How retailers use design to combat online competition
Design as ammunition against online shops.
Technology dominates our world forcing one industry after another to transform itself. Now it’s the turn of the retail trade. Which strategic devices have the most innovative retail brands been employing in their stores to strengthen their position and physical presence?
In this article, we will look at the strategic devices that innovative retail brands are employing to redefine their stores in order to meet the challenge presented by online shopping. How do they meet the challenges, and how do they seize the advantages and opportunities of having physical premises to help them build stronger customer bonds?
In the first part of this article we will focus on how the physical space is being used in new ways to establish emotional bonds with potential customers and how, through the clever use of technology, service, and experiences, a shop can be turned into something much more than simply a place you go to buy things.
In the second half of the article, we will turn our attention to which of these strategies we adopted when we were asked to develop an entirely new store concept for Narvesen, Norway’s largest chain of convenience stores, and we will take a look at what the results have been.
It all began with music
The music industry was the first to be challenged and remains in a state of dramatic flux. To begin with, it had to fight off a “coup” from illegal file-sharing sites such as Napster, then came Apple and iTunes followed by Spotify, and today, contenders such as Tidal and Amazon Prime are fighting for their piece of the pie.
A range of other industries have changed for good or are being challenged by new business models that apply technology in new ways, the most well-known examples being Uber’s entry into the taxi trade and AirBnB’s alternative to the traditional hotel.
Learn how new market players are disrupting the economy.
It may have taken longer than many expected, but online shopping has at long last become common-place. Better websites, easier payment methods, and smartphones have all enabled online shopping to appropriate parts of the high street market.
Brand identity goes beyond simply selling products.
Shopping on the net is practical and simple: you can sit in your room (or on the bus on the way to work for that matter), make a few clicks and your purchase is on the way. Many products can also be sold at a more reasonable price: they can be purchased from abroad and sent directly from the warehouse to the buyer without the supplier needing to spend money on rent and expensive premises. Last but not least, the internet makes the choice infinitely large and everything is accessible, straight from your wallet.
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Brand identity goes beyond simply selling products though. Physical premises will always be important for many trades because they offer the possibility of a more personalised human interaction. Goods can be touched, tried, tasted and customised.
A clothes shop allows you to try on garments so you know feel whether they are comfortable to wear, how the material feels and not least of all, whether they will suit your body shape; all things which are still difficult to gauge when buying off the net. A bakery is enticing with its smell of newly baked bread, buns, and cakes. You can compare produce close up to buy the most appealing, and best of all — it can be enjoyed immediately.
The majority of us shop according to our emotions and subjective points of view, often to a much greater extent than we realise. So a shop can dramatically influence our shopping choices and attitude towards the product in question through the experience it delivers by way of its interiors, product range and service.
Customer experience
The challenge lies in luring people away from the smartphone or laptop and into the shopping street again. But it’s not enough to have a nice location. We want a purpose, a history, a reason to get engaged, an experience. Why would I go there when I can buy the same goods on the mobile while sitting in a comfy chair?
One of the businesses that do well within retail and physical locations is the coffee bars. They pop up al the time — in a lot of variations. Small local ones like Kaffebrenneriet and larger chains like Espresso House and Starbucks. We love to visit coffee bars and we drink more coffee than most. Numbers show that Norwegians are the second most coffee drinking people in the world.
We want a purpose, a history, a reason to get engaged — an experience.
Hot coffee and warm freshly-made waffles still cannot be bought online, but this is not the main reason why this business thrives. It’s also a fact that there has been no dramatic revolution regarding coffee as a product, it’s more the experience which is the whole difference. It’s the lovely smell, the products you can see and taste in pleasant surroundings.
It’s the social part of going to a café with friends and other people. It’s the experience of seeing a skilled barista go through the ritual of grinding the beans, brewing the espresso, steaming the milk and at last, like a Buddhist in his zen garden, with a steady hand and soft movements, pour the milk foam until it finally and magically forms a perfect heart.
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Coffee bars are unique also because we use a relatively long time in these places compared with ordinary stores. That’s why it is more and more common, especially in larger cities, that the shops also have a coffee bar for their customers.
Size matters
Another trend is to use your locations to other activities that are not directly linked to sale, e.g. Apple’s newly opened megastores where large parts of the shop are hangout zones where you can mingle with like-minded people, but also get answers to questions you might have regarding the products. The same areas are being used for concerts and free workshops. The focus is turned away from selling and onto interaction with the customer through experience and service.
Technology dominates our world forcing one industry after another to transform itself. Now it’s the turn of the retail trade. Which strategic devices have the most innovative retail brands been employing in their stores to strengthen their position and physical presence? Let’s look closer at some options:
Choice
No shop can compete with the internet when it comes to the choice of goods available, but is that necessarily a weakness? It could be a shop’s strength. Choice presents a challenge for many people. It can be impossible to get a good overview and difficult to differentiate the quality from the rubbish.
A good shop acts as a curator.
A good shop will act as a curator and do the job for you, removing the clutter you don’t need and presenting a precisely planned selection of goods of the desired quality at the desired price.
Focusing on fewer things and making sure that they are of the best possible quality makes life easier for the customer. Retailers can present themselves as experts by having a stronger focus on one type of product. When Steve Jobs gained control of Apple in 1997 he made a drastic reduction to its product line, cutting out more than 70% of products to make the rest as good as they could be.
“Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do.”
Steve Jobs
Local
The internet is accessible to everyone from everywhere, so being limited to a physical location and the people living there could be seen as a weakness. However, the possibilities for engaging and interacting with the customer base are much greater in a physical store. By becoming part of the local scene and offering experiences and other forms of interaction, a retailer can attract a strong following and establish a community and culture of its own.
Several large and small brands manage to build strong relationships with their customers by using their stores to stage events, workshops, and pre-sale experiences. Apple encourages customers to stay longer in their new stores by offering concerts, workshops, and lectures by professional musicians, designers and app developers.
Another example is the Williams-Sonoma chain which primarily sells kitchenware, but rather than focusing on products and prices in its marketing material and stores, it uses them to celebrate the enjoyment of food.
Cookbooks and dry goods are purchased alongside cooking pans and knives, and there is often a kitchen island in the middle of the shop where food is prepared and offered for tasting. Moreover, the shop is regularly used for holding cooking and wine tasting courses, as well as other activities.
Technology
The internet isn’t the only place where technology is on the advance: new and exciting things are also happening in stores. Several companies have strengthened their customer bonds by developing apps that give their customers discounts, loyalty points, and special offers.
The use of digital screens to show animations and marketing campaigns has risen sharply and interactive screens that let you customise products or browse those that are not on display are also on the increase.
One of the most advanced examples is an interactive touch-screen mirror appearing in changing rooms where it doubles up as a digital screen. Equipped with a camera and sophisticated software, it can show you images of other colours and designs of the garment that you are trying on. It can also suggest other garments to go with what you are wearing. You just choose a size and the shop assistant will bring it to the changing room for you.
The software can also record a video or take photos of you to show you how the garment looks from the back, or compare it to another garment you tried earlier. The photos and videos can also be shared on social media or sent to your private e-mail.
Moreover, the mirror can recognise the faces of customers who have been there before and recommend new products based on the garments they have tried previously.
Traditional shops have long felt the pressure and competition from online shopping.
Another technology creating a good deal of interest is that of Bluetooth beacons. These are small battery-powered wireless devices situated in various positions around the store which give out a Bluetooth signal. An app on your mobile will be able to locate your position in the store and based on that information will make recommendations, point out offers, discounts and the like.
For this to be successful, retailers need to work out how and to what extent they wish to interact with their customers to create a positive and engaging experience without coming across as over-intrusive.
Traditional shops have felt the pressure and competition from online shopping forcing several large chains to close stores and cut costs. At the same time, we are seeing a range of innovations and new initiatives that are taking the development seriously and redefining the shop’s role towards its target group.
A successful strategy for new retail design: Narvesen
In May 2015, we were asked to assist Norway’s largest convenience chain, Narvesen with a bid they were submitting to Oslo International Airport (OSL) to compete for the best sites in the new airport terminal. The result of this exercise proved to be more far-reaching and comprehensive than anyone had imagined and led to a new identity and a completely new retail design.
Traditional stores continue to be challenged by online shopping as slowly but surely we become more comfortable and confident about shopping online, be it from our laptop at work or our mobile on the homeward-bound bus journey. We see its effect when large chains are forced to close their stores and cut their wage bill.
But online shopping will never be able to completely replace the experience we get from shopping in an actual store. It can’t duplicate the smell from a bakery, nor the experience of testing out a bed or trying on a pair of trousers before buying. Also, large and small brands alike appreciate the role that a store can play, not just by selling its products but also by interacting and building strong bonds with its target customers.
The strategies
Let us take a closer look at the strategies we employed to redefine Narvesen’s retail concept from the bottom up. Everything from identity and communication to interiors, store layout, signage, and frontages were redesigned upon a new strategic platform focussing on experience, quality, and effortless effectiveness.
Narvesen’s position
From the beginning, in 1894, when the first kiosks were opened at railway stations in Eastern Norway, Narvesen made the strategic decision to be where people travel to and from. Ever since it’s been important for Narvesen to be located near traffic hubs.
When measured against the competition, they have also managed to maintain a strong focus by offering a quick and efficient transaction process, which is of vital importance when selling coffee to busy commuters on the way to work or sausages on the way home. In that regard, they score better than everyone else, so that became an important starting point when developing the new retail design.
Narvesen is also perceived as being reasonably priced but at the same time unable to compete with the country’s leading grocery chains. Narvesen offers a wide selection of products across numerous categories which puts it in competition with some sectors, not just with grocery stores and other convenience chains such as 7-Eleven and Deli de Luca, but also with cafés, pharmacies, and bakeries, etc.
New competitors are constantly popping up with tempting offers and attractive stores, while Narvesen’s stores reflect, in many instances, a concept that has been touched up and adapted over a long period of time, often by local shopkeepers employing whatever means they can to maintain their sales figures.
This has resulted in several Narvesen shops having a somewhat random appearance, dominated by a myriad of posters showing price offers and poorly thought-out interiors. Sales campaigns with strong colours and reasonable prices have a measurable effect on sales figures, and shopkeepers are quick to use up empty space to display ever more — and larger — posters.
New designs for various products sit together with outdated interiors and, also, big names such as Coca-Cola and Diplom-Is have sponsored freezer displays and other equipment that take up valuable floor space. This process has been going on for some time, whilst the identity of the Narvesen brand has not been measurably updated since 1980.
This situation, combined with the increasing competition and new modern players, has resulted in Narvesen’s brand losing ground and dropping in people’s preferences.
The solution
When we began work on the OSL Gardermoen bid, we reached a swift agreement with our client that drastic measures needed to be taken. Producing an elegant document with pretty pictures would not be enough to make the required impression. The competitors they were up against were large international brands specialising in this type of shop.
Narvesen, as a brand, was seen as sturdy but stagnant, and it was decided this was a golden opportunity to take a look at the whole picture. Upon that basis, the case was made for undertaking a complete redefinition of Narvesen from A to Z.
Having in mind OSL’s ambition to become “A gateway to Scandinavia,” we defined our esthetic starting point based on the idea of Scandinavian simplicity. A balance between forward-looking minimalism and naturally warm materials became the touchstone for the new look.
Narvesen has always been focusing on locations where people are on the move.
At the same time, a strong emphasis was placed on protecting and strengthening Narvesen’s ever-present strategic base, namely that of always focusing on locations where people are on the move — one reason why it is natural for them to be located at an airport.
Their strength is that they have always been seen as somewhere you can get what you want quickly and efficiently. This strength becomes even more significant at an airport where there is a range of alternatives for travelers if they have a bit of spare time on their hands. This was the basis for the retail concept, which became a strong reference point for the solution as a whole.
A new brand identity
The last time the identity was redesigned was in 1992, and today, 25 years later, Narvesen is seeing a thorough upgrade of both the identity and the retail concept. Let’s take a closer look at some of the features in the new identity and store concept.
Open
The stores were designed to be more open and airy than normal to make it easier to enter and move through them.
Sightlines and movement patterns
Shelves and other interiors were organised in a particular way for easier navigation around and orientation within the stores.
Speed zones
Products and product categories were placed in relation to speed zones to enable those customers with the least amount of time to acquire the most critical things as quickly as possible.
Clear categorisation
Chiller cabinets and produce shelves were built into walls and marked clearly with signs at the top edge for easier orientation.
Express tills
As part of the emphasis on customer flow, self-service points or express tills, where customers can pay for products themselves, were installed.
Lightpath
To enhance the feeling of flow and to guide visitors through the store, a “light path” was designed for the ceiling. This is a strong visual and dynamic element which also gives Narvesen a distinctive character.
All of these elements combined result in a more effortless experience for the customer, whether they are buying a bottle of water before running to catch a flight or browsing through books to pass the time between flights.
The concept was delivered using a combination of animation and physical models designed to help the bid committee fully appreciate Narvesen’s ambitions.
Future visions
Apart from the retail concept and the functional and aesthetic choices made for the kiosk’s interior, we have also worked out a new flexible signage system that focuses on the new symbol and gives Narvesen a more modern and distinctive character.
The façades are more than just windows and signs. As a follow-up of the retail concept and the new visions that we have put down for Narvesen, we had the opportunity to develop some visions for key locations in the centre of Oslo.
We developed visions for key locations in the centre of Oslo.
One of them is the kiosk at the National Theatre in central Oslo. At this junction surrounded by busses, trams, the metro, there are also a lot of people. At this place, we have a vision of something more than a great kiosk, namely an urban city block that organises this area for everyone who uses it. We have even made space for a roof garden where people can wait in calm surroundings, shaded from the hustle and bustle of travelers and others.
The results
The project has solidified the Narvesen brand. The concept was well-received by Avinor, who, following a comprehensive process, selected Narvesen ahead of 80 global players as its leading convenience chain.
These are some of the results of the rebranding:
- A contract for 6 units has been secured for key locations at the airport Oslo Lufthavn Gardermoen to a value of 2.1 billion Norwegian kroner (255 million US dollars)
- Another 4 units are won at Bergen Flesland lufthavn, to a value of 700 million kroner (84 million US dollars)
- 30 units connected to Sporveien’s lines have a value of 2.9 billion kroner (350 million US dollars)
- In total, contracts for approx. 5,7 billion Norwegian kroner has been secured for Reitan Convenience (687 million US dollars)
“We are all extremely intrigued with the new retail design and with Mission’s invaluable contribution in connection with this rare business opportunity. The new concept makes us a more attractive partner, it opens new doors, gives us power to perform and propels us into action.”
Stian Breivik, Narvesen Head of Marketing
The retail design was tested and developed further following the bid’s success. The bids for Flesland and Evenes airports in Western and Central Norway were won based on variations on the same concept, and stores at Majorstuen, Karl Johans Gate, The National Theatre, Tøyen districts of Oslo and other places have been drawn up and are under construction.
The first pilot stores show very encouraging results, with sales per customer up by 17% and total sales up 30%. That means that more people are coming into the store and that they on average using more money than before.
This article was written by Karl Martin Sætren, and was first published on Mission’s website. Find out what other fascinating issues we write about.
