(Retail magazine 2021)
- "When I worked in retail myself, I didn't appreciate advice from suited consultants who had never worked in the industry themselves. It's the practical everyday life that counts," says Thomas Johannessen, CEO, founder and partner of RetailX, to Retailmagasinet.
Customers include Telenorbutikken, Mester Grønn, Apotek 1, Interoptik and Urmaker Bjerke.
- "Adapting to our customers' needs is our DNA. We are always on the service side, and we will also internally create the very best customer experiences," says the leader of the RetailX team, Thomas.
Ongoing feedback from real customers
- Part of our mandate is to create enthusiasm among both store managers and employees. It starts with presenting customer feedback and areas for improvement in an inspiring and understandable way. Far too few companies are focusing on this today," says Thomas Johannesen of RetailX.
- "We rely on customer feedback. Real feedback from real customers is easier for a store employee to understand. The insight gained is based on far more feedback than mystery shopping," says Johannessen. "It doesn't help to threaten store employees to become better through measurements and control. They must want to develop and improve themselves.
RetailX believes in enthusiasm and continuous feedback on what you can improve.
- We humans often think we are better than we really are. To get better, we need feedback. Shouting doesn't make anyone better. We need to highlight good performance, share tips and advice," says Johannessen.
This fall, RetailX launched Excite, a new solution for the shopping center industry. The solution has been developed together with pilot customers and was launched at the Shopping Center Conference where it received a lot of attention. Since the conference participants are mainly from the Norwegian shopping center industry, RetailX met its core audience at Gardermoen.
- "We will be writing many contracts with shopping centers in the coming months," says Johannessen happily. The short-term goal is to get 100 shopping centers on board.
Simplified information flow
Excite is available both as an app and desktop. RetailX says that they have invested a considerable amount of time and money in the solution. Sources of data collection are social media, QR codes, tenants, customer clubs and tablets. The flow of information in a shopping center has typically taken place via email, Workplace, intranet and file sharing. With Excite, the flow will be simplified.
- "All employees at the shopping center must have access, and everyone must be able to see the feedback," says Johannessen. "The concept is a standardized solution that will be continuously developed. Excite will be an arena for sharing tips and experiences through an intranet module with a forum and file sharing.
- "The fact that it is the same for all centers provides a good basis for comparison between centers. What's also unique about the solution is that all shopping centers can gain insight into the customer satisfaction of the respective centers - and thus better understand their own performance and areas for improvement," says Johannessen.
Going abroad
Eventually, RetailX also envisions launching Excite outside Norway.
- "We will either raise new capital or expand abroad in partnership with other players," says Stian Kristoffersen, partner and IT manager.
Text: Nils Vanebo, Retailmagasinet nr. 7-2021
