Apple’s iBeacon system is to get its first retail launch in Macy’s branches in Union Square, San Francisco and Herald Square, NYC, within the next few weeks, reports TechCrunch.
Apple will of course be using the system in its own retail stores, though likely after the Macy’s launch. Macy’s is already operating a closed trial of the system.
iBeacon has so far had a low profile, with most non-techies still completely unaware of it – but all that looks set to change very rapidly with a flurry of major retailer launches. Shopkick, the company handling the iBeacon deployment for Macy’s, said that other retailers expected to launch soon include American Eagle Outfitters, Best Buy, Crate and Barrel, JCPenney, Old Navy, The Sports Authority and Target.
Macy’s CMO Martine Reardon said that the store believes iBeacon will be of significant benefit to shoppers.
Shopkick says that a key attraction is the ability to blur the lines between online and offline shopping.
With this shopBeacon trial, we are testing the most leading-edge mobile technologies, because we believe they can even further enhance the in-store experience for Macy’s shoppers.”
If this blurring of the offline and online worlds sounds familiar, it’s because it’s exactly what Apple’s retail head Angela Ahrendts talked about in a video made when she was still CEO of Burberry.
Even those like me who hate physical shopping may find it a little more interesting in the months to come.
