After having renovated the soccer section at Sport Schwab in Ellwangen/Germany we now worked on the ski and textile section. The sports retailer has no more than 115 square metres available to present its entire ski range. This area not only accommodates skis, boards and boots, but also the workshop and the storeroom. In the summer, the latest trainers by the leading brands will be displayed here, which means that there is no room for the winter products. The solution was an intelligent wall rack: during the summer months, black sliding units hide the ski boots, and the light footwear will be presented on shelves that are attached to the sliding units. This way, the tiny space can be used twice!
The football section features a grey floor, white lines and a green lawn, the same themes that are now also used for the textile section. The floor plan of the 285-square-metre area was completely redesigned, the centre was given a clear structure, the area is more clearly arranged and the routes are more convenient. Changing rooms and merchandising fixtures were arranged to form straight blocks and dotted around the room. The walls can thus all be used as shelf space. The casual rearrangement means that Schwab now has room for almost fifteen percent more products.
Measurable results were achieved within only a few weeks of the shop opening. In the textile section, only about twenty percent of customers need help, and most of them do well on their own. This was very different before the conversion, when the majority of sales went through the sales assistants. Business is also doing better in the ski and hiking section, where products have been exchanged three to four times since the end of April. The conversion of the football section in 2014 has already brought about an increase in sales of more than 25 percent.
