While the media was filled with headlines warning of a "retail apocalypse," I became fascinated with the lack of innovation in the retail industry. This led me to investigate the concept of experiential retail.

The concept of experiential retail is based on Joseph Pine and James Gilmore's book, The Experience Economy. To research this topic for my article, I interviewed CEOs, economists, CMOs, professors, and Joseph Pine himself.

My argument centered around the idea that e-commerce has surpassed local physical retail in terms of convenience and selection. Thus, brick-and-mortar stores would have to offer something more than just convenience and selection to remain competitive. At the time of writing, physical retail was perceived as dying due to several bankruptcies occurring throughout the industry, even though e-commerce purchases made up less than 20% of total retail sales.

Instead of centering my argument around a buzzword like "experience", I broke it down into three categories that retailers could apply to their customers' in-person shopping: education, technology, and entertainment. These are the three pillars of experience that a brand or retailer can offer its customers. When combined, they create a strategic moat in the mind of the consumer.

The Op-Ed was well received and became the second most read and shared article on the site for the two weeks following its release.