Médéric Payne, CEO, Home Centre
Home Centre’s flagship store at Mall of the Emirates is receiving a mega makeover to reflect the brand’s vision for the future, meticulously integrating customer feedback as evidenced in a UAE-wide in-depth research conducted by the home retailer.
The store is set to open doors on December 8 with a grand, live concert at Mall of the Emirates, by the brand’s ambassador and Arab icon, Nancy Ajram.
The new design strategy for the store was conceptualised to ensure experiences that capture imagination and retain loyalty of customers. A refined material palette was integrated, introducing warmer shades of stone and wood with elegant accents of champagne gold.
Replacing the existing furniture and household layout, this new store will now have expressive, dynamic sections built around living, dining, sleeping, decorating and playing for kids, reflecting the way customers live and shop. Designed around flexibility and modularity, the idea was to create inspiration and excitement by combining products and technology that lets the customer experience the true essence of the brand, helping them rediscover the joy of shopping.
With 10,000 furniture and home accessories, the extensive product line-up includes the widest range of kids’ furniture and home accessories along with an array of modular and mix-and-match solutions to suit customers’ needs.
A key element in the new format is the incorporation of digital technology such as interactive and informative in-store video content to provide a blended online and in-store experience, leaving the customer with one cohesive shopping journey. Customers will be able to view all the components of the product, source vital information about the products and customise as per their requirements. They will be able to extend their in-store transactions online and vice-versa – leveraging the seamless online experience offered by homecentre.com.
“Home Centre has always been highly customer-focused and mindful of our shoppers’ needs,” says CEO Médéric Payne. “With this re-modeling, our mandate was to create a futuristic store concept to ensure a seamless experience. A major part of this transformation involved embracing new digital technology to enhance shopping experience. One of them being the implementation of mobile point of sale, which is a revolutionary step in the way we carry out furniture sales transactions in stores, marking the start of our transition to an omnichannel retail environment.”
“Located in the heart of Dubai, Mall of the Emirates is our flagship store. Therefore, it seemed only appropriate that the ‘All New Home Centre’ concept is led by this store,” he adds.
Home Centre has also launched a series of value-added services including warranty, installation services, express check-out system, financing, gift registry and monogramming service.
Another prime feature of this store is the home design service wherein customers can collaborate with an in-house interior design expert and create the perfect home suited to their unique sense of style and budget. This convenience, combined with a comprehensive range of home interior peripherals on offer such as wall-paints, wall-paper and lighting ensure an integrated, one-stop shopping experience for the customer. Home Centre plans to bring this new experience to customer throughout the region, beginning the process at its flagship Mall of the Emirates store.