After a long day of work, having to go shopping is the last thing anyone wants to do. However, merging digital with physical retail could soon see the end of long queues and long faces when shopping.

In a bid to support the eminent rush this Christmas, John Lewis has launched a 24-hour virtual store in the window display of a Waitrose shop in Brighton. The window is an aisle-like display featuring photographs of selected items, all of which have a corresponding QR code that can be scanned and the information sent to the John Lewis site as an online purchase.

With the development of smartphone technology, this 'browse-and-buy' concept is fast blurring the lines between online and offline retail. By implementing digital commerce to the retail market in this way, this merging of the two could see a great change in behavioural patterns. The act of impulse buying in the physical sense varies due to constraints of time however with the addition of digital freedom, the allure of clicking on multiple products at any given time or place will inevitably heighten our desires for consumption. Nevertheless, providing customers with multiple options will create a more tailored shopping experience that can put the individual's interests first before the masses.