Roland is proud to announce an expanded “Roland Store” experience at select retailers in the U.S. and globally. Roland developed a new technology for the stores, branded “Audience Specific Experience ASX,” that controls the lighting, video and audio in the spaces and can be altered by the press of a button to match the environment to the taste of individual customers. Roland debuted the technology in 2020 and currently operates ten of the new store formats globally, with expansion into new markets planned for 2022. With retail rebounding, and 45% of consumers in the U.S. reporting that they will look for gifts in-store, and the all-important Gen Z cohort increasing their in-store time this holiday season, crafting unique shopping experiences has never been more relevant. As retailers continue to compete with e-commerce sites, Roland knows this experience will help them continue to build relationships with consumers on the store floor. The new Roland store-in-stores offer full-time Roland product experts, hands-on demonstrations, and access to the full Roland and BOSS catalog of products. They also showcase how Roland and BOSS products can help consumers learn about, create, and perform music.
“Retailers are continuing to seek out new ways to engage with their customers as they readjust to in-store shopping this holiday season,” said Corin Birchall, Roland Global Retail Operations Manager. “With Roland’s Audience Specific Experience ASX, each person who walks into the Roland Stores can enjoy music, lighting, and screen content matched to their own needs. We’re excited to be able to expand this upgraded retail experience to more retailers globally so that both consumers and the sales teams that rely on them can enjoy it.”
Roland opened their first retail store-in-store in 2001 in the UK, later expanding across Europe and Japan, with the aim of giving customers the very best physical experience, product knowledge, and post-sales support. Since 2020, Roland has upped the ante with new technology, access to the full range of products from Roland and BOSS, the full BPM Supreme music library to test DJ controllers, free one-on-one product training with a Roland product specialist, and more. Retailers opening Roland Stores typically double their sales of Roland and BOSS products, with many also experiencing significant lifts in categories like piano, synth, and drums, as a whole.
“Even during the pandemic, the Roland Store and the amazing staff at Roland helped grow our business in sales, marketing, brand identity and value,” said Alan Rosen, owner of Bananas At Large, the renowned northern California-based music, audio, and video equipment retailer founded in 1972. “We have seen a tremendous turn in all Roland products and especially saw great increases in models we were not stocking previously or felt did not fit our business model at the time. We are truly grateful to Roland for the honor and privilege of being the flagship Roland Store.”
“The growth of convenient online shopping has put pressure on physical retailers to offer more than just product stock. Customers are increasingly looking to a shopping trip to provide excitement, discovery, learning as well as acquiring products. As a company renowned for innovation and developing the technologies of tomorrow in the music world, it seemed fitting that we should develop the retail experience of the future, as well,” said Gordon Raison, Roland’s chief sales and marketing officer.
Currently, Roland Stores have opened in multiple cities in the United States, Glasgow, Montreal, Beijing, Sydney, and São Paulo. Roland has plans to expand to other metropolitan areas at the heart of regional music making in the future.
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