Tui Travel is trialling displays that could spell the end of windows cluttered with handwritten last-minute deal cards.
The retailer wants to attract a broader range of customers and conceded that shop windows full of deals looked “desperate”.
Following a successful three-month trial in Luton stores, cards are being replaced with “aspirational” images.
Three First Choice stores will have cardboard images of holiday-makers, destinations or cruises, while 20 Thomson shops will have large images in acrylic frames.
The move is part of a wider strategy to make shops more customer-friendly.
Tui senior marketing manager Sarah Elston said: “The windows don’t shout out what the brand stands for. Often customers don’t believe the prices, or they are not looking for a bucket and spade holiday.
“We want to attract people who wouldn’t normally use an agent. Sometimes there are so many deals in the window it can risk looking desperate.”
Elston admitted the move was a “big change”, adding: “We have had great feedback from the Luton shops and they have seen a week-on-week sales increase since the windows changed.”
The move is expected to free up agents’ time to spend with customers rather than researching deals and writing window cards.
Tui in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, is trialling two plasma TVs featuring scrolling offers. Elston said: “It looks amazing: we see this as the future of window displays.”
Click here to view original article by Travel Weekly, Thursday 2nd September, 2010
