A New Retail Concept -- Going Beyond the High-tech and High Touch Retail Design Norms StarHub’s Store to Reflect Client Service Philosophy and Values – Challenging the Norm
Singapore, 17 November 1999 -- StarHub, Singapore’s new info-communications company today gave a sneak preview of its flagship retail outlet at StarHub Centre. Located within the H2O Zone -- the latest retail and entertainment zone in the heart of Orchard Road, -- the StarHub Shop boasts a barrier-free environment where visitors can freely touch and feel products that are displayed on open shelves, and experience personal attention from StarHub Shop personal consultants. The store will be fully operational when StarHub launches officially in April next year.
Occupying more than 3,000 square feet in size, the StarHub Shop has been designed to reflect the StarHub brand personality – bold, fresh, intelligent and focused. The physical fittings are designed as a flexible, changeable system, allowing StarHub the capability to update its store displays as business expands over time. The overall design and décor features strong, sleek, stylistic lines and dimensions, incorporating a creative play of colours and warm images. Visitors to the StarHub Shop will thus be greeted with a uniquely warm and personal store experience that goes beyond the high-tech and high-touch feel (for more details, please refer to the attached factsheet).
In line with this personal and seamless service approach, the StarHub Shop will not have traditional service counters where customers are normally separated from shop service staff by a physical counter. Instead, there are 16 service stations throughout the StarHub Shop where the shop personal consultants will service the customers by their side. Once customers have selected their desired products and services for purchase, information can be captured on the customer service terminals at these service stations. To ensure that customer service is rendered seamlessly, the StarHub Shop is the first retail shop in Singapore to be equipped with a tele-lift that can transport desired products to designated service stations for purchase fulfillment. The shop personal consultants can then pick up these products on their customers’ behalf and hand them over to customers for testing. This unique shop feature is aimed at enhancing the speed of fulfilling customer purchases without inconveniencing customers with moving to different counters.
Mr Peter Kaliaropoulos, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, StarHub, said: "We want our customers to feel at ease and comfortable when they visit our store – whether it is to sign up for our services or to browse through the range of products and services which we will be offering."
He adds, "And it will be the 3 ‘C’s that will make up the StarHub’s personal touch. Customers will be able to experience: Contact at one point; Convenience and Care at a personal level. Visitors will be greeted by personal consultants who will serve customers from the start of their entry into the shop to making their final purchase decisions without shuffling customers from one service counter to another. Each customer is important to us. Our shop personal consultants will undergo intensive customer service training to ready themselves to meet the exacting demands of serving the customers seamlessly."
There are two main zones in the StarHub Shop– the Impact Zone and the Retail Lounge. Each zone has a distinct character and purpose.
The Impact Zone of the StarHub Shop serves as the "front reception" area where the open and barrier-free setting seeks to encourage visitors to move freely to browse. Visitors can test for themselves the telephone sets, mobile handsets and mobile phone accessories on display at the phone bar area.
