The Challenge:

With over 350 UK stores and a further 200 stores across Europe, Sports Direct is the UK’s No.1 sports retailer and one of the largest in Europe.  Competition on the High Street is fierce, and leading retailers are always looking for new ways to differentiate their in-store experience and stand out from the competition. 

Customer experience is the next competitive battleground!

Part of the Sports Direct strategy will see continued investment in their next generation of stores while upgrading and improving existing ones.  This is to meet the demands of an ever more sophisticated consumer who is increasingly looking for not only good value, but an enhanced shopping experience. 

The Solution:

Sports Direct realised the ubiquity and importance of smartphone usage within their target audience.  They saw an opportunity to provide a service that would keep shoppers in their stores longer and attract them back.  Beginning with their new stores in Watford, Glasgow and Brussels ChargeBox worked in partnership with Sports Directs’ shopfitting partner to develop a unique solution within the store build and central to the customer journey.  Taking the latest ChargeBox Fast ‘lock and leave’ solution, and seamlessly integrating it into the store environment.  It looks great and provides a prominent call to action for shoppers.   Following the success of charging at the Watford, Glasgow and Brussels stores Sports Direct introduced several ‘stay & charge’ fast hubs at their flagship store on London’s Oxford Street.

Business Benefits:

Offering a free to use phone charging service means Sports Direct can delight thousands of customers a year positively impacting brand perception.  Since being introduced, it has been a resounding success with shoppers.  Usage across the three stores is up 266% year-on-year. 

Sports Direct, Group Project Manager said “We quickly started receiving positive feedback from customers at the stores.  They seem pleasantly surprised that we have introduced the service and tell our store associates that they’ll be using it again.  Our partnership with ChargeBox is a great example of an innovation that we’re introducing to change peoples perception of the Sports Direct in-store experience.”