Here’s a lecture I’d like to attend: “World Retail Tour – Off the Beaten Path.” Retail researcher Chris Ohlinger will be talking about his 10-month global trek to find the best, most innovative retail ideas at the International Retail Design Conference, Sept. 19-27 in Atlanta.

Conference sponsor VMSD.com gives a glimpse of what Ohlinger will be discussing in this article, and I find his thoughts echo those I’ve been preaching for years. Especially when he says, “A lot of retailers don’t see their stores the same way consumers see them. Failing to identify and meet consumer expectations is very expensive. Research can help.”

Of course, Ohlinger is CEO of a Service Industry Research Systems Inc., so he has a vested interest in selling his findings. I know that such research can be expensive. I’d almost bet it’s cheaper to fly to Atlanta, stay there and attend the conference than it is to buy primary research.

Ohlinger and his son really had their eyes opened as they shopped the globe. He said the bullet train retail center in Kyoto, Japan, was one of the best uses of vertical retail spaces he’d ever seen. The Cabbages & Condoms store in Thailand exists to help stem the AIDS epidemic in that nation. It sells rural merchandise alongside condoms and other sexual products with a humorous touch. One of my staff members was in Thailand earlier this year and confirmed that the store is quite the sensation.

“The most successful retailing space today is the one that combines sound, smell, architecture, painting, the printed word, interior design, sculpture, ergonomics, theater and technological advancements to create a strong emotional experience for customers,” Ohlinger says.

That’s a good bit of research he gives away for free. If there’s any way you can make it to the conference in Atlanta, to hear his talk and learn more from the many exhibitors and panelists, do it. The experience could change your retailing world forever.