The top level of Myer’s Sydney city flagship store has been turned into a Christmas ‘Wonderland’, with the department store kicking off its new store concept ahead of the peak trading season yesterday.
In a hint of what to expect from Myer stores as part of its new strategy, which is focused on fine tuning merchandise according to store cluster and will be fully seen at the opening of its Warringah store next week, the entire floor has been given a theatrical overhaul ahead of Christmas.
The experience begins on ground floor, where consumers board the ‘rocket ship elevator’, an express lift that incorporates digital technology to show the Sydney skyline as it moves up to the top level, with the imagery on screen reflecting the time of day or night.
Speaking to Inside Retail, Danny Lattouf, managing director of advertising and design specialists, Ideaworks, said collaborating with Myer over the course of the 20 week project was informed by the department store giant’s encouragement that the process should enable platforms for story telling and experiences.
“We had to strike a real balance between creating a great space for kids and a platform for gifting apparel, which is serious business for mums and dads,” he said. “So we couldn’t make this a typical ‘kiddie land’, or make it so sophisticated so that kids wouldn’t enjoy themselves.”
The store is segregated into multiple sections including ‘The Market Place’, which houses the Christmas Giftorium. There is a marked focus on personalisation, with high-end brands all having pop-up shops in the section.
New additions exclusive to the Giftorium include ‘world firsts’ personalised M&M buckets, Barbie By You’ customisation, where customers design their own Barbie on an iPad instore; and personalised Disney santa sacks.
Other retailers to include personalisation pop ups include Mon Purse, kikki K, Mitch Dowd and skincare brand Kiehl’s.
Myer said the Giftorium will offer over 3 million products across all Myer stores this Christmas and predicts that over 900,000 gifts will be personalised this Christmas. The lofty predictions also include 40 semi-trailers will be filled with M&M’S buckets to be sold across the country, over 20 semi-trailers of personalised Nutella jars and every seat in the MCG could be filled with the amount of personalised Barbie’s expected to sell.
Myer executive general manager Stores, Tony Sutton said Wonderland by Myer sets an impressive stage for the theatre of retail. “We have created an ‘out of this world’ experience where local and international customers can immerse themselves in a theatrical world of toys, childrenswear, gifting, events, and food.”
The store is adorned with 2500 unique hand drawn illustrations of the cityscape – achieved through a process of taking individual illiustrations and over 250 broad canvas drawings, turning these into vectorised art files before finally printing and administering to the visual merchandising.
There is also a 250sqm dome, which features digital projections onto the ceiling, situated next to the perennial and popular Santa train ride.
“Wonderland is a fully immersive experience that puts the wonder back in retail,” said Lattouf. “From tactical experiences in the marketplace to immersive brand stories in the Park and High Street, we’ve worked in a true partnership with Myer to create something that extends far beyond the traditional shopping experience.”
Lattouf said that the concept is “here to stay”, with Myer to continually update the concept throughout the year.
“Our theatre will be an ever transforming activation space that Myer has dedicated to telling stories,” he said.
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