sandrine dury 2ndassignment

SandrineDury_2ndassignmentBRU

Sandrine DuryCreativity:

2nd assignment

Observation


Observations• Products: pastries at entrance, price on all, no

sales or free samples, organised by function, all

products around eyes level and behind counter;

sandwiches at the end; only lollipop as impulse

item

• Customers: variety of ages, and relationships,

all going in the same direction (one entrance,

one exit, flow); staying only 2 minutes; mostly

on a mission except for specialty pastries ;

~100% of customers purchase products


Observations• Outside: Store doesn’t drow in as big and “cold”

(cement) with automatic doors; huge lettering

big store, utilitarian

• Environment: Grey and red colours so quite

modern outside; painted cement as floor; high

ceiling; very lit to find products easily; quite loud

because of shopping carts and customers; no

music; cold (esp. grocery section); crowded with

merchandise; with cash register (incl. self-scan)

at the exit (close to exit door); some visible

security convenience, utilitarian, efficient thus

mostly expected cheap. Certain aisles (e.g.

fruits, fishes) emphasize freshness and wine

aisle clean and quality focused

• Personnel: No interaction if don’t ask except for

butcher/fishermen + cashiers; ~20 salespeople

for ~150 customers; mostly women age 35-55;

wear a uniform clean, modest, simple, nice


Observations• Products: 1st product= fruits and veggies+

flowers; not many central displays; “for sale”

items at end of aisle + central displays; products

arranged by function; no free sample (today, but

sometimes yes a few); branded products at eye

level; cheap products at bottom; drinks in last

aisle as last product you take before leaving;

clear pricing and comparable (price/kg); plenty

of impulse items such as magazines, gums, top-

up cell cards, etc. efficiency again + push for

brands or impulse items if possible through shelf

placement

• Customers: variety of ages, mostly alone;

mostly walking in the same direction (starting

with the first aisle); stay about 30-40 min; only

fruits and veggies touched before buying (to

choose) come with a mission (list) but almost

always buy more than list; ~100% buy products


Observations• Outside: Store draws in as pictures visible from

far and known/pretty ; open (in the mall); 20-25

cm white and black lettering with light inside

modern, movie reference, fun, free time

• Environment: Black, grey tiles, big red curtain;

high ceiling, painted, spot lights, quiet, classic

quiet music, warm and cosy; crowded (esp.

walls) but ordered merchandise; cash register at

back; no security, no smell décor like movie

theatre, perception of not high end but not super

cheap

• Personnel: No interaction; one sales guy ~35 y

old male for ~5-7 customers; no uniform

plays on Iphone and seems out of place (no

passionate discussion on movies, etc.)


Observations• Products: 1st product= postcards. No featured

products except on walls ; products by function

(postcards, booklets, calendars, posters); less

accessible are books and booklets in the back

on a table; least expensive= postcards outside

to draw customer in; most expensive = framed

posters on the wall; prices clearly displayed; no

impulse items

• Customers: Mostly young ~30y old customers,

mostly alone; both genders. Walk randomly

given multitude of entries and stay only a few

minutes max. Browse through the products; only

~10% of customers buy something


Observations• Outside: Doesn’t draw in, open door; small

almost inexistent lettering cheap, on the go,

no importance of brand

• Environment: White tiles, normal ceiling, store lit

with bright lights; very quiet (except restaurant

noises in the background); radio-music playing;

cold; small but crowded store in terms of

products; cash close to entrance, no security

fast, efficient, functional

• Personnel: Very polite, talks to all customers,

one sales guy ~35 y old male for ~0-1 customer;

no uniform matches customer types (mostly

truck drivers)


Observations• Products: 1st product= newspapers. Central

display of ice-creams; no “sales” but promotion

like Kit-Kat at cashier and advertised by

salesguy; products arranged by function (ice

creams, games and teddy

bears, magazines, cookies, potato

chips, drinks); least accessible = teddy bears ;

All products branded and “overpriced” but

convenience; some don’t have price displayed;

snacks at cashier for impulse purchase

• Customers: Mostly guys ~40 y old, mostly truck

drivers, alone; only stay a minute in the store;

browse through to see what they really want

(mostly impulse purchases); 30-50% buy

something


Observations• Outside: Pictures at windows (not shoes

display) ; big shop; one door open, next closed;

big blue and grey lettering in capital letters +

symbol of the brand relatively cheap but

modern

• Environment: Blue and grey colours; blue carpet

with the brand’s symbol; high ceiling; well lit with

aggressive lights; quite environment except for

radio music; warm; quite crowded in terms of

merchandise (esp. walls); cash register at front;

no security (but alarm in the shoes) self-

service gives impression of cheapness but still

modern

• Personnel: 2 sales women 45-55 y old for ~3

customers at one time; no uniform; don’t

address customers except “hello” when enter

seem more old-fashioned than products


Observations• Products: 1st product= boots; no central display;

“for sales” items hard to find as in the middle of

the other shoes with tag; products by gender,

size and function (bags, sport shoes, etc.); No

difference on what at eye level vs. not with

cheap and expensive intermingled; least

accessible = sport gear (balls, etc.); price on the

box; leather spray only “impulse” items

overall emphasizes messiness and cheapness

• Customers: Mostly alone, ~40 y old, mostly

truck drivers, alone; stay about 15 min. ; follow

their own route as clear signs to find size and

gender; browse in “their” aisle ; only ~10-15%

buy a product


Observations• Outside: Doesn’t draw in as cheap, worn down

building in cement, big, closed door, letters in

white on red and blue screams

“cheap, cheap, cheap” and old-fashioned

• Environment: White tiles, normal ceiling, store lit

with bright, quite aggressive lights (neon lights);

only loud because of a few loud-speaking

customers; music and advertisement for the

brand; cold, crowded in terms of products per

square meter; cashier in the middle on the left;

security through alarm on clothes and gantry

“get me out of here fast”

• Personnel: No contact, don’t speak to

customers except if forced to; 3 sales person

voer ~15 customers; all women ~40 y

old, wearing the stores’ clothes but no uniform

matches with old-fashioned and cheap image


Observations• Products: 1st product= jackets; no central

display per se; no sales; products by function

and gender; nothing specifically at eye level;

least accessible = shoes at the back; cheapest

item per rack’ s price is advertised; for other

products, need to check on the label; “socks” as

impulse item close to cash register

• Customers: Mostly women, mostly middle aged-

old; sometimes with family; mostly appear to be

“poor” (from disadvantaged economic

background); stay about 10-15 minute ; touch

the products; browsing mostly through it all; only

~5-10% buy –> old, cheap


A few key insights from this exercise:

• Few shops have it all “right” with everything

aligned with the strategy/customer segment

targeted

• But most shops seemed to have “thought about

it” as a majority of things “make sense” (e.g.

movie theatre décor for the poster shop)

• Especially as compared to the US, in Europe,

sales people are mostly greeting customers and

passively waiting to be asked something, as

opposed to actively try to sell

• Observing is hard and requires focus – without

reviewing the list, I always miss some points

• People are “worried/uneasy” about someone

taking pictures in a store ;-)


A few key opportunities from this exercise:

• Biggest opportunity is to “correct” the items

which are not aligned with the strategy and

customer segment to reach in each stores (e.g.

change the salesperson in the movie poster

store; more modernly dressed sales women in

the shoe store)

• I loved the hook at the outside of the french

bakery to hook dogs for a minute – could work

in some other “fast” shops as well

• The clothing shop I visited begs the question:

what do you do when your target segment

grows older – at one point, you’ll lose them ; so

how do you rebrand to younger customers ?

• Crowded products usually indicated cheapness

– wouldn’t it be more profitable for most stores

to have less products displayed, at a higher

margin ?

sandrine dury 2ndassignment

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