650,000
ITEMS
PER
DAY
TREKPLEISTER
ICI PARIS XL
kruidvat
GOiNG DUtCH: tHe LOweR COUNtRieS
AND HiGHeR HwL ASPiRAtiONS
>>
he beauty of the Dutch
countryside is legendary. The
beauty of their people is even
more so. The undisputed tallest
people in the world,
Sphere
knows they get some help fromHWL’s beauty
retail chains.
Two health and beauty companies and a
luxury perfume and cosmetic chain comprise
A SWatson’s High Street presence in Lower
Countries. While the business of beauty may
be old, staying competitive means staying on
top of the most modern business practices.
The Dutch have a demanding eye for aesthetics
and enjoy a highly competitive market. In the
Netherlands, that means the most modern use
of distribution, social media and CSR.
movingthe goods
The businesses are extensive, supported by
the largest, most modern and most efficient
health and beauty distribution centre in
the Benelux (Belgium, Netherlands and
Luxembourg). The distribution centre is over
68,000 square metres and located in Heteren
in the Netherlands. It distributes an average of
650,000 items
every day
for more than 1,150
retail stores.
The distribution centre is highly mechanical and
automated. Products are picked, transferred
and packaged swiftly. The advanced semi-
automatic systems will deal withmedium-sized
and small products separately; larger products
are handledmanually. The centre is also quite
unique in a way that it adopts a dynamic system
which allows a greater storage density than a
normal distribution centre. On top of having
separate picking systems to enhance efficiency,
there are systems to support backwards
integration. For example, the systems will
automatically pre-order replacement stock
when an item is running low.
But these systems do not just deal with products
in the real world. Modern shopping sees
consumers gathering information, evaluating
options and executing sales in the online
and physical world. To get to the top, HWL’s
retail units have needed to become masters
of the virtual world, grasping every possible
opportunity online.
ConneCtingonline
Online marketing is crucial to attract and create
loyal customers. Social media is a key element
of online marketing. In the Netherlands, around
half of the population has Facebook accounts
– over 7.6 million users. Kruidvat and ICI PARIS
XL have both successfully developed their
social media channels to retain their existing
customers and promote themselves.
A native Dutch company founded in 1975,
Kruidvat expanded its businesses to Belgium
creating an empire of over 1,000 stores. It was
acquired by A SWatson Group in 2002 and is
the biggest drug store offering health and beauty
products in the Netherlands. Its long-standing
success hasn’t stopped it from innovating to
master the world of social media marketing.
The Kruidvat Facebook fan page’s membership
exceeds 125,000 in its home country. These
fans provide tips to the company, seek exclusive
offers and raise queries online. Kruidvat staff
update its Facebook pages daily and offer timely
response and proactive solutions to customers.
The company makes good use of blogs, forum
conversations and other social media channels
like Twitter. It once launched a “1 + 1 Free
Makeup” promotion on its Twitter site and
generated 2,000 tweets a day. While the firm
has been recognised within the Group (winning
the 2013 ASWMarketing & PR Awards), the real
benefits have come in knowing the market and
creating real, personal relationships with clients.
Rather than a one way sales relationship, the
whole of Kruidvat is engaged with its customer
base – its neighbours and countrymen – in a
meaningful and ongoing dialogue.
Loyalty is a key element of growing a
consumer business. Its loyalty card has been
a smash success to enable targeted deals
since its introduction inMarch 2011, with
market penetration at 70 per cent of Dutch
households. In November, Kruidvat reached
the milestone of more than 3 million registered
loyalty card members.
ICI PARIS XL was founded in the 1960s in
Belgium and operates over 260 stores in the
Benelux and Germany. The Dutch have taken
to it, selecting it as the Best Perfumery Chain in
their country for 10 consecutive years. This year
ICI PARIS XL was chosen as the most favoured
retail chain in the Netherlands. It has also had to
get social media savvy to stay on top.
It has partnered with global beauty brand
Guerlain and launched a Facebook campaign
to gain more exposure. Participants in the
campaign had to upload photos of themselves
and take part in voting for a chance to win a trip
to Paris. The campaign was a big success and
engaged over 10,000 fans.
we Care for families
Baby care is a tough market where the birth rate
is low: only 11 babies born per 1,000 population.
Kruidvat is tackling the challenge with extra
efforts to target parents. The company runs the
Nine Months Fair in Amsterdam every year as
an event to connect with new parents. It targets
parents-to-be and offers inspiration on baby and
child care. Successful in-house brands promote
confidence, including Kruidvat’s own brand
of diapers, selected as the best diaper in the
market by Dutch TV critics showVara Kassa.
Kruidvat baby food has also been rated as ‘Best
Buy’ from the Consumers Organisation.
T
dutch shopping style
retail
SpHere
#34
2013
16
