Editor’s Note: I had been anticipating this conversation with Aptos‘ Nikki Baird for some time – mostly based on a fly-by meeting we had at this year’s NRF event. This is essentially a continuation of that conversation and as you’ll hear, there are lots of reasons to pay attention to what Nikki is saying and thinking about retail.
In the rush to digitize retail experiences, many businesses have overlooked their most valuable asset: the store associate. Recent research published in Frontiers in Neuroscience reveals a direct correlation between engaged employees and increased sales. When store associates achieve what researchers call “peak immersion” – essentially a flow state where everything clicks – customers buy more. This finding seems intuitive, yet it’s rarely measured or prioritized in retail strategy.
The fundamental challenge is that retailers have become addicted to the immediacy and apparent clarity of digital metrics. This preference for digital measurement creates a dangerous blind spot. As Nikki Baird aptly describes it, digital metrics are like donuts – providing a quick sugar rush of seemingly valuable data – while in-store metrics are more like apples, requiring more effort to digest but ultimately providing better sustenance. This misplaced focus has led many retailers to invest heavily in digital experiences while treating store operations as a necessary cost center rather than a revenue driver.
Before the pandemic, retailers could justify this digital-first approach because online investments frequently delivered stronger and more measurable returns. A million dollars invested in e-commerce might yield a 20% return within three months, while the same investment in stores produced less measurable results. Today, that calculation has shifted dramatically. The field is more level, with many retailers discovering that in-store investments now generate comparable or better returns than digital ones. This realization is driving retailers to reconsider how they allocate resources and measure success across channels.
The implications for loyalty programs are particularly significant. Most loyalty initiatives focus almost exclusively on discounts and transactional benefits, missing the emotional connection that drives true customer retention. Genuine loyalty stems from consistency paired with moments of unexpected delight – elements that are often best delivered through human interaction. No retailer has perfected this formula at scale, which is precisely why the human element remains so valuable. When customers choose to visit physical stores rather than shopping online, they’re implicitly seeking the option of human assistance, even if they don’t actively engage with store associates during every visit.
This insight reveals a critical flaw in how many retailers approach in-store technology. Too often, technology implementations aim to work around store associates rather than empower them. When a retailer installs a self-service kiosk without considering how associates will support it, they’ve missed the point entirely. Even seemingly “associate-free” technologies ultimately depend on store staff when they malfunction or when customers need additional assistance. The perfume kiosk example illustrates this perfectly – when store associates felt the technology threatened their value metrics, they intervened before customers could complete their digital journey.
The path forward requires a fundamental shift in thinking. Rather than viewing store operations purely as a cost center, retailers must recognize stores as relationship-building environments where sales happen through human connections. This means listening to frontline associates about the barriers they face in delivering exceptional service. While associates may not have the strategic vision to redesign the entire customer experience, they can identify the daily friction points that prevent them from reaching that valuable state of “peak immersion” with customers.
