When national hearing clinic Connect Hearing wanted to streamline their branding, expand their national presence and move into the retail space they teamed up with Brand Dimensions to make the transition.
Brand Dimensions worked with Connect Hearing to strategically shift from a traditional clinic environment to a lively retail atmosphere.
This involved developing a corporate design guideline, to Australian standards, for Connect Hearing’s foray into retail which detailed their branding and examples of what a typical store design and fit out would look like.
Brand Dimensions Project Manager Aimee Dickson said Connect Hearing’s retail spaces had to exude warmth and offer a welcoming environment that encourages customers to browse the products.
“Brand Dimensions are a great team, we work really well together and it’s been a great journey so far. I look forward to continuing the relationship with them.”
“We also had to fulfil various technical requirements – the stores had to incorporate the functions of a clinic where people can have their ears tested and have the hearing aids fitted by clinicians,” she said.
Ms Dickson said the Connect Hearing stores had to be designed in a modular way so that they could be rolled out to different sized retail spaces, ranging from 50 square metres to 150 square metres. Most importantly, the design needed to adapt to existing retail spaces.
There were also stringent sound absorption requirements that had to be factored into the designs, to allow the stores to conduct hearing tests.
Brand Dimensions incorporated stylish store designs with graphic panels that have sound absorption material inside the frames to meet the requirements of a visually appealing yet functional retail space.
“Our strategy has not only allowed Connect Hearing to roll out attractive and practical retail stores, it has also lifted their profile to being a more visible retail brand,” Ms Dickson said.
Connect Hearing Australia’s Property Manager Lynn Stevens said the corporate design guideline document created in conjunction with Brand Dimensions has allowed the hearing centre to rapidly expand their presence across the country.
“The document sets out the main elements that will be incorporated in any Connect Hearing store. It has been extremely useful for us because it has helped us to present ourselves professionally to retail centres and it has helped speed up any new centre openings because all the ground work has been done,” she said.
“We’re now very efficient at getting our stores rolled out, from initial inspection to fit out and store openings.”
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