The new showroom concept of s. oliver combines digital and live elements for customers and its partners

Man in white turtleneck sweater and gray jacket smiles at camera; copyright: s.Oliver

01.09.2021

by Katja Laska

Some say shopping online is easy and convenient – just a few digital clicks and your purchase is complete. Others love to come to a physical store because they crave the tactile experience of shopping. They want to inspect, touch, and feel the products before they buy them.

Daniel Schmidt understands both sides. The Director Sales at s. Oliver Group and his team recently implemented the fashion company’s first hybrid showroom. It merges the best of the in-store shopping experience with the digital customer journey. The model has major benefits - not just for the customer.

He uses pictures to tell us the story.

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Shortfalls of the retail industry: "The industry is currently giving a lot of thought to how the concept of physical stores will be developed further. That's why we hold individual discussions and are happy to support our partners with ideas on how we can optimize brick-and-mortar retail together. We are also constantly evolving - the best example being our 'Hybrid Fashion Studio - Düsseldorf'."

Different industries, one idea: “Before we started, I looked at all of our showrooms and acknowledged that we can and should make changes. For the implementation, we collaborated with an outside - non-sector-specific - agency. This helped us to draw inspiration from the automotive, event, and eyewear industries. It literally gave us a fresh look at what we are doing.”

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Dual-track strategy by design: “A hybrid showroom is a sensible mix of classic in-store shopping featuring physical products and buying online – taking omnichannel to the next level. These days, everybody talks about digitization. Yet in many areas, it is not something that can be executed one hundred percent. We intentionally chose a hybrid model. We can play all content: our partners can have a fully digital experience of the business, review all products, and use filters to view the information they need. They can then enjoy the tactile real-life experience in the showroom."

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Digital preparation, brick-and-mortar implementation: “The same applies to our partners. Thanks to our interactive tool, they can prepare things at home, place their orders online and come to the showroom to review and discuss the collection with our sales managers, who then prepare the product selection for the salesfloor."

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Sometimes, less is more: “Our small, sharp team collaborated with the agency to implement the idea from concept to the opening of the showroom. We considered using VR headsets but decided against it. Right now, it would take things a step too far since our nationwide customer base is not quite ready for it yet. However, we already use 2D and 3D animations at various touchpoints. "

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A different way to try things: “We use multiple LED walls, screens, and surfaces. We deliberately rely on digital technologies from Europe and not - as one might expect - from Asia. Displays throughout the showroom foster customer interaction."

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Shopping in different worlds: “We have ten LED walls and screens plus about 12 surfaces. Each flexible platform allows us to display custom content including marketing campaigns films, inspirational movies, the Digital Order Tool, logos, presentations, or social media channels. It is essential that all tools in the showroom address all customer groups."

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Simple, flexible, new: “Our brands can take advantage of a completely flexible setup to showcase their features. We use modular systems that can be easily reconfigured in just a few simple steps. No shopfitting experts or technicians required. This makes it easy to quickly highlight collections in new ways."

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Feel good guarantee: “We wanted to create an open and inviting ambiance. Our partners are meant to feel relaxed and comfortable while they shop. They first grab a drink at our bar/lounge and strike up their first great conversations."

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Fashion and more: “Concepts like 'hybrid’ and ‘digital’ are continuously evolving. Thanks to the flexibility of the showroom, we can host future events and not just onsite in Düsseldorf. The next collection handover could be streamed around the globe. For September, our plan is an enhancement of our Digital Order Tool."