The UK high street is decline, 1 in 5 shops could close by 2018 , as retail operating cost is
increasing is at a faster rate than consumer spending (increase of 20% since 2006, compared
to 12% ) & increasingly customers turn online for shopping. Impact on UK economy: store
vacancy rates have doubled since 2008 (from 5% to 10%); closures of high street stores have
tripled (from 371 closures in 2013 to 987 in 2014); & 5000 high street jobs lost in 2014.
For high street retailers to remain competitive & prevent dominance of online retail (growth
of ~650% over the past 10 years, from £7.8bn in 2005to £52bn in 2015) the gap between
operating cost & consumer spending must be closed by improving profit margins. Studies by
Experian & McKinsey suggest that exploiting tech innovation is key to securing commercial
gains.
Existing solutions:
1. Digital signage (Displays2Go, NV3 Tech). Limitations: no remote operation; inflexible - no
real-time adjustment of ads; campaigns must be planned ~3 months in advance & thus may be
irrelevant/outdated upon release; no hyperlocal marketing; & no dynamic pricing or artificial
intelligence (AI) based scheduling of content.
2. Retail analytics (Retail Next, Experian & Nomi). Limitations: no marketing suggestions, no
data sharing & focus is on upselling rather than obtaining new custom.
Boldmind Ltd seek to address the need for improved digital ad tech via development of
Flow.City - novel digital signage with supporting big data platform & AI software.
Advantages over existing tech: big data exploitation generates hyperlocal insight; ad content
& design can be altered in real-time enabling responsive marketing & dynamic prising based
on big data.
The potential impact of Flow.City has been shown in PoC trials which resulted in a 400%
increase in table bookings for Club Lounge Restaurant & a revenue increase of 22% for itsu.
This project will advance Flow.City from current unoptimised PoC to beta stage. Market
launch is expected Q3 2017.