefully curated retail experience could be successful. But a few years into a continuous cycle of revamping the store every other month, she wanted to find something bigger. So in spring of 2018, after weighing a few other possibilities, Schectman agreed to an acquisition by Macy's and, at the same time, became the retailer's first brand experience officer. Macy's inaugural Story pop-up, which was color-themed, launched in 36 Macy's doors earlier this year. This week marks the launch of their second concept, Outdoor Story, which includes brand partners such as Dick's Sporting Goods and Miracle-Gro and can be found in select Macy's stores through September. In this week's episode of The Glossy Podcast, Schectman discusses why Macy's was the right partner for her, what it's like running a new concept within the company and how she uses her experience in small business to inform how she manages brand partnerships.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Cultivate obsessive vendor partnerships: Story's success was built on deeply collaborative relationships with brands, treating them as partners rather than mere suppliers.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
Embrace experiential retail: Physical stores can thrive by offering unique, curated experiences that go beyond transactional shopping, encouraging discovery and engagement.
What does this episode say about founder & leadership?
Adapt your small business mindset to large corporations: Shechtman demonstrates how entrepreneurial agility and a focus on mission can drive innovation even within a massive organization like Macy's.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Leverage pop-up models for testing and scale: Utilizing temporary retail formats allows for continuous experimentation with themes, products, and partnerships, providing valuable data and maintaining freshness.
