“Coming from the online space, we have the advantage of knowing what the customer is looking for  and where. This helps us plan our offline stores accordingly,” says Chetan Thakur, National Project Head at Caratlane- A Tanishq Partnership. Indeed, the omnichannel jewellery brand, which began in the online space, today has 228 offline stores, with about 87 stores having been opened in the last one year alone. 

As Chetan explains, access to data on customer behaviour helps the brand’s business development strategically plan their offline expansion. This kind of data based store planning gains more significance as a number of brands across categories take the omnichannel route, many moving  from the online to the brick and mortar space.  As Chetan says, “Jewellery is all about emotions and so it’s very important to have physical retail presence.” 

Customer need as the deciding factor  

Many of the insights on customer behaviour also influence the store design itself and everything that goes with it - including the fitouts, lighting, flooring, facade etc. Says Chetan, speaking about the brand’s  approach to store design and associated aspects, “The customer is truly the king for us and so the focus is always on giving special experience to the customers in the store, based on their requirements. This applies to everything in the store including the design and displays. “

Fixtures as an influencing factor

Delivering a store experience with high comfort quotient also means a thoughtful approach to store elements like fitouts - among the most critical aspects of the store. As Chetan says, “Fixtures are very important in enhancing the customer experience in store. Our whole focus when it comes to fitouts and fixtures is on displaying more with less space, and making the merchandise draw the customer. In the jewellery category especially,  the touch and feel factor is very important.  Also, jewellery buying is an important event, a celebratory occasion for most. Customers tend to spend a lot of time in the store while buying jewellery.  So we have to make sure the comfort factor is very high.” High comfort factor, among other things, means ergonomic fixtures that also enhance the merchandise. It’s thus not surprising that store fitouts rank next only to  interiors and civil works when it comes to the hierarchy of the brand’s spends on stores.    

Score card for fixture suppliers

With fixtures and fitouts being such an important part of the store experience, a strategic approach to supplier partnership is equally important. Chetan says, talking about the brand’s approach to fixtures suppliers, “We always go by prototypes and basis that decide on the right supplier. For our existing vendors, who are divided into different zones, we have a score card by which we evaluate their targets and accordingly allocate new work.” 

Planning is a crucial element in delivery. So while a score card helps in evaluating a supplier’s capability, adequate planning on the brand’s side is equally important for timely delivery.  As Chetan says, “We share the forecast/plan with all our suppliers so they can accordingly keep the materials ready in their factory in advance.  When a new store comes up, a PO is immediately issued. The suppliers then just need to add the finishing touch and deliver in 10-15 days’ time.

With time being the most critical component in store roll-outs, such adequate planning is indeed inevitable, especially when it comes to store solutions like fixtures. 

Planning and forecasting also helps in designing fixtures that are in sync with changing customer behavior and retail dynamics. As Chetan sums up, “Customer behaviour and the shopping experience is constantly evolving, so the look and feel of the store, and everything in it, also has to evolve constantly.”