Sprinter is a multi-sport retail brand, based in Alicante, with outlets in Spain, Portugal and The Netherlands. As part of the JD Groupthey specialise in Sporting Goods, offering the best in footwear, apparel and accessories with a focus on Running, Training and Football.
Dalziel & Pow have been working with Sprinter for the past 12 months to define and create a new store concept and experience for this leading sportswear brand.
In a new location in Alcorcon, Madrid, Sprinter have opened their largest store to date and raised the bar significantly with the introduction of an extended ‘true-sport’ range, in addition to their core offer. The 4000 sqm space allows Sprinter to introduce a range of immersive and interactive experiences to educate and inspire their customers.
In addition to the enhanced Sprinter offer, the brand is introducing their established online cycling offer, Deporvillage, for the first time in physical retail. An opportunity to create a physical experience for this brand, complimentary, but contrasting to the main Sprinter brand.
Dalziel & Pow also redefined and refreshed Sprinter’s core brand assets for across its environments. As well as a new approach to typography, colour, art direction and wayfinding, they also created a new way to express Sprinter’s new direction of being the ‘friendly coach’. This led to ‘Sport for Life’ becoming a way to emphasise how Sprinter was present in its new role in customers’ lives, as well as its commitment to providing education and encouragement.
THE CONCEPT
The resulting concept takes people on a journey through the offer with moments of expression to break that experience. These memorable interactive touch-points define the new positioning for Sprinter, as the sports authority, wherever they land.
Spinter occupies the ground level and Deporvillage, another brand within the wider group and focussed on cycling takes 50% of that space on a central mezzanine, with double-height space front and back. The Sprinter space is bright, fresh and optimistic, the Deporvillage space is darker, more dramatic and theatrical. They are literally the reverse palate of each other.
The 3000 sqm Sprinter space is punctuated with 10 Beacons, each offering product trials, performance advice, enhanced range or hands-on test and learn activations. The beacons take the form of a 4X4 M square section black metal frame, with bespoke activities in this identical architecture. The 1000 sqm Deporvillage space upstairs has another 6 beacons, this time in white, framing ranges, brands or service depending. The holistic ambition to create an immersive interactive space is delivered through this very flexible, controlled architecture and experience..
In addition to the in-store activations, there are a few stand-out features. A 30 metre running track goes behind the perimeter merchandising on one wall, to test potential purchases and record your time against other runners. A slide links the Kids Bike offer in Deporvillage with the Sprinter kids offer on the floor below. A timber lined Studio space, which is dedicated to and exclusively for the brand’s membership programme members, and is accessed at the rear of the store, hosting events, yoga and fitness classes, product launches and broadcasting to social media.
Online sales are promoted in the space with showcasing of extended ranges and the opportunity to browse and order in-store and collect pre-ordered products with ease.
Navigation is aided with the introduction of green and red suspended lamps over walkways that are not demarcated on the floor, purely overhead, for future flex. All merchandising is flexible, perimeter and mid-floor walls, allowing growing need to accommodate change over the coming years, aiming for a sustainable and future-proof architecture.
Materials are selected for their contribution to the total experience, robust and honest with the occasional, uniquely Sprinter choice.. Concrete, timber, white and black enamelled steel, ribbed felt and translucent acrylic all feature in the space.
THE RESULT
This concept is a game-changer for Sprinter and Deporvillage, redefining their offer in a dynamic new experience that moves them on significantly from any previous iteration of the brand.
The improved experience will attract stronger brands to the retailer and encourage existing brands to offer improved ranges.
The confidence in the new brand experience will spur on Sprinter to grow the brand in physical retail and expand into new territories in the future. And Sprinter aims to roll this new concept out across existing and new locations, as a more engaging way to connect with its customers and communities.
Work is already underway to build a compact, more local representation of the concept. Future roll-out will include new-build spaces as well as the re-invention of existing spaces.
