A key element of the ‘bookshop for the future’ vision Foyles adopted for its new store on Charing Cross Road, Ariadne is the UK’s first ‘bricks and mortar’ digital book search. The Ariadne landing page appears when a smartphone connects to the store’s Wi-Fi network, and allows customers to search for title or author. Real-time search results not only tell the customer whether a book is in the store but will point them right to it – by way of a Google-style map of the seven-storey flagship with the route plotted on it. The ‘app-style’ search makes the in-store shopping experience seamless without detracting from the pleasure of book browsing.
