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The spotlight is on retail experience

By Fairy Dharawat | February 07, 2014

India's leading electrical solutions manufacturer - Anchor Electricals Pvt. Ltd (a Panasonic Group Company), opened its first state-of-the-art LED lighting showroom in Mumbai on the 2nd of December 2013 in association with Hyperspace India - a retail design studio. Siddharth Anand Jha, Business Head, Hyperspace India, shares with VJ Media Works, details regarding the implementation and challenges involved in opening a 1150 sq. ft. store and its primary aim of providing a perfect blend between innovation and technology. Read on"¦


Indian Retail Market


Brands, both Domestic and International, are trying to create an impact among the Indian consumers, capitalising on the high number of purchasers with deep pockets to spend on lifestyle and luxury products, apart from the daily necessities.

Panasonic Lightning store was conceptualized and designed by the Panasonic Japan's Central Advertising Team, who directly monitored and supervised the project. It was Panasonic's decision to showcase the entire range of their specialized LED lighting range in India.

Collaboration between Hyperspace and Dentsu

With the merger of Dentsu Inc and Aegis Media, a global media conglomerate Dentsu Aegis Network came in to existence. The group companies integrated to complement each other with their strengths and specialties so that a complete solution could be extended to their respective clients. Panasonic is a Dentsu Japan a/c. and when they finalized the launch of their India store, Dentsu handling the a/c partnered Hyperspace India for the project. Hyperspace, the retail specialists in branding & communication in the retail domain, executed the store construction (civil, electrical, carpentry, ducting, plumbing, fixtures and furniture's) and branding on a turnkey basis.

USP of the Store

The store has been created as an experience centre for Panasonic's entire LED Lighting range. This provides a platform for the brand to educate the potential customers among shoppers on the benefits of LED vis-a-vis other lighting options, incl. CFL based on the design & brand guidelines provided by Panasonic Japan. Also, a simulation zone was designed and created to give the ambience of various parts of the home, E.G.. living room, dining room, etc. so that the customers can associate the lights to how the same would appear in their homes.

Challenges

The store was created basis Panasonic's international design for LED Experience Centres and the same kind of quality was to be maintained in the Indian store. Hence, the layouts, fixtures, branding and display elements had to be of optimal quality. All raw materials were approved by the Japanese architect post his matching the same with the Japanese samples. Also, matching the'on-dot' execution schedule was a real eye-opener and a learning experience.

Enhancing Shopper Experience through Stimulation room

The simulation room in the Experience Centre was created specifically to give the ambience of the various parts of the home and how the specialized LED Lights and offer a realistic feel of the home environment. Hence, the simulation room has a sofa set opposite a TV with concealed edge lights to create the apt living room ambience, dining table & chairs, with high-end chandeliers, mood lighting which can be operated with remote control etc.

Future Plans

Panasonic intends to take this concept to other metros/ locations. One Store each in Bangalore and Delhi NCR is scheduled for launch by mid-2014.
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