The Best Innovation Often Has Nothing To Do With Tech

I’ve been thinking a lot about a recent conversation I had with the Head of Retail Innovation at Cartier Andrew Haarsager — a conversation had over a warm cup of Devoción Coffee in Williamsburg.

We discussed ways to disrupt customer experience and craft the future using emerging technology like blockchain, AI, gaming, XR. But his most effective innovation strategy included none of the above.

Like many legacy luxury brands, Cartier has been relatively slow to adopt new technology. And understandably. Most of the luxury market skew older, and their audience isn’t necessarily making purchase decisions for 100+ year old analog watches through the lens of technology.

Still, we’re living in a digital era, and it would be a missed opportunity to say the least if large brands like Cartier did not rigorously scrutinize the technological landscape and identify ways to use technology to drive innovation for their brand and customers.

So naturally, Cartier’s team has done just that. And the Cartier Innovation team has launched a few compelling projects in the XR/gaming arena over the past few years.

However, there is one “innovation” strategy that has proven to be the most effective, and it ended up having nothing to do with technology at all.

150% increase in revenue from one small change

Around 2020, Cartier made a slight shift to its retail locations that ended up drastically improving sales: 1-1 appointments.

During the peak of covid, Cartier was forced to pivot to scheduled appointments for in-store purchases. That way, they could control and limit the amount of people that came in and out of the store.

What began as a health & safety initiative quickly blended into a transformative case study for retail sales.

The team found that customers who booked an appointment ahead of time were not only much more serious buyers, but they also were more likely to make a purchase, because they appreciated the 1-1 attention and service they got from these prearranged meetings.

In the past, you might do a walk-in, browse around the store, and an attendant may come up and help. But that doesn’t carry the same level of intimacy, let’s say, as a 5-star barber whose attention is 100% devoted to you.

With less distraction and more intention, sales reps were able to outperform, and Cartier sales rose from around $7 to $11B. Cartier still retains the appointment system in 2024. And the numbers speak for themselves.

The best innovation merges technology and human creativity

Don’t overthink innovation. In its most literal form, it’s the process of making changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.

Cartier had an old method of retail. And they discovered a new one. That’s innovation. The outcome is innovative. The process by which they achieved that outcome can be anything from the most powerful language model to moving chairs from one side of the room to the other.

The biggest takeaway from all of this (for me at least) — humans drive innovation. Not machines.

The machines are the ingredients. Humans make the food. A close Supernova family friend Sierra Clouse told me recently how her kids will consistently come home from school, open up the pantry, and go “Mom, we have no food. Only ingredients.”

What’s the difference between tomatoes, flour, cheese and pizza? Someone had to compile the ingredients in a tasteful way to produce a desirable outcome.

In the same ways, the majority of the world’s companies possess within their organizations all of the correct ingredients to be innovative, and often times that includes the correct technology and capabilities.

What makes the difference?

Companies that have the right leaders, teams, and culture to drive that innovation forward, come up with the right strategies, and execute on that vision with the same fervor, deliberation, and intention as the innovation itself.

Now the best form of innovation arises when teams and leaders can work together to establish good ideas and merge those ideas with formidable technology.

If you want to be innovative, hire innovative people

Quality ideas and technology are everywhere. More importantly, focus on finding innovative people.

All innovation works comes down to an active mind and skillful beholder, a wielder of tools and skillful thinking that transcends the technology itself.

If as part of your innovation strategy you can effectively curate good ideas and good people to execute them, you will be lightyears ahead of your competition.

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