Are Smaller Stores and Personalized Service the Future of Fashion?

Whether you’re an integrator, a designer or simply a label-defying creative, the EXPERIENCE is everything. Host Bryan Meszaros explores the story behind the exhibit to understand how a carefully crafted experience traps into the human experience to connect people to place.

 

Shoppers are increasingly turning to online shopping experiences, as in-store experiences are becoming less convenient. The COVID-19 Pandemic perhaps accelerated this model, and retailers are working to adapt to keep up with the changes.

On this episode of Experience By Design, Host Bryan Meszaros talked with Brian Landman, Vice President, Creative Studio at Winston Retail, who leads the way in defining the consumer experience by creating unified commerce in retail, wholesale, and online channels. The duo dug into optimizing the retail footprint, intimate store experiences, and analytics to predict customer behavior and product interests.

With brick-and-mortar foot traffic waning and online competition increasing, luxury department stores have been stalled and forced to resort to shutting stores, or in business-speak, “optimizing the retail footprint.” Retailers are doing this to shrink the size of retail stores, which creates a more intimate experience. An example of this is Burlington Stores who is shrinking the footprint of their stores to 25,000 square feet but increasing the number from 1,000 to 2,000.

“What we’re starting to see is brands looking at smaller, defined spaces where they can be more agile in the box,” said Landman, who has worked in the fashion and footwear industry for 20 years, gaining experience in ​visual merchandising, store design, brand experience, and storytelling at retail and wholesale.

With smaller, more intimate experiences, brands have to be mindful about what they put into the physical store. An example would be Sephora’s “Studio” prototype store in downtown New York, which is designed to foster an “intimate” experience with the customer – a type of relationship that is similar to how one would have with their hairdresser.

Watch Previous Episodes Right Here!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

student visibility
Why Student Visibility Matters in Today’s Schools
March 3, 2026

School Safety Today podcast, presented by Raptor Technologies. In this episode of School Safety Today by Raptor Technologies, host Dr. Amy Grosso interviews SRO Todd Brendel of Dayton Independent Schools (KY), who shares frontline insights on the importance of knowing where students and staff are throughout the school day. He explains how they manage…

Read More
skilled trades mentorship
Why the Trades Need a Cultural Reset to Attract and Retain the Next Generation
March 3, 2026

The skilled trades are at a critical crossroads. According to an August 2025 report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR), the number of women working in construction and extraction occupations rose to 366,360 in 2024, the highest level ever recorded. Yet despite that growth, women still account for only about 4.3% of construction…

Read More
virtual physical therapy
Virtual Physical Therapy and the Changing Landscape of Athlete Care
March 3, 2026

Virtual care is no longer an experiment—it’s a structural shift in healthcare. Telehealth usage remains significantly higher than pre-2020 levels, and providers across disciplines are rethinking how to deliver higher-quality outcomes without the overhead and insurance constraints of traditional clinics. Meanwhile, recreational and endurance sports participation continues to rise, with millions of Americans registering…

Read More
employer
Why Institution-Wide Employer Alignment Will Define the Next Era of Higher Ed
March 2, 2026

Higher education is at an inflection point. Institutions are facing a demographic cliff in traditional-age enrollment, softening international pipelines, and increasing scrutiny around the return on investment of a degree. At the same time, the World Economic Forum reports that 59 out of every 100 workers globally are projected to require reskilling or upskilling…

Read More