Leveraging UDR—A Profitable Yet Untapped Metric for Brick and Mortars

A boutique commerce innovation firm for retail, CPG and food service, HighStreet Collective focuses on helping these businesses move at the speed of customers in an omnichannel world.

And on today’s video stream episode, HighStreet Co-Founder Ed King joins MarketScale Insider Geoffrey Short to discuss the latest retail experience trends that are surfacing as we move into the new decade.

With legacy retailers like Sears and Kmart closing their doors, more and more brick and mortars have embraced the new frontier of retailing—the experience—as a way to drive more traffic through their doors. Yet, even ‘the experience’ is evolving.

“Well, I think as an industry, we finally evolved from the Instagrammable moments,” states King. “I think it was hot for a few years, and it served its purpose; and it did get some social media mentions and things like that. But I think we’ve evolved now to more of a profit-based mentality.” He goes on to say, “The experience is critical, it’s important—everybody knows it’s really, really important. But also, marrying that with real business metrics is key, and I think we’re seeing more and more of that—especially as you see some retailers go under and declare bankruptcy. I think the other retailers are waking up and seeing, well, you know, experience for the sake of experience is probably not a good strategy. We’ve got to be able to balance it with a real business case.”

While KPIs are key for clients, they change from client to client and need to need. So HighStreet has developed testing methodology within their Living Retail Lab that quantifies a true and common metric among brands—Unrealized Dormant Revenue (UDR)—in other words, how much money retailers are leaving on the table with every customer visit.

“Once we can quantify that through the testing methodology that we developed, we’re able to project a good business case to say, ‘Hey, if we’re to implement this kind of experience in one store, it’s going to result in a 13¢ increase in your ticket for every visit.’ Well, you extrapolate that out to how many days a week, how many days a year, and how many stores—that’s a lot of money,” says King. “When it gets down to like what are the true KPIs, sure, sales per square foot, obviously; but you know, evolving into a more specific wide-driven metric like UDR—Unrealized Dormant Revenue—that’s what we’re finding is getting the attention of a lot of retailers right now.”

Watch the full interview to hear more of Ed King’s thoughts on how store closures can present a real opportunity for these companies to repurpose their business model and ‘rise above the ashes’, why tactile and emotional components ensure the future of brick and mortars, and how startups like Muji and Rough Trade Records are generating customer visits through the creation of an in-store physical manifestation of their brand. And be sure to check out MarketScale’s Retail Industry page that features videos, podcasts, blogs and more covering all things retail.

 

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

Image

Latest

automation
Revolutionizing Revenue Cycle Management: The Power of AI & Automation
July 7, 2025

Amid a rapidly evolving tech landscape, decision-makers need to navigate new AI-driven solutions addressing industry-specific hurdles. This session, recorded at the HFMA 2025 show, sheds light on how leaders are using pioneering automation technologies to stay competitive and efficient.

Read More
Portable AV system
AV Anywhere: Portable AV Systems Are Now Essential for Mission-Critical Response in Unpredictable, Connectivity-Challenged Environments
July 7, 2025

In crisis scenarios, portable AV systems must perform under pressure because failure is not an option. As Keysight Technologies notes, the evolution of mission-critical communications now depends on low-latency, mobile-ready platforms that can operate reliably in unstable, infrastructure-poor conditions, making portable AV systems essential for real-time response and public safety operations. These are the…

Read More
future of marketing
Vibes and the Future of Marketing with Adbloom Founder and CEO Andrew Abony
July 7, 2025

Affiliate marketing is shedding its outdated reputation and entering a new era—one centered on authenticity, emotional resonance, and genuine human connection. As the future of marketing becomes increasingly relationship-driven, this shift is impossible to ignore. In fact, during the 2024 U.S. Cyber Monday, influencers and affiliate marketers were responsible for driving around 20% of…

Read More
brand identity
The Branding Balancing Act: Reinvent Without Losing Your Brand Identity
July 7, 2025

The recent resurrection of the Pac-12—reborn with new members and a possible rebrand—raises critical questions about what keeps a brand relevant in the face of disruption. According to Yahoo Sports, the rebuilt conference has signed a five-year media deal with CBS despite fielding just two original members, underscoring how legacy names must evolve to maintain…

Read More