BlackBox
Executive Summary
Black Box’s proposal to Selfridges: a British Summer time Retreat that will be an escape from the hectic London streets during summer 2012, creating a unique selling point by celebrating British heritage and providing a lifestyle shopping experience for the busy consumer. The concept aims to increase public interest, strengthen customer relations and therefore increase sales as it will have wide spread appeal and will attract a diverse range in target market varying from British to international consumers of all ages.
Customer Profile Gender: Female Age: 25 – 50 Occupation: Professional, high status House hold income: £35,000 + Location: Worldwide Hobbies: Shopping, Socializing Relationship status: Single – married with family Would shop for fashion trends and function, souvenirs, gifts and food. Would invest in designer brands but also shops in high street stores Willing to spend more on quality/luxur y products.
Target Market Black Box has noticed there is a gap in the market for a retreat during one of the busiest periods in London. As Selfridges welcomes all types of consumers, the Retreat will do the same. This concept is limitless in its appeal to consumers as the playfulness of the visual merchandising will also entice a younger target market and the British tea party theme will appeal to a more mature consumer. However, Black Box has identified with one main target market for this concept: women aged 25+ in a professional occupation; they can afford luxury however they may not always have the time for it due to their busy work schedule. The Selfridges Retreat will offer this consumer a break from their busy life, if only for 30 minutes while they are on their lunch break.
Concept
Black Box wants to bring the great British outdoors indoors, to the Selfridges Retreat with ‘park-like’ interior; floors carpeted in grass and garments hanging from trees. This concept will run throughout six window displays, featuring on the main front of the store and also the visual merchandising within the store space. The concept for the window displays will follow a narrative of a tea party with the first window being an invitation and the sixth being a tea party scene. This theme will be continued into the store with similar scenes being set up in the atriums by the escalators.
To help illustrate this concept, Black Box has staged an elaborate tea party photo shoot in Nonsuch Park. These images can be used for promotion on the Selfridges website and Facebook page as well as being printed as post cards that will be given to customers when they make a purchase at the Retreat. The concept store will showcase some of Britain’s most successful designers such as Alexander McQueen and Anglomania by Vivienne Westwood in addition to international designers such as Valentino and Marc Jacobs as they share the same feminine aesthetic. While the clothing is the main product promoted in the window displays, the concept store will also promote a wide range of products, including home ware, tea and cakes. Vintage-style tea sets, books, stationary, tea from all over the world and beautiful cakes from Lola’s Cupcakes and the Vintage Patisserie will all be on sale in the Retreat alongside the clothing. This will ensure that the consumer receives a unique shopping experience as they are able to relax, eat, drink and browse while shopping for a lifestyle instead of just a single product. Selfridges has a prestigious reputation, famous for its window displays and in store visual merchandising, it has become a destination for anyone visiting London and with all that will be going on in this coming summer this will be another reason to remember London 2012. Black Box aims to help Selfridges offer the complete British experience to both British and international visitors during this time with its unique concept and escapist ideology. The window displays, in store visual merchandising and Retreat concept store will be revealed to mark the beginning of British summer time. While the concept of the store is supposed to be a retreat, Black Box have acknowledged the fact that Selfridges is a hugely successful store and this concept will increase interest in the store and bring more customers. For this reason the retreat will be sectioned off with picket fencing and have an exclusive opening by invitation only before the launch date when it will be open to the general public. The guest list will include celebrities, fashion journalists, bloggers and some of the designers promoted by this concept. This will ensure that the retreat gains press coverage and it will also allow some of our elite customers to have the full experience while also giving other customers a preview of what will be open to them, making them want to return to the store.
Promotion “If you go down to the woods today you’re sure of a big surprise.” This will be the caption echoed throughout all of the Selfridge’s multimedia platforms such as Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and the official Selfridges website to create interest and awareness of the concept before it is launched in the store. These tweets and statuses will begin circulating online alongside exclusive video footage from the concept shoot and a six-week count down to the launch date. Once the Retreat has opened, the windows will act as another promotional device, giving a preview of what lies inside the store.
Costing
Considerations: • Windows • Store-wide visual merchandising • Interior design of the retreat concept store • Catering for the launch event Black box has taken into consideration all of the set and props needed for the window displays and visual merchandising throughout the store and has come up with an estimate of approximately £8,000 to do 5 window displays and transform the concept store into the Summertime Retreat. In addition, the VIP guests at the launch day will be catered to by the Vintage Patisserie in the style of a great British tea party: At £45 per head with a VIP guest list of 40, each with a possible plus one, this comes to £3,600.
Final Summary
Due to the coming events that will be occurring in London this summer, the city centre will be a hive of activity. Black Box has recognized this as an opportunity to build upon Selfridge’s success as a destination in London with the Summertime Retreat. It will offer a luxurious shopping experience to every unique customer and a leisurely break for those on a tight schedule. Customers will be enticed by the playful narrative of the window displays and continuity from this to in store visual merchandising will ensure that the consumer is just as tempted to shop once they have entered the store. Visitors will gain a full lifestyle shopping experience and leave with a lasting memory from their trip to the Selfridges Retreat as well as their purchases.
Contents Executive Summary Target Market Concept Promotion Costing Final Summary
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