Re-inventing The Retail Space
Written by Timothy Go (www.timothygo.com)
Singapore’s retail giant Courts is back with a brand new retail and experiential outlet right at the heart of Singapore – Funan SG.
While many retailers are packing up and moving to the suburbs to serve their customers better, Courts is doing the exact opposite. It returned to the new Funan with a bigger and better retail outlet, hoping to attract existing customers to continue shopping, and younger customers who want to experience what it’s like to live in a fully functioning digital home.
The Courts outlet at Funan houses Singapore’s biggest Samsung Experience Hub where customers can try out a model IoT home with digital appliance connected to each other, and calibrated to serve the various needs of its owners.
While traditional retail stores are disappearing from the city center, Ben Tan, Country CEO of COURTS Singapore said, there’s still a need for a physical store because a customer who is parting with $5000 for a brand new smart tv, would want to have a look at it first, and compare it with others in the same category.
He also says returning products and getting them replaced if there are defects, is still easier to do in a store than online.
Product experts are also in every store to help customers with their questions, something they may not have when shopping on-line. He says the role of sales people today is not just to sell you a product to get their commission, they are also there to assure you that you are getting the item that you need, that fits your budget.
Mr Tan hopes the Courts brand name, the trustworthiness it built among Singaporean households in the last 45 years, and the range of products and services available, will make customers come back for more.
Watch Courts CEO Ben Tan, in his own words when he sat down with Timothy to talk about how to deal with retail disruption in today’s connected world.
