His father basically invented the modern-day shopping mall, so it’s only fitting that Will Smith, founder of Euclid Analytics, would be revolutionizing the retail experience for the next generation.
Hundreds of brands use Euclid products to understand customer behavior in brick-and-mortar stores, quick-service restaurants and shopping malls and then translate that understanding into better marketing to drive transactions.
“Effective marketing can be very challenging in an omnichannel world,” said Euclid Analytics’ CEO, Brent Franson. “That’s the problem we’re helping retailers solve.”
How? By collecting in-store profiles using the store’s own existing Wi-Fi infrastructure and providing visitor insights, both for shoppers who make a purchase and for those who don’t. In Franson’s words, they’re “making sense of the physical world with data.”
In 2010, Smith teamed up with a founder of Urchin, the platform that would later become Google Analytics, to tap into the ubiquitous nature of Wi-Fi and smartphones to drive revenue. Before, the ability to make data-driven decisions had been a luxury enjoyed only by online retailers.
Investors saw the value of making more data more widely available and have ponied up $47.5 million to date. This number was driven primarily by venture capital firms Benchmark Capital and NEA, as well as Cox Enterprises and Groupe Arnault, the controlling shareholder of LVMH — Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the world leader in luxury products.
PYMNTS caught up with Franson to find out how Euclid got where it is today and what’s next for the analytics ambassador.
PYMNTS: How does your business overlap with the payment processing or e-merchant world?
BF: The moment of transaction is an important milestone in the customer journey, but the fundamental question is how you get there. We illuminate another critical component of that lifecycle: the in-store visit and customer behavior, regardless of whether a purchase is made. A visit to a store can lead to a purchase right then and there, or it can inspire an online purchase. Either way, we provide equally valuable insights.
PYMNTS: Looking back since founding, what has been the proudest moment for the organization?
BF: There is no one single moment but rather a collection of impactful milestones. Most recently, we launched Euclid Connect, a Wi-Fi-based platform that helps businesses understand and market more effectively to their customers. It felt great to get this strong new product off the ground and running — and even better to see the market response.
PYMNTS: What’s the company culture like?
BF: From unique office wallpaper to catered lunches, we’re believers in creating a collaborative and fun atmosphere. We love keeping it fresh — our half-year desk switch is one example. Every six months, all the departments move desks to a different location in the office. This provides teams that might not normally interact on a daily basis with the opportunity to get to know each other and build connections.
That’s good for us as a business — because you never know what conversation might spark that next great idea. It’s also really good for employees who like to work on a tightknit team. At Euclid, we feel strongly about maintaining that focus on building connections as we continue to grow.
PYMNTS: To what do you attribute your success over the years?
BF: We’re technologists at heart — so we never shy away from a difficult problem. Instead, we throw all our creative weight behind developing innovation that can solve it. Our Euclid team has some of the brightest, most motivated minds working diligently on illuminating in-store identity and behavior for our customers.
PYMNTS: What’s next? What does the future look like?
BF: On the Euclid front, we’re focused on expanding Euclid Connect and continuing to tackle this brave new world of knowing exactly who’s in a store. It’s exciting to see how we’ll work with retailers to enhance their marketing and advertising platforms — not only to help them create more relevant and impactful marketing but also to deliver real value to their customers.
Visit Euclid Analytics online to learn more.
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