In the retail world, the words “Differentiate or Die”, devised by Jack Trout over 13 years ago in his book of the same title, still ring as true today if not more so. With increasing international competition and customers overwhelmed with choices and bound by time constraints, now more than ever, retailers need to take these words to task.
That’s particularly true in the active lifestyle sector where the ubiquitous Luluelemon owns the lion’s share of the market. Another Canadian success story, Lole, is going up against them not by being a “me too” retailer but by carving out their own niche. Sure, there are some similarities; both sell somewhat similar products, both emphasize health and wellness, both build and engage communities of customers. Where Lole is demonstrating a differentiated approach, is through their customer touch points right down to the ultimate moment of truth; their retail experience.
- Lole Storefront Central Social Space Wall Detail
Lole’s first retail outlet in downtown Toronto just opened last fall in Yorkville (Oakville and Bayview Village locations opened in 2011). It’s a smaller footprint than typical, so it lacks some of the features of a larger location – but consistently what you will find in their stores is a distinctly different look, feel and customer engagement from that of Lululemon. Where Lole is different is:
Storefront – Lole creates a consistent design language across locations, with larger locations featuring living walls of greenery rather than display windows.
Ambiance – A homey feel and natural materials pervade. Rather than traditional cash and wrap, staff complete transactions on ipads. Colourful product, lively displays and lifestyle graphics create an energy, suggestive of the Lole mantra “live out loud everyday”.
The Social Space – At the heart of the store is a communal table with stools and ipads – the idea is that customers can meet, socialize, surf the web or learn more about products.The adjacent collage wall of photos of people, scenes, words & objects is their version of a living facebook wall reflecting Lole’s use of social media to build their community.
Merchandising – Positioned as more than just yoga wear, product is organized by activity (running, swimwear, outerwear/ski-wear, yoga) as collections throughout.
Although later to market, Lole is quickly gaining ground by going after a wider target market with a notably different approach; differentiating itself in significant part, through their retail experience created by a combination of design, product merchandising & in-store customer engagement.
