CINCINNATI – (December 06, 2021) – Empower is ringing in the holiday season with a festive holiday window takeover at its Cincinnati headquarters located at 15E 14th Street. ‘Tis the season to shop local. The “Retail of Three Cities” theme celebrates the independent agency’s growing presence in Chicago, Cincinnati and Atlanta. Each city has its own window vignette highlighting items from shops that make each community vibrant and unique in the eyes of Empower team members. Passersby can scan a QR code to learn more about the products, retailers and live shopping events. Visit https://www.empowermm.com/featured/shoplocal/ for more details about our retail partners and live stream shopping events.

Capitalizing on the success of last year’s inaugural window gift guide, Empower is making this season’s experience bigger and better than ever. Empower will host up to three live shoppable video events in partnership with Livescale. A unique blend of entertainment, engagement and e-commerce creates a seamless user experience for the consumer. Viewers can ask questions and comment in real-time with the host (e.g., how’s the fit on someone with my body type?) and purchase right then and there without having to leave the platform. Retailers have seen success with instant promotions and bundles creating a FOMO type of atmosphere.

“In just one year, Livescale has not only witnessed tremendous diversification of brand verticals taking advantage of Live Shopping, but has also seen sales conversion rates grow in tandem; we’re now proud to share that in the last quarter, our average sales conversion rate across all industries is a whopping 17.7%, said Madison Schill, Director Marketing + Communications, Livescale. “With brands craving new ways to connect with their customers and provide surprise and delight moments ahead of the holiday season, we’re thrilled to see partners like Empower using Livescale as a Live Shopping solution to bring holiday cheer all year long,” Schill said.

The first partners to join forces with Empower include Cincinnati’s The Aruna Project and Atlanta-based Bauble Stockings.

Join Aruna Project Live Stream Shopping Event on Tuesday December 7, at 7pm ET
Aruna is an impact driven athleisure brand. Every purchase helps bring lifelong freedom to victims of human trafficking. By providing empowerment through employment, the Aruna Project’s products are crafted by skilled Artisans who are finding their voice, experiencing independence and growing with a sisterhood of others who have overcome.

“On behalf of the entire Aruna team, I want to share our excitement for this partnership and for the opportunity to engage with a new audience, says Abby Nurre, senior designer at The Aruna Project. “The Aruna Artisans have worked together to create a collection of authentic, sustainably made, quality products. Each accessory is made to foster confidence, comfort, and independence, both for the customer and for the women who made it. We can’t wait to introduce a few of our favorite items,” she said.

Join Bauble Stockings Live Stream Shopping Event on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, at 7pm ET
Bauble Stockings are hand-stitched needlepoint treasures made to contain, or have a clue to, the final present of Christmas a grand finale for the holiday. Every Bauble Stockings purchase not only pays fair trade wages to stitchers in Haiti, but also helps fund the Joan Rose Foundation. This 501(c)3 pays the tuition for Bauble Stocking stitchers’ 127 children to go to Haitian schools, their books, provides after school curriculum with seven teachers, offers both breakfast and lunch meals, and rent-free housing for several families.

“We are thrilled to partner with Empower for this event,” said Kate Stewart, Founder of Bauble Stockings. “Together, we hope Bauble Stockings will create memories that last a lifetime in your home, while creating meaningful, fair trade work, in another,” Stewart said.

This year, Empower achieved record-breaking revenue–up 30% (compared to 15% in 2020–and secured a location for its expansion into Atlanta with plans to open in Q2 2022. Empower has also tripled its Chicago presence since its grand-opening in 2019. With the year’s success, The Un-Holding Company was pleased to celebrate local independent businesses with its “Retail of Three Cities” campaign while also gaining valuable experience along the way.

“The live stream video shopping market is projected to reach $11 billion in 2021,” said Rob FitzGerald, president and COO at Empower. “Partnering with local retailers is not only a great way to give back to the communities we know and love, but it’s an opportunity for us to test and learn this modern-day shopping experience so that we can continue to lead our clients in the future of retail marketing,” he said.