New specialty store concept

“3-E” AG, the Austrian retail and services cooperative based in Wels, unveiled a new speciality store concept in mid-May. “Let’s Do It” is aimed at regionally oriented dealers with a suitable catchment area. Around 80 stores based on the new concept are set to open in the autumn.
For Dr. Günther Pacher, the chairman of “3-E”, “shaping the image of the “Let’s Do It” group and positioning it clearly will be achieved via the high level of advisory competence of the local owner-run businesses and the extensive range of services they offer”. He sees a marked delimitation here from the DIY stores and thus a major opportunity for specialist regional dealers. “The customer knows straight away that “Let’s Do It” will give advice and assistance on buying what he actually needs. These are factors that are sought in vain for the most part in classic DIY stores and that afford a decisive competitive advantage with regard to the barrage of information now available,” Günther Pacher also states.
Dr. Günther Pacher, Chairman of “3-E” AG, unveiled the new family brand concept in mid-May.
The new speciality retailing concept also depends considerably on the personality of the operator and on the competence of the staff in giving advice. The criteria for implementation of the concept are set out in precise terms. The concept offers the retailer the following advantages:
• Greater recognition thanks to a strong brand
• Clear delimitation from competitors
• Uniform presentation
• Support from the “3-E” Group
• Joint staff development activities
• Joint advertising strategy and measures
“Upper Austria (20 members) and Lower Austria (22) will pioneer the implementation of the new speciality store concept. The “HolzProfi” group will also join the new family brand. According to provisional figures, around 80 “Let’s Do It” speciality stores will open in one go in the autumn when the changeover occurs,” explains Günther Pacher.
Hard work currently in progress
For the staff and proprietors of the future “Let’s Do It” stores, the hard work of preparing for the changeover has been going on since March. The wide-ranging training programme commenced with the founding of the “3-E” academy, where over a hundred employees and proprietors will be prepared for the new challenges facing them in the weeks and months leading up to the launch.
“Of course we have to justify our claim to offer the best specialist advice in Austria in our training too. This is why, in the course of our extensive personnel…