On a recent trip to the Gold Coast I came across the ‘Boardriders’ store at Coolangatta. The flagship store was a showcase for Quiksilver’s three main retail brands Quiksilver, Roxy, and DC Shoes. But this was no average clothes shop.

Not only can you deck yourself out with a new outfit, you can grab yourself a cuppa and sit down to an all day breakfast at the cafe, relax and browse the net in the internet lounge or get a haircut at the barber all without leaving the store. The cafe also had a stage that held events and shows after hours. You could spend hours without leaving.

The layout was also very clever. They had two entrances – one via the shopping centre and one on the street. The cafe and stage area faced the street so the shop could be shut but the cafe open for events. To top it all off the fit out and storefront was amazing with a surfboard carousel encased in glass, making a visual impact to the store’s street frontage.

Cafe-28-Cooly

Roxy

Storefront

Surfboards

You may not be a multinational brand or have the money to create a flagship store of this calibre but there are still lessons that can be learned from this concept store:
1. Create an experience for your customers to keep them in your store longer
2. Look for opportunities beyond your current product and service offering – this may mean partnering with other people with different skills
3. Take a closer look at your customers (target market) and the things that interest them and what they do in their spare time
4. Be unique – have a point a difference – a draw card
5. Location, location, location – is your store easily accessible by your target market