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Germany’s number one is celebrating the group’s 500th new opening worldwide. The outlet is being heralded as the ”store of the future“, though it makes a relatively modest impression initially
Pocking in Bavaria, not far from the border with Austria, is where Obi’s 500th store has been inaugurated. The event was celebrated in a suitable manner and effectively marketed in the media. The Bavarian team partied three times over, with a pre-opening on the Saturday, an official opening on the Sunday, and an opening to the public on Monday 28 February.
The 500th Obi store at Pocking from the outside.
The new opening is no “big box”, no mega-store covering tens of thousands of square metres. In fact, the store with its floorspace of around 6 000 m² makes a relatively modest impression. But there is more to this outlet than first meets the eye. Perhaps Obi has finally found its true format here, of the right size and with the right market image.
Official opening with Obi's CEO Sergio Giroldi (3rd from left).
The store appears to be 30 to 50 per cent larger than it is in reality. By means of reducing suppliers, bundling ranges, compact merchandising and an intelligent customer guidance system, Obi has successfully created a store that is modern and multipliable whilst still remaining “Obi-like”. It is the “store of the future” in Obi’s terminology. And in this format the group may indeed have found the solution to maintaining brand identity during expansion at home and abroad.
Compact and professional: Pocking from the inside.
Investment in this replacement outlet in Pocking came to € 10 mio altogether. It includes two new product ranges, home furnishings and pet food, and there are a great number of new services to complete the offer. Special DIY training sessions for both men and women are held every other Saturday. The new store opened at the end of February this year, following a construction period that lasted just eight months and a week’s setting-up time. It now employs a staff of 60. The format is somewhat more spartan in effect, the decorative side has been reduced, and the whole image is definitely more strident.
A view into the garden centre.
It not simply by chance that the Wermelskirchen-based company has opened its 500th store in Germany. Sergio Giroldi, CEO of Obi, addressed this very topic in his opening speech: “Obi's success is based on German culture and German achievements. Over 90 per cent of Germans know about Obi, because Obi knows about Germans. Which is why I am proud to be in a position to open the 500th Obi store in Germany and nowhere else.”
Giroldi’s words show how important the German heartland is to Obi, and to its franchisees as well. For Germany will continue to provide the major contribution to Obi’s turnover for years to come. Currently the international share comes to 29 per cent, and the trend is continuing to rise. But, conversely, this means that around 70 per cent still flows from German sources at present. And so Obi’s German franchisees still are and will remain a force to be reckoned with.
A strong brand image: all Obi at the info counter.
By the end of 2006 it is planned to open 35 new Obi outlets worldwide. However, the emphasis is recently on expansion in Russia alongside China. In this context it is the company’s declared goal to achieve market leadership in every country where it is represented. There is still work to be done here, since the goal has not been attained everywhere yet (see the report on Obi’s international activities in the enclosed DIY in Europe special).
The 500th Obi store at Pocking from the outside.
The new opening is no “big box”, no mega-store covering tens of thousands of square metres. In fact, the store with its floorspace of around 6 000 m² makes a relatively modest impression. But there is more to this outlet than first meets the eye. Perhaps Obi has finally found its true format here, of the right size and with the right market image.
Official opening with Obi's CEO Sergio Giroldi (3rd from left).
The store appears to be 30 to 50 per cent larger than it is in reality. By means of reducing suppliers, bundling ranges, compact merchandising and an intelligent customer guidance system, Obi has successfully created a store that is modern and multipliable whilst still remaining “Obi-like”. It is the “store of the future” in Obi’s terminology. And in this format the group may indeed have found the solution to maintaining brand identity during expansion at home and abroad.
Compact and professional: Pocking from the inside.
Investment in this replacement outlet in Pocking came to € 10 mio altogether. It includes two new product ranges, home furnishings and pet food, and there are a great number of new services to complete the offer. Special DIY training sessions for both men and women are held every other Saturday. The new store opened at the end of February this year, following a construction period that lasted just eight months and a week’s setting-up time. It now employs a staff of 60. The format is somewhat more spartan in effect, the decorative side has been reduced, and the whole image is definitely more strident.
A view into the garden centre.
It not simply by chance that the Wermelskirchen-based company has opened its 500th store in Germany. Sergio Giroldi, CEO of Obi, addressed this very topic in his opening speech: “Obi's success is based on German culture and German achievements. Over 90 per cent of Germans know about Obi, because Obi knows about Germans. Which is why I am proud to be in a position to open the 500th Obi store in Germany and nowhere else.”
Giroldi’s words show how important the German heartland is to Obi, and to its franchisees as well. For Germany will continue to provide the major contribution to Obi’s turnover for years to come. Currently the international share comes to 29 per cent, and the trend is continuing to rise. But, conversely, this means that around 70 per cent still flows from German sources at present. And so Obi’s German franchisees still are and will remain a force to be reckoned with.
A strong brand image: all Obi at the info counter.
By the end of 2006 it is planned to open 35 new Obi outlets worldwide. However, the emphasis is recently on expansion in Russia alongside China. In this context it is the company’s declared goal to achieve market leadership in every country where it is represented. There is still work to be done here, since the goal has not been attained everywhere yet (see the report on Obi’s international activities in the enclosed DIY in Europe special).
