Ekornes Rolls Out New Retail Merchandising Program

August 10, 2020  by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Industry   

“The new Stressless Comfort Zone is a beautiful combination of Scandinavian design and look with a central Design Center where the sales associate has all the tools to sell Stressless in one place,” says Peter Bjerregaard, president of Ekornes, Inc.

The new program features completely modular and movable light boxes with various graphic imagery, signage and a central Design Center where sales associates have all Stressless coverings, wood options and product details at their fingertips. There is also a large TV-mounted on the Design Center for Stressless marketing videos to capture the consumer’s attention.

“We are very excited to get some of the new zones in stores this year,” says Beverly Kastel, marketing director. “The new Zone elements are beautiful yet functional and since it’s a modular system it can accommodate all different sizes and types of stores. The graphics are a combination of technical highlights and inspirational imagery. The entire selling area is anchored by a very large fjord scene, highlighting our Norwegian heritage.”

The program is available now to retailers in 3-4 sizes based on the amount of floor samples that the store carries. Prices start around $3500 for the smallest configuration and Ekornes shares half of the costs with the retailers.

“We are already seeing some really good sales results from the new Stressless Zone,” says Bjerregaard. “Stores who have been able to implement the new Comfort Zone amidst the Covid-19 pandemic have really done well. Our goal is to give our retail partners the best possible Stressless presentation and make it easy to sell our product, especially now.”

Townhouse Galleries in Huntsville, Ala. recently installed the new display in July. To date, the retailer has seen a solid increase in sales year over year when all other marketing activities remained the same as previous year.

Store managers Doug Owens and Rod Darnell feel the new Stressless environment enforces the sales presentation and gives the sales associate great pride in selling Stressless product.

“The new Stressless Comfort Zone has really enhanced our store and Stressless selling area,” says Owens. “The sales associates love it so much they have been posting about it on social media. We also recently did a very successful store grand re-opening to show off the new Stressless environment.”

Dan Thomas, Townhouse Galleries owner says, “This zone has totally changed our store and our sales have had a huge increase. I can’t wait to get the new zone in our other store.”  

Rapport International Furniture in Los Angeles also recently installed the new Stressless Zone and business is up 22.54% over last year.

"The New Stressless Comfort Zone has re-energized our sales staff which is leading to increased sales productivity,” says Admir Siddiqi, general manager. “We kept a simple product format with best-selling families by size and utilizing all base options Stressless offers.  The zone is in the center of our store, which gets maximum attention and we look forward to fantastic results.”