By Patrick Avenell
SYDNEY: Miele Australia is in the midst of a rollout of new store layouts across Australia. The aim is to increase the in-store impact of the Miele brand ahead of the introduction of its new H 5000 appliance series and move a step closer to its ultimate sales target.
Miele, the first company to put a cutlery holder in a dishwasher, is focusing on its high end kitchen appliance fittings, establishing premium sales floor exhibitions. The project encompasses 60 separate installations, with a timeline of 12 months set for completion. By 2010 — just one year later — Miele anticipates that sales will exceed $450 million.
The push to rejuvenate the in-store displays is timed to coincide with the release of Miele’s new H 5000 series, which is already a winner at the iF Product Design Awards.
Prestige for the brand and distinction from the market are Miele’s marketing objectives in this round of fresh installations.
“Our ability to use various configurations gives us considerable flexibility in how we showcase our current and future ranges of appliances,” said Miele Australia general manager – marketing, Cliff Thompson.
“With the H 5000 series just around the corner, we will be able to present our products in a manner that certainly gives them a premium edge that is distinctively Miele.”
With various configurations of their new H 5000 series set to be rolled out this year, Miele is looking to cater the designs of their kitchen appliance fittings to the needs of the retail agency. By extension, Miele would hope that consumers see this in-store flexibility as a guide to Miele’s ability to meet their own domestic appliance needs. In essence, variety and flexibility of display models equates to greater servicing of their end users’ kitchen requirements.
Miele also announced that according to a recent Newspoll Online Omnibus survey, Miele was the leading European appliance brand in Australia with respect to desirability and awareness. This survey was conducted between 17 and 20 January 2008 and included 1,200 online interviews in bid to make it a representative national sample of the Australian population.
Some of the new Miele kitchen installations already completed can be inspected at Elite Appliances, Unley, South Australia; Winning Appliances, Brookvale in New South Wales; Elite Appliances in Abbotsford, Bayswater Bulk in Brighton and Clive Peeters in Thomastown, Victoria; as well as David Jones Queen Street store in Brisbane, Queensland.