Foot Locker’s reimagined 34th Street flagship in New York City is designed to combine physical experiences, digital convenience and the human touch to stand out from the competition.
The retailer’s associates, called Stripers, are what ties the various elements of the experience together, according to Sasha Palacios, general manager at the reimagined store near Herald Square, which reopened in August 2024.
“It's all about creating a personalized, seamless and efficient experience,” Palacios told CX Dive. “Right as soon as the customer walks into our doors, a Striper is there to meet them where they're at.”
The goal is for workers to leverage technology to create great experiences — without coming across as robotic. Foot Locker’s associates are trained to deliver personalized but authentic service, using mobile and in-store tools to support their knowledge and training.
The store draws its associates from the local community, including many Foot Locker customers, according to Palacios. This, combined with training and support from the retailer, helps give its team a leg up when it comes to in-store customer service.
“The Stripers are the brand ambassadors, and they're the experts, so they are going to be answering confidently,” Palacios said. “They know the answers to the customers’ questions.”
Authenticity alongside technology
Associates at the 34th Street store want to avoid making customer interactions feel like rote transactions. To encourage this, Stripers are trained to greet customers by breaking the ice before moving on to help them with their journey.
“We want to be authentic, not robotic,” Palacios said. “So it's little things like complimenting the sneakers they're wearing or something we can find that's relatable to the customers.”
From there, associates ask open-ended questions about what brought them to the store to get a better idea of what they’re looking for, according to Palacios. This also gives workers a chance to show off their expertise regarding the store’s features and product selection.
Associates keep up to date with the latest Foot Locker campaigns and social media trends so that when a customer comes with a photo of a hot new sneaker, the associate can recognize it and help find it.
Mobile tools help associates keep track of inventory right from the sales floor. Rather than checking in the back, workers can check available styles and sizes without abandoning the customer.
The devices also help associates manage foot traffic at the busy Herald Square location. Prior to the store reopening, customers had to check out at a single area where the registers were located, according to Palacios. Now the store has several dedicated service points throughout the store, and associates can use their mobile tools to check out customers anywhere to cut wait times.
“We not only serve the communities throughout the borough and throughout New York City, but we have tourists coming in,” Palacios said. “It's busy. We have a lot of traffic coming into our stores. With mobile and with our new service points, we eliminated wait times.”
A digitally enhanced in-store experience
Associates aren’t the only ones using technology at the reimagined 34th Street store. The flagship, which was revamped as part of Foot Locker’s global revitalization project, features multiple customer-facing digital tools.
One of the first things shoppers see when they step into the store is the Drop Zone, where Foot Locker showcases trending products, its latest campaigns and social media posts, according to Palacios.
The Drop Zone is home to a communal space called the Ticket Club, which offers an opportunity for customers and associates to connect.
“This is where we’re really sparking conversations throughout the community, where our Stripers are talking about the sneaker culture,” Palacios said. “It is our try-on space as well, so this is where our customers can also get a little bit more discovery.”
The store also features a machine, created in partnership with Aetrex, that takes 3D measurements of the length, width and girth of customers’ feet, according to Palacios. The device not only measures size, but suggests specific sneakers that best fit each shoppers’ unique foot shape.
Customers can put footwear to the test in The Clinic Digital Experience, a challenge measuring customers’ vertical jump height. Stripers are invited to participate in the challenge as well. That combination of technology and the human element is indicative of the reimagined store experience, according to Palacios.
“It's the connection that brings out loyalty and has our customers coming back to us — that's what it's really all about,” Palacios said.
