An upmarket ambience

Anyone looking closely at Swiss market leader Coop Bau + Hobby at the moment might be forgiven for thinking that this is a company that is reinventing itself.
Does a market leader need to do that? Due to the currency issue and shopping tourism across the often very close borders of this small country with the European Union, the situation is not exactly simple for any retail player in Switzerland. Added to this is the pressure exerted by the Internet.
It now appears that established retailers are striking back, because Coop is launching an offensive on two fronts. It has geared up hugely online and at the same time it is making an effort to upgrade its bricks-and-mortar stores in a targeted manner.
How the Coop Bau + Hobby stores will look to a new generation can be viewed now in Sissach, barely 30 kilometres away from Basle and its head office at Wangen near Olten. A golden opportunity presented itself to realise the new concepts together here of all locations, in a building that is over ten years old and not particularly spectacular from the outside. This is because, following the departure of one tenant from the retail park, Coop had the chance to extend the retail area by nearly 700 m² to 4 700 m². 
Dr Christoph Theler has headed the DIY store division of the Swiss cooperative society since 2014. "We are celebrating a special shopping experience here," he says as he walks towards the entrance. Indeed, the urge to do more than simply pick up a couple of impulse buys is recognisable before we even get through the door: large planters with specimen shrubs adjacent to wooden tables with plants in decorative pots and planted boxes instead of CC trolleys for plant presentation set a rather more elevated tone.
This upmarket ambience continues in store. Customers are welcomed by a service desk, the clearest sign yet of the upgrading given to the physical stores. With its wood finish the counter resembles the reception of a modern hotel and was developed, according to Theler, "in collaboration with an interior architect". The bright, friendly hue, large screen behind featuring products and promotions, the low desk height encouraging communication and clean-desk philosophy emphatically set this first point of contact apart from the official customer desks often encountered.
One of its principal functions is to act as a pick-up station for online orders and it is connected to the Coop-wide system introduced last year. Customers can also collect goods here that they…