ATLANTA—There's been a lot of talk about experiential retail. Yet CoreMedia reports only 11% of retailers have an experiential commerce strategy in place. At the same time, up to 75% of companies are still talking about the concept.

GlobeSt.com caught up with Matt Simon, the retail operator who is credited with elevating the profile of The Grove in Los Angeles, and the newly-minted vice president and senior general manager of Avalon, to get his take on experiential retail success. Specifically, we asked him how to authentically wrap experiences into traditional retail settings.

“The key to successful 'experiential retail' is that it must be guest focused,” Simon tells GlobeSt.com. “Avalon's Concierge sets Avalon apart from any other shopping, restaurant, and entertainment destination.”