Cartier Embraces Digital Retail Innovation, Claims First-Mover Status in the Luxury Space

Cartier is one of the world’s most prestigious jewelry manufacturers, operating more than 200 boutiques in countries across the world. As a designer, manufacturer, and distributor of not only jewelry but also leather goods and watches, Cartier operates in the upper echelons of luxury brands. With all the accolades that Cartier and its peers have earned, however, the luxury space as a whole has been under-invested in digital technology and innovation, especially when compared with other industries.

Innovation

Total Experience Strategy

Roadmap

The Impact

ACTIVE INNOVATION SOLUTIONS

NEW SOLUTIONS AWAITING DEPLOYMENT

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STAGE BOUTIQUE RESERVATIONS

The Challenge

In recent years, Cartier has sought to capitalize on this opportunity by cultivating internal momentum around technology and innovation. A number of teams within the organization have been transformed into “Labs” focused on evolving aspects of the conglomerate’s business, including a Manufacturing Lab, Supply Chain Lab, Product Lab, and Retail Lab.

Establishing innovation-focused teams is an important step, but does not guarantee innovation. The partnership between Cartier and Nansen was launched to support the firm’s Retail Lab (aka the Retail Solutions Development team, or RSD) in its efforts to develop ideas, collaborate across markets, and launch new services and tools for Cartier customers.

The Process

Cartier’s new investments in retail technology and innovation were aimed at a number of connected goals. The North Star was, of course, to deliver the best possible experience for Cartier customers, whether they’re shopping in a physical boutique or across the digital landscape. But customer experience does not exist in a vacuum. As Gartner has observed, today it is best practice for brands to pursue a “total experience” strategy, in which the experience of customers is integrated with employee experience, user experience, and “multiexperience” across digital and physical touchpoints.

The Solution

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In summer 2022, the first phase of the Retail Solutions Hub launched and helped Cartier become a first-mover in the luxury space, keeping the brand ahead of its competitors and delivering an enhanced total experience for its employees, users, and customers

Cartier decided to focus on elevating the experience of the employees working within Cartier’s RSD team. This team was responsible for turning retail innovations into finished solutions, elevating and maintaining existing retail solutions, and launching a boutique “prototype store” called STAGE, which would host new project testing, employee training, and more. Given Cartier’s scale and global footprint, there was a real need for streamlining the RSD team’s efforts to avoid redundancies and wasted resources.

In the client's own words

The Result

In summer 2022, the first phase of the Retail Solutions Hub launched alongside the Cartier Stage boutique in Marrakech, Morocco.

The combined impact of these two investments positions Cartier as a first-mover in the luxury space, keeping the brand ahead of its competitors and delivering an enhanced total experience for its employees, users, and customers.

With more new features launching in September 2022 and again before the end of the year, the Retail Solutions Hub promises to deliver ongoing brand elevation for Cartier through thoughtful, incremental innovation.