The design team also placed iPads on display tables throughout the spaces, allowing shoppers to browse and purchase items from the European online store, which offers a wider merchandise assortment, complete size runs and alternative colors.
“By integrating cutting-edge technologies into the store design, we make a step towards joining the two worlds of real shopping and online shopping,” Franz says. “The latter is becoming more and more important for each brand, so instead of separating them, why not find ways to combine both worlds?”
“Playing games, watching videos and browsing through the website make the shop visit multifaceted, which I think is what we should aim for,” he adds.
Puma also recognizes that green is good business, and each of the re-designed stores have been constructed with sustainability in mind. The general use of building materials has been reduced to a minimum, with ceilings left open and brick walls untreated. All wood comes from responsible, verified sources, while low-VOC paints and adhesives have been specified for walls and surfaces. An efficient lighting system, designed by XAL and based on HIT technology, has been incorporated to reduce the stores’ energy consumption.
The Retail 2.0 concept pioneered by Puma and executed by Plajer & Franz Studio has proven to be popular among shoppers and a successful blueprint for the global brand; the firm has also been involved with redesigns of Puma’s Paris, Berlin, Tokyo and Beijing stores, and similar stores in New York and Barcelona are set to open soon. For Franz, the key has been the careful balance of minimalism and simplicity with cutting-edge technology and exuberant installations that capture consumers’ imaginations.
“I think we got the balance pretty right in all Puma stores,” he says. “This is because we treated the product as the hero and designed the stage for it. Our principle is not to try to tell too many stories at one time—concentrate on one and you will get the message through.”
Read more from our interview with Werner Franz at the Inside Sources blog, and see more images from this project in our digital edition.