The following article is adapted from a GlobalShop 2006 presentation by Kate Ancketill, Managing Director, GDR Creative Intelligence Ltd.

Through its analyses of visual case studies from cutting-edge designers and architects worldwide, GDR has uncovered five hot new trends in retail.

1 HEIDI, The New Female Code

Ten million Highly Educated Independent Degree-carrying Individuals comprise the HEIDI trend, according to research by The Future Laboratory in London. Cutting-edge designers and retailers are targeting these women in their 20s and 30s. HEIDI is:

• A big spender, devoting every penny earned to entertainment, hobbies and interests, and small indulgences of expensive items such as Kate Spade’s gold iPod case. An anti-careerist, she works only for the money and prefers renting so she can maximize spend money.

• Sophisticated, yet youthfully feminine, attracted to products made specifically for her and to mature subtle colors. The kidney-shaped Sony Bean MP3 player available in pink suits HEIDI to a T.

• Independent, influencing previously male-dominated sectors such as electronic goods and DIY so she can feather her nest herself. In Sweden, Pause Ljud & Bild has targeted HEIDI with a glossary wall explaining audiovisual lingo and VIP rooms where big spenders get roses, champagne, and their pictures on the wall. And in Iceland, a DIY chain is lowering fixture heights and implementing other design measures to appeal to women.

• Adventurous and unabashed. The Prada pouffe (aka ottoman) is popular with HEIDI as part of the boudoir look. The U.K.-based Tabooboo brand has attracted HEIDI with sex toys marketed in fun, female-friendly style at Selfridges and via shocking pink vending machines. Neither cheap and tacky nor exotic and expensive, Tabooboo carries the theme through on packaging that says "boo" to taboo.

• Health-conscious with a penchant for nutraceuticals. In the Parisian department store Printemps, the Biotifull Place café courts her with fruit cocktails, salads, and light organic fare touted as “good for the lower layers of the skin” or “good for the internal digestive lining” in a setting of fuchsia florals and lavender hues. Under development by U.K.-based DCA International is a product that will enable HEIDI to breathe into a machine to determine her metabolic imbalances, have a nutrista create a fruit smoothie with natural ingredients that address her imbalances, and purchase a vacuum-packed customized nutrition product with her name and nutritional information on the package.

• A beer and wine drinker. Birra Peroni Italian beer caught HEIDI's eye with a pop-up store on Sloane Street in London’s posh trading venue next to Alberta Ferretti and Armani. The bottle of Peroni blonde beer, redesigned with an elongated extended neck, is akin to a luxury designer accessory. Francis Ford Coppola’s Sofia blanc de blanc sparkling wine in a single-serving can is idyllic for picnics or holding on the dance floor. The pink packaging and hexagonal four-packs leave no doubt as to the target demographic. Portuguese vintner Bright Brothers has taken such packaging a step further for its BrightPink rosé wine. The 7ml aluminum bottles feature glow-in-the-dark branding and are touted as recyclable, shatterproof for outdoor imbibing, and quick to chill.

Brand-savvy, yet selective, HEIDI seeks products, rather than brands, that respect her lifestyle. And her ranks are growing. Significant in Europe, the demographics’ importance is spreading across America and Asia as marketers realize that women make 80 percent of all purchases and, even in masculine product categories, make half of all buying decisions.

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