Heineken to redefine in-store experience
MWL 2012: Heineken is working with convenience stores and supermarkets across the UK to redefine what it claims are “dull” in-store experiences for beer and cider shoppers.
Speaking at Marketing Week Live yesterday (28 June), the brewer’s UK point of purchase strategy manager Bob Burgess said that it was rolling out a two-tier strategy that looked to emulate the in-store experiences of the likes of Disney and John Lewis and increase dwell time in the beer aisles.
The strategy centres around identifying types of consumers that will be most susceptible to in-store marketing as well as what “simple things” the brewer could do to make shopping more “enjoyable” for consumers, Burgess adds.
He said that the company aimed to eliminate “some of the noise” around the category that would likely be “obstacles to your slower lane shoppers who have more intention to dwell at a fixture.”
“The answer for us is looking at how you forge a link between a proper experience in-store with some of the dependable key metrics that we work with day-to-day on a category basis. It’s not just about refining. It’s about redefining how we retail and what we can do with beers and ciders that really take us on to the next level.”
Additionally, Burgess said that the company was “thinking” about opening up its own store in the UK as a showcase to try “different things and really immerse people in the brand”.
He adds: “How much we can deliver of that in-store realistically in an environment where we are very passionately focused would be a challenge. I’m not sure its high on our strategic priorities at the moment but maybe there will be something like the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam in the future.”
Heineken is supporting the initiative through its Star Retailing program, a team of marketers that advise independent retailers how to merchandise its alcohol products in-store.
