I penned my first article on retail design more than 20 years ago. Titled “Adding the Human Touch,” it was a prognostication of what retail would look like in the 21st Century. The two overarching points I made back then are relevant issues today that every retailer must consider.

In that 1990 article I said, “Retailers will seek a mutually beneficial relationship with the environment.” At the time, most people asked me what I was talking about. Of course today, sustainability is on everyone's mind. The other point I made back in the day was that stores needed to be designed to human scale, for human consumption and human interaction; retailers must 'add the human touch.' Well, it seems what goes around comes around.

Today, the integration of technology is critical to any retail strategy. Technology is a game changer; it has restructured the entire shopping experience. And while the term “showrooming” has been bandied about, (are stores merely showrooms for customers to view merchandise, and then order online?) brick-and-mortar isn't going away anytime soon. Technology is compelling retailers to up their game, to make the in-store experience more interesting, more exciting and more interactive. Beyond that, retailers must focus on what technology can't provide — the human touch.

Today, retailers are scrambling to update their websites, create Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest accounts to virtually connect to their customers. Yes, social media is vital for success. But is social media really social? Is it perhaps a misnomer? The next time you're in a restaurant, look about. You'll see a strange glow emanating from all of the tables. That strange glow, of course, is the aurora borealis of smartphones held tightly in the hands of just about everyone at the dinner table. Social network? Perhaps, but people at the tables are not talking to one another, rather they're frantically typing, texting or surfing into the boundless depths of cyberspace. Social networking is, in fact, an anti-social activity — but, like brick-and-mortar stores, it’s here to stay. So what must retailers do as they embrace and integrate technology into their selling environments and marketing strategies? They must add the human touch.

Another term mellifluously flowing from the lips of today's retail visionaries is 'omni-channel.' Which leads to the question: What are the most vital touch points of engagement? Shopping has always been a social endeavor. We learned about new products, fashions and trends from people. We went to stores where we were educated by people, and hopefully people we trusted. Today, our trust is relegated to an online connection, an unknowable persona whose closest attempt at human interaction is merely “click here,” or “submit.”

If you ask the average shopper what the biggest challenge facing retail is today, you would get answers such as the economy; the internet; and sameness — the stores all look alike. If you ask the ceo of any successful retail organization, they would tell you the biggest challenge facing retail today is the establishment of human interaction, trust and the creation of relationships. The smart retailer will take steps to ensure that every gesture they or their associates make adds the human touch to their customers’ shopping experience.

As retailers scurry to embrace and integrate the latest and greatest technologies, I'm reminded of a midcentury quote by the late, great Walt Disney: “You can design and create and build the most wonderful place in the world, but it takes people to make the dream a reality.”

Eric Feigenbaum is a recognized leader in the visual merchandising and store design industries with both domestic and international design experience.  He served as corporate director of visual merchandising for Stern’s Department Store, a division of Federated Department Stores, from 1986 to 1995. After Stern’s, he assumed the position of director of visual merchandising for WalkerGroup/CNI, an architectural design firm in New York City. Currently, he serves as the chair of the Visual Merchandising Department at LIM College (New York), and was also an adjunct professor of Store Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology. In addition to being the New York Editor of VMSD magazine, Eric is also a founding member of PAVE (A Partnership for Planning and Visual Education). Currently, he is also president and director of creative services for his own retail design company, Embrace Design.