[button link=”https://www.arredanegozi.it/2023/09/i-trend-del-settore-homewear/” icon=”none” target=”” color=”a30b0b” textcolor=”ffffff”]TESTO ITALIANO[/button]
Dear Readers, as always, we at XT interact with various customers and often have relationships with retail operators in all product sectors. Our curiosity and professionalism drives us to investigate and understand what are the trends and innovative approaches that shops and retail chains use to present their products in a captivating way, trying to provide a fantastic shopping experience.
We would like to submit to you an analysis of the trends in the home product sector which has greatly increased the number of stores over the years. Today, retail chains have become increasingly competitive, both in terms of retail experience, but above all in terms of prices. Let’s analyze some aspects in terms of shopping experience, and what the shops are offering us:
Immersive experiences
Shops are increasingly offering immersive experiences to customers, creating environments that allow them to experience home products in a more engaging way.
The basis of the visual display in this sector has always been based on furnished spaces where customers can try out furniture, appliances or decorations to understand how they can adapt to their homes. Nowadays, it is implemented through an display method similar to that used by GDO, which conveys to the customer that the prices are absolutely affordable.
Interactive technologies
Many innovative initiatives are merging technology with the shopping experience in the household sector. This includes the use of interactive display, augmented reality or Apps that allow customers to view products in virtual contexts or to customize items according to their preferences.
Thematic concept stores
Some stores are taking thematic approaches to presenting household products. For example, corners or shop-in-shops are created that are inspired by different furnishing styles: such as the minimalist style, the industrial style or the eclectic one. These thematic spaces offer customers an immersive experience and help stimulate their imagination for furnishing their own home.
Personalization and co-creation
Stores are increasingly allowing customers to customize home products or even allow them to participate in their creation. This active customer engagement can increase brand affinity and provide a unique experience.
Sustainability and eco-friendly materials
The household sector is increasingly pushing towards sustainability, with the use of eco-friendly materials and the adoption of responsible production practices. Brands are communicating and showcasing these sustainable attributes to appeal to environmentally conscious consumers.
As usual, we want to address those who work directly in this sector, to learn more about the different aspects and actions that brands implement to improve store performance. For this reason, we asked Paolo Cafaro, Kisené‘s Retail and Sales Manager, a few questions:
Can you describe your company to us in terms of number of stores and corporate philosophy?
To date, the Kisené brand sales network has reached around 70 stores; of these, 40% are directly managed by the company, while 60% are managed with a franchising affiliation.Kisené, market leader in the household linen segment in various regions of southern Italy, aims to become the first reference throughout the national territory.
Our work philosophy and our commitment are oriented every day to making the home become a stylistic expression of those who live there. Both as a piece of furniture and complement to the rooms, and as a taste and personality of “dressing up” at homeIn fact, the “COVID” period has developed the need to feel at ease within the home with homewear dedicated to every moment of the day. There is an increasing need for a quality product, comfortable and updated with the stylistic trends of the period. And we want to “answer” this need with our collections and our products.
What visual merchandising and in-store communication strategies do you apply to promote your products and your company?
Among our management levers, visual merchandising represents a fundamental element. This tool allows us to standardize the overall image of the stores and give each product in our assortment the role of an active sale towards the end customer. In most stores we don’t use the shop windows, working on a very large entrance front. This allows us to minimize the “interior-exterior barrier” of the store and welcome our customers making them always feel at ease. Furthermore, we use in-store communication that makes the most of one of our basic principles: “a democratic sale”. The price of our products is always clearly highlighted and represents one of the strengths of our commercial offer.
What retail activities will you implement this autumn both in terms of expansion and in terms of marketing initiatives towards the final consumer?
For company development, we have defined a project for both “vertical” and “horizontal” growth which started this spring and will continue in the coming years. The development plan of our sales network has a challenging and ambitious goal: to reach 150 stores in the next three years. We plan to open stores in regions where we are not yet present and in major shopping centres. However, we are not giving up our presence in the major shopping streets, where our new format has excellent results.
Furthermore, we have set ourselves the goal of increasing the profitability of the existing network by strengthening licenses (which currently represent around half of our turnover); this through the integration of new functions and new product groups into our assortment, and by developing a direct training plan for our human resources network. Another objective will be the launch of our new digital program. We will soon be launching our new APP which will allow us to have a more immediate and lively relationship with our customers; it will allow us to support our loyalty program and to increasingly integrate the “physical” area of retail with the “online” area. Over the next few years, these initiatives will allow us to dominate the market as a leader in the household linen and homewear segment.
With Albano Lattanzi, HR manager of Galileo spa, we are also going to analyze the aspect of personnel management in stores:
Can you describe your company to us in terms of number of stores and corporate philosophy?
Satur, the Italian retail chain of the Galileo group, currently has 90 stores throughout Italy, with the ambitious goal of reaching the important number 100 by the end of the year. Satur’s success is the natural consequence of the passion for detail, for everyday life, the passion for the home, the setting for every significant event in our lives. In fact, with the distribution of its brands, Satur aims to make the home the “place of the heart”, that place where you can express yourself freely through the use of colors and multiple furnishing styles.
What training activities are planned for your current resources and new hires?
First of all, we are committed to carrying out mandatory training, often neglected by many companies, to which we pay methodical attention. And, for a long time now, we have had annual transversal training projects, which we believe are preparatory to the creation of a stimulating and serene work environment. Training a resource means not only making them more competent, but more confident in their professionalism and an integral part of the company project. A person placed at the center of a training course is a person who is motivated in his personal and professional growth within the company.
What are the focuses of your company for next autumn?
In the coming months we will be holding ad hoc training courses for our company’s middle management. We will train those professional figures who, more than others, will not only be the point of connection between the management and the resources of their office, but will also have the opportunity to reflect on their role and on the need to “work as a team”: focus, therefore, on team building, to acquire greater awareness of oneself and one’s role, to improve relationships and communication with others, to listen to them, guide them and motivate them. Furthermore, the goal is to access financed training, a now consolidated practice in the company, to create a training project that is modeled on the needs of our professional figures, so that they can acquire or improve their skills. Last but not least, we will create the Galileo Academy, a digital platform that all our collaborators will be able to access and through which we will distribute various information contents and training courses.
With his contribution, Albano Lattanzi introduced us to the reality of store personnel and how the staff and the brand prepare themselves to better face the challenges that retail brings to this sector every day
What’s new? In reality always everything!
This tour inside the home confirms how in general in our sector projects and innovations are on the agenda, bearing in mind both the needs of the market but above all the needs of an increasingly aware and informed public even in an extremely emotional sector like that of homewear. So let’s continue to keep up to date and stay tuning so we don’t miss anything!
by Arch. Simona Fiore – XT retail
by AN shopfitting magazine no.176 ©
