The Retailer Winter Edition 2023

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New ways to connect are important, but the ability to manage these will be chal lenging - accessibility, affordability and ease will help.” ‘‘ This new approach could help people experience something local when they can’t get out to the shops or their high street in the physical world, or provide extended product offerings, information and services within a small physical space that may have limited opening hours. Alexandra Forrest has a similar optimistic view of the metaverse high street: “I love the idea of combining the in-person experience that you cannot replicate online with a deeper knowledge about product the customer could receive, through being immersed in another world that they can’t access IRL.” Now let’s widen the lens beyond business. The 2022 ‘LevellingUp’ agenda set by UK government claims to be “a moral, social and economic pro gramme…that sets out howwe will spread opportunity more equally across the UK.”

Could metaverse values - such as collaboration, community, commerce - contribute to the aims of the ‘Levelling Up’ agenda and foster greater innovation and opportunity on our high streets? Maybe. But those high street businesses – who are already intrepid innovators and tireless pioneers – don’t just need their voice heard, but access and support to create their own spaces in the metaverse, so they are active agents of their own future and not just recipients of someone else’s vision. Is it just a technology issue? Jackie Mulligan thinks that more is needed to help high streets: “For retail, new ways to connect are important, but the ability to manage these will be challenging - accessibility, affordability and ease will help.” So let’s take the long-term view. Those core metaverse values – com merce, collaboration, community and copresence - present a golden opportunity that is radically pragmatic, open all hours, genuinely inclusive and accessible, useful and relevant to the unique flavour of every local community. Let’s get the high street metaverse-ready.

MaryWallace linkedin.com/in/marywallace/