Holland & Barrett lifts lid on new store format

Holland & Barrett this week previewed its new omnichannel experiences store concept.

Its store in Chelmsford, Essex was designed by Barrows Global and features Click & Collect lockers for customers to collect online orders and digital screens throughout delivering content.

Also on offer are QR and NFC codes for shoppers to get access to information, reviews and recipes direct to their mobiles. In-store tablets, meanwhile, are available to info seeking shoppers.

Chelmsford is Holland & Barrett’s first store to introduce a ‘private consultant room’, where customers can either talk to a nutritionist in-person or via video conferencing.

“The great thing is it has been designed with strong sustainable credentials and they focused on designing out waste throughout the process. They also tried to democratise ‘zero-waste’ shopping adding a refill station in the food station,” retail consultant Steve Lister, who attended a launch event, said in a LinkedIn post.

“I think this is a modern, fresh retail concept which blends physical and online perfectly.”

Nick Ridley, Head of Formats at Holland & Barrett, commented: “Chelmsford has been built around our customers using extensive insight, data and research. We have created the first fully connected customer experience that showcases the very best of our physical and digital capabilities.”

“This has helped us create a significantly enhanced brand experience, making it even easier for our customers to access all of their health and wellness needs however they choose.”