Adwise: Dominique, you're an anthropologist and sociologist, and you're interested in cultural practices and innovations in Western societies. You use the term 'innovative environment', borrowed from geography and territories. What do you consider to be the most innovative environments historically?
DD: there are 3 main innovative environments historically: first of all, industry in the 19th and 20th centuries, with its energy-related innovations in particular. For example, the creation of off-peak and peak time tariffs is a foretaste of the future of energy. yield management applied today in the service sectors: airlines and railways.
And then there's mass retailing. We're seeing it today with the Drive, the capture of customer journeys from the internet to the physical shop, for example.
And finally, agriculture, which has never ceased to innovate in order to produce more, will adapt to consumer tastes, improve machinery and fertilisers - all of which raises real questions today.
Adwise: where does innovation stand today?
SD: in services, either as a sector or as a complement to an offer. In particular, thanks to new technologies. Services offer hyper-personalisation, immediacy, autonomy and control, all of which are emerging expectations.
Adwise: How do you see this innovation?
First, innovation solves the problem of scarcity. Immediately, what was scarce becomes easily accessible. I'm thinking of taxis, for example; Uber solves the problem of scarcity or the perception of scarcity. But today's mobile applications, which provide access to all sorts of information and bargains, work on the same principle. Secondly, innovation generally brings a break in cost. The good or service also becomes more affordable. Here again, Uber is innovating, but so are Ikea, Brico Dépôt, Transavia and Easyjet in their own fields. This break with innovation costs is not new. The creation of Le Bon Marché in 1850, which was a low-cost store before its time, killed off the small businesses - the novelty shops - in the surrounding area. Finally, and this is also very important, innovation reduces "mental load". By making it easier to use, and easier to relax, we're bringing real innovation to the table. That's why when we think about tomorrow's innovations, we need to keep these 3 tripods in mind.
