Window Shopping. Literally.

By Hanna Aronovich in Miscellaneous on Nov 21, 2006 1:40PM

You know how sometimes you’re just walking down the street, and you absolutely need to purchase high-tech skiwear immediately? No? Yeah, us neither. But from now until Feb. 19, should you have the overwhelming urge to buy some Ralph Lauren RLX high-performance gear, you can – from the privacy and comfort of Michigan Ave.

The Sun-Times reported the Polo Ralph Lauren store at 750 N. Michigan is one of the first to display an interactive shopping kiosk. On the Chicago Ave. side, a 67-inch window display allows bypassers to brows the RLX line through the touch-screen buttons.

Shoppers can select the color, size and style of the merchandise, and the information is sent to Polo.com’s network. An e-mail is sent to the shopper, at which point credit card information is submitted and the order completed.

The window shop was first introduced in New York at the Madison Ave. store to coincide with the U.S. Open. The window was tennis-themed and offered official U.S. Open merchandise designed by Ralph Lauren.

Chicago’s Aspen-oriented window additionally gives viewers live ski conditions in Colorado, trail maps, advice on layering clothes and skiing tips. RLX also happens to be sponsoring the Aspen Skiing Co., so the tie-in makes even more sense.

When Chicagoist walked by the window, a few people curiously stepped up and touched a few buttons, but we didn’t see anyone make any purchases. And, the video lady talking about ski season preparations was irritating after a couple minutes.

While the windows do attract attention, we don’t think they’re practical or more convenient than shopping online. Do people impulse-buy thousand-dollar leather ski vests? Although the windows might not increase sales, the Minority Report-meets-Aspen Extreme marketing maneuver certainly has some entertainment value.