Blueprint for a successful showroom | FOCUS
‘Add some theatre to the experience…’
Destination store Bell of Northampton specialises in kitchens and bathrooms, but it has diversifi ed into other areas, including lighting, cookware and smart-home technology. Managing director Lee Ferris tells us how Bell is ringing the changes...
Q & A
Q: Can you give us the background to your business? A: Bell has been trading for more than 120 years. During that time, we have built up a great reputation for quality products and service. Our store is located about 1.5 miles from Northampton town centre. We
are not reliant on passing trade, so we don’t need to be on a high street or in the town centre. We have become a destination store that people will travel to visit and, once here, spend several hours in-store. We also have ample parking on our site, which is a real advantage.
Q: How large is your showroom? A: It currently stands at 25,000sq ft, which is quite large. We like to display our core ranges in lifestyle settings, which does tend to need more space. Our core departments are kitchens, bathrooms, fi res and stoves, outdoor living and Calor. The showroom has developed and evolved over the years into a one-stop shop destination. Being able to offer all of these various elements under one roof is one of our USPs.
Over the past few years, we have added a select group of concessions
within our store that are complementary to our brand ethos and add to our overall proposition.
As well our Love Lunch café, our concessions include Ios lighting, a Luxe Cookshop, Hulsta fi tted furniture, The Rose Gallery, Mooch gifting and IndigoZest smart-home technology. In recent years, it has become important to add some theatre to the customer experience. With this in mind, we have created working kitchens and bathrooms, where we can fully demonstrate the products and hold demos and special events. We also look to include some ‘wow’ features to inspire our customers.
Q: What level of the market is the showroom aimed at? And why? A: Our market position is mid to high-end, offering quality products for clients that are looking for a design-led offer. In terms of brands, we supply market-leading, design-led brands, complemented by our own range of Bell- branded products. These are sourced mostly from the UK and Europe.
Q: How many staff do you employ? A: Currently we employ a total of 64 people across sales and marketing, logistics and accounts.
Q: How do you market the business? A: We are fortunate to have a fantastic heritage and a good reputation that
Says Laville: “A website is an absolute must, as is a strong social media presence. Instagram is good for getting beautiful and enticing images out there and both Twitter and Facebook are good for building communities of followers you can market your services to. The great thing is that all these platforms connect well with each other, so content can be shared easily across all of them.”
He adds: “I’d also look at writing blogs, defi nitely putting some videos out there and, if it was viable, I’d be keen to hold special events inside the showroom. I’d want to get some professional chefs in to use the kitchens and bring them to life – make them real. Maybe I’d host specialist cookery days to create a lot of noise and hype, and get people through the door. “These things create a library of interesting stories that can fuel the marketing engine, so that your tweets and Instagram posts are not just about the deals and special offers, but also about the experience, culture
September 2019 · kbbreview Brandt Kitchens showroom event
we can leverage when marketing the company. We have invested heavily in our website –
abell.co.uk – and associated marketing campaigns, as well as social media via platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. We support local events, including the Althorp Food and Drink festival, and hold regular in-store events and open evenings. I would describe our business as being multichannel. Currently we trade
in-store, online and B2B, however it can be challenging to align all those areas for a true omni-channel approach.
Bell of Northampton smart kitchen
Bell of Northampton demo kitchen
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