The Virtual Showcase is a resource Outlet Premium São Paulo adopted to offer the customers the possibility for reserving a product even before they visit the mall. So, consumers gain convenience, and make sure the product they want is available at the time of purchase, while storeowners are able to promote certain items from their inventory. The service allows customers to know the products offered and their respective discounts, reserve what they are interested in, and pick up the products in person and on the date of their choice.
“This is a fun way to offer the convenience of online shopping while encouragement the customer to visit the malls”, states Alexandre Dias, CEO at General Shopping Brasil. “That is why it has been so well accepted by the customers”, he says. The Virtual Showcase, which started its activities as a pilot project in October 2016, got highly encouraging results according to Dias. “During these months of testing, we had over 80% of reservations that turned into sales”, the executive added. At the moment, 53 stores from Outlet Premium São Paulo have registered with Virtual Showcase, and among them we can find Aramis, Brooksfield, Under Armour, New Era, Victorinox, Shoulder, Lacoste, Puma, VR, Trousseau, Tip Top, TNG, Tommy Hilfiger, Side Walk, Spicy,Richards, Puket, Polishop, Melissa, Mmartan, Mob, M.Officer, Levi’s and Coach.
Storeowners have also shown their approval of the new tool. For José Roberto Negri, manager at Brooksfield, after the Virtual Showcase was implemented, the flow of people into the store has increased. “Several customers have already come to pick up the products they reserved on the Internet. Furthermore, many people have also come to the store looking for specific products that they have seen in the Virtual Showcase, but wanted to try them on, for instance”, the storeowner points out.
With the Virtual Showcase, the customer accesses the site: www.vitrineoutletpremium.com.br, registers and has access to all the products available. Once a product is selected, a reservation can be posted online, and a voucher is created - which is sent to the customer by e-mail. The payment is made at the store when the customer picks up the product. The reservation is valid for up to 7 days after the voucher is created, and the customer can schedule the pick-up day. The scheduled date can be edited later in case of unforeseen events. The storeowner keeps the items separate, so that there is no risk of product unavailability when the customer visits the store. The Virtual Showcase makes it possible for the storeowner to seize the moment and offer related items, and increase the average ticket of that sale.