Shopfloor VVITEC,


TAKE A TOWN Oxford Street


This store was very much open for business, despite the fact that there was scaffolding up outside. I was looking to buy a pair of headphones for my son. Inside the store, I was greeted by a member of staff who asked if I needed any help. He showed me two very different products.


50


The first pair were gaming headphones from Yesido, priced at £45. The man explained that these headphones, complete with attached microphone, come with a variety of connectors that can be plugged into gaming consoles such as PlayStation and X-Box. The second pair were wireless headphones, which had the noise cancellation feature. The headphones, from VIDVIE,


Sales skills: 2/5


Store presentation:


4/5


Total score: 6/10


were


priced at £99.99. The store assistant explained that these headphones can also be used as wired headphones, using the supplied auxiliary cable. I said that I would think about what model to buy and the man immediately offered me a £15 discount on the gaming headphones.


The discount was an attempt – perhaps a desperate attempt – to make the sale. I was given a basic overview; the store was not merchandised well.


John Lewis & Partners, Oxford Street


Though there are 52 John Lewis & Partners stores across the UK, this one is the retailer’s flagship, first opened in 1864. I was looking to buy a replacement washing machine. Inside the store, I headed to the escalators and noticed that the home appliances department is in the basement. In the home laundry department, two members


of staff were serving customers, while four other customers were browsing. As I looked around, I counted 25 washing machines on display, ranging in price from a 9kg John Lewis model (JLWM1509), priced at £499, to a 9kg model (WER865), which was priced at £1,899. According to the price tickets, both models


were rated ‘A’ for energy; the Miele model had a spin speed of 1,600rpm, while a spin speed of 1,400rpm was listed on the John Lewis m o d e l’ s price ticket.


Sales skills: 0/5


Store presentation:


5/5


Total score: 5/10


I was unable to assess the sales skills at this store; the department was well merchandised, and all products had price


tickets, which contained a wealth of information.


After 10 minutes of browsing – and the two members of staff still serving the same customers – I left the store.


ProCook, Tottenham Court Road


ProCook was founded by Daniel O’Neill over 20 years ago and with more than 50 stores across the UK, the business is still family-owned. Having just moved into our new family home, I was keen to buy some matching small domestic appliances. There was a promotion running on the appliances, which offered a combination of kettle and either a two-slice or four-slice toaster for a special price.


The kettle and toaster options were available


in three colours – black, gun metal and stainless steel. The price ticket was informative and stated that the kettle featured a 360-degree swivel base, 1.5-litre capacity and a removable limescale filter. Both toasters had all the usual features. I thought the kettle and four-slice toaster was the package that best


Sales skills: 1/5


Store presentation:


5/5


Total score: 6/10


One point for the approach, but the lack of knowledge about the promotion wasn’t great. The store was well presented, inside and out.


suited my needs. It was priced at £158, which was a £10 saving on the individual item prices. A member of staff asked if I needed any help; I asked when the promotion was due to end, and she said that she did not know.


Selfridges, Oxford Street


The historic Selfridges department store at 400, Oxford Street is the second-largest shop in the UK, after Harrods, and opened in 1909. I was keen to buy a bean-to-cup coffee machine. In the store, I eventually found the kitchen area, which is on the lower ground floor – the in-store signage was not very good. In the home electrical department, I spotted


three of Smeg’s bean-to-cup machines, which were priced at £700 each. The Smeg products were on a low shelf, and other than the price ticket, no other information about them was available. The machines were green, taupe and white.


Three members of


staff


Sales skills: 0/5


Store presentation:


3/5


Total score: 3/10


I was unable to assess the sales skills at this store. The in-store


wer e chatting at the till point, while four sets of shoppers browsed the displays; reluctantly, after 10 minutes of browsing, I left the store.


signage was poor, and no product information was available. Premium products


deserve to be merchandised more effectively.


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