Continuum and Amplifon to create retail experience

Since the 1983 Continuum is one of the world leading firm in the product innovation. Particularly, the name sanctions the new concept of design like an evolving connection among different disciplines that take part in the product development.

One of the key character in this firm is Valentina Ziliani, the strategy practice leader. Before working for Continuum, she did a 7 years experience in Lego Concept Lab. Now, she is in charge of discovering new connection among design, brand and business. According to her, those are to be thought as an unique value system that meets the needs of the people.

Another important employee is Fabio Di Liberto, the Product Innovation practice leader. Before arriving in Continuum, he worked for FutureBrand in New York where he used to define brand strategies even for multinational companies like Pepsi, GM, Gillette.

Recently, Continuum and they have been committed to Amplifon. In this case, they had to create a retail experience in order to unify the image of the firm all over the world and meet the customers'needs. That's wh they decided to immerge themselves in the reality of who enter a shop for deafs. For example, they made a survey among in different European countries. First of all, they have interviewed families, then observed the paths that people used to follow inside the stores.

Everything has been made in order to reduce the medical enviroment in favour of a more retail one. Not only does the shop have to answer to the requests of people, but also it has to offer a variety of products. That’s why the space has been designed as a storybook firstly, like an amount of perceptions and interactions. Then, the staff skills, interactive technologies, communications and the layout have been defined in a spacious, relaxing atmosphere. Finally, the furnish design has been created in order to facilitate the experience.

Everything has been projected in a tight collaboration between Continuum and Amplifon. For instance, Valentina and Fabio collaborated with Haluk Terzioglu, (chief Marketing executive) and with Daniela Pighini, (New Business Development) in Amplifon. In addition, they also considered the Team di Saatchi & Saatchi of London which was working with Amplifon to the new brand identity e campaign at the same time of the Continuum project.

Surprinsingly, Valentina and Fabio stated that the main contribution arrived from the social research. Particularly, they have verified the connection among the experience, the purchase and the aestethic of the store thanks to Milward Brown that tested this fact in Verona.

What has been mostly challenging for them was to find and communicate to the Amplifon executives the right innovation level: no technological excesses that might catch unprepared the elderly nor could be of difficult application on a graeat scale, catchy for the young folks.