Touchscreens Create Online Experience at Stores

Imagine browsing knife sets in an airport and then ordering one before you board your plane, or going to a department store to look at makeup without having to bounce from counter to counter to check out each brand's selection.

Companies including Macy's, HSN and Adidas are building large, TV-like interactive screens to give consumers experiences like these in an ever-increasing effort to bring the convenience of online shopping to the offline world.

"We are on the frontier of a really neat future of retailing," says Michelle Tinsley, general manager of retail at Intel, whose core processor is behind new shopping technology and digital signs from Macy's, HSN, Adidas, Kraft, Coca-Cola and others.

To enhance the in-store shopping experience, where the majority of retail sales are still rung up, retailers are looking for ways to bring the convenience, selection and ability for product comparison of the online world. For example, HSN's digital shopping wall could be set up in an airport and would allow someone to virtually browse knife sets while waiting for a flight, complete the purchase through their phone and have the item shipped home.

"It is a way to refresh the shopping experience without having to rebuild a new store," says Joe Skorupa, editor of retail publication RIS News.

Shop Digitally in Physical Stores

While online shopping accounts for less than 10% of retail sales, consumers continue to demonstrate their preference for browsing, researching, sharing and buying in a digital environment. Online holiday sales were up 15% over 2010, aided by record Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, according to data from ComScore. In-store sales rose 3.4% from the previous year during the same time period, data from Retail Metrics show.

Macy's Beauty Spot kiosk, a rounded, roughly 7-foot-tall, 4-foot-wide structure inlaid with interactive touch-screens on both sides, allows a customer to browse the...