BMW’ Paris flagship store to try to emulate the Apple retail experience
The BMW Group celebrated the grand opening of its first new BMW Brand Store in the most luxurious area of metropolitan Paris in the Avenue George V tonight. The store, set to be the first of an Apple-like network of ‘experience stores’, was designed by the well-known, luxury retail architect, Eric Carlson and his team from Carbondale Architects and Version Architects.
BMW George V, the 800m2 BMW Brand Store in the very heart of luxury retail, marks the launch of a new generation of BMW brand stores as well as the beginning of a comprehensive programme at the BMW Group which the company refers to as “Future Retail”.
Customers can expect to see a number of new BMW and MINI retail formats, as well as a new online presence and social media activities, plus a more appealing showroom appearance. Some aspects can be experienced already, such as a virtual product presentation which has already been implemented in the BMW Munich and Zurich branches, as well as MINI Westfield in London.
BMW is also in the process of introducing an additional role to the dealers, namely a Product Genius. The objective is to better support customers with in-depth product knowledge as well as enabling the customer to better utilize and configure products in accordance with their particular needs. As the Product Genius needs to be mobile, he or she will be equipped with a state of the art Information Management System on a tablet device, allowing, for example, product configuration and in-depth explanation of features supported by visuals and films.
The first markets which are planned for the roll-out of Future Retail, including the Product Genius, are France, UK, China and the Netherlands.
:“The world of retail has changed significantly – customer behaviour, needs and expectations have changed, as well as communication technology. As part of our corporate Strategy Number ONE, we critically reviewed our processes and customer feedback. We will now build upon our strengths and implement a comprehensive programme named Future Retail. This will entail a whole range of initiatives and tools designed to enhance the customer experience and to set new standards for retail in the automotive industry and beyond,” said Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Sales and Marketing BMW.
