NEWS
Dixons ‘stores of the future’ to roll out across UK New concept travel stores boast 32-inch rear projection floating screens, tablet ‘lookbooks’ and other tech
By Laura Barnes
‘FLOATING’ screens and digital catalogues will be making their way to Dixons Retail stores on the High Street. The news comes after Dixons
Travel’s first two concept stores were unveiled at Gatwick Airport and Heathrow Terminal 5 in August. Both feature ‘floating screens’ – mounted displays used to showcase product features – which managing director Jeremy Fennell says gives the store flexibility with seasonal trends. “We have designed this store with the aim of offering an amazing customer experience in such a fast paced environment,” he told PCR. “A 32-inch rear projection floating screen is placed over a themed area on the digital visual merchandising table to create theatre to the overall table. Currently this has a summer holiday
The store features a ‘KNOWHOW’ bar, which provides tech advice and repairs
TRAVEL STORE LOCATIONS
There are currently 12 Dixons Travel stores in the UK. They are in Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow, Luton, Manchester, Newcastle and Stansted.
The Gatwick and Heathrow airport locations feature a mixture of tech products and travel essentials. 10-inch tablet ‘lookbooks’ are placed
theme, which will build anticipation for customers and encourage the holiday feel.” Screens are placed at the front of the
store as well, which are all controlled centrally and can be updated instantly with new offers and limited deals. “The stores have a unique flexible design, so that we can flex to suit
‘Boxed software market is not dead’
Software vendors praise digital downloads but say there’s still consumer demand for physical copies
By Dominic Sacco
THE BOXED software sector is not dying, according to vendors, despite a rise in online downloads. The likes of Amazon, PC World and
Currys have all introduced digital software stores in recent weeks. But vendors have told PCR this won’t harm boxed sales – it just opens up more retail channels to them and their customers. “We will continue to offer boxed
software for as long as there is a meaningful need for it from customers and the channel,” Lee Sharrocks, UK and Ireland B2C director at Kaspersky Lab, told PCR. “However, there’s no doubt that the rise of ESD (Electronic Software Distribution) and POSA (Point of Sale Activation) products signals a significant
www.pcr-online.biz
change in the market. This is good news for all concerned as these smaller form factors open different retail channels for vendors, address green issues regarding product packaging, and provide a high level of convenience for consumers. “There is still some way to go before we see some consistency in the format of digital delivery.” Jussi Arovaara, VP of Global Sales at
Corel, said: “Unlike some manufacturers, Corel still sees a future for boxed software and we continue to drive and support that revenue stream in our channel.” Some vendors like Adobe have
introduced subscription-only software models of late. Arovaara commented: "Recent decisions made by other manufacturers
customer demand and the seasonal trends,” added Fennell. “The new store will be the prototype
for future Travel store designs; this will be the store of the future for our Dixons Travel portfolio. And some of the technology in the new Gatwick store will be making its way into the rest of the Dixons Retail Estate.”
next to products allowing customers to find out about associated offers and other information. Fennell says Dixons will be closely
monitoring how this new store concept is received before making changes, adding that the lookbooks will be first to roll out to High Streets.
www.dixonsretail.com
‘There is still some way to go before we see consistency in the format of digital delivery.’
Lee Sharrocks, Kaspersky Lab
Lee Sharrocks (Kaspersky Lab) and Jussi Arovaara (Corel) both see demand for boxed products
has highlighted a large proportion of customers out there who want to 'own' their software, not subscribe. We're now seeing a significant number of new customers switch to Corel." One indie retailer told PCR that
vendors have a duty to be “fair and competitive” to all retailers, when supplying boxed software units to retail.
September PCR 7
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