Albert Heijn XL.
A supermarket for your bucket list
Albert Heijn, a part of Ahold Delhaize, was founded in 1887 and therefore the oldest existing supermarket chain in the Netherlands. With over 1.100 branches in different formats in the Netherlands and Belgium they are the biggest. There are 36 branches of the XL-format with an average surface of 3.000 m2 and 30.000 products.
Client
Albert Heijn
Category
Retail
Scale
3800 m2
Location
Eindhoven
Assignment
Develop and design a new XL-format where you can feel, smell, see and taste fresh and just really good food. Translate the new concept to a pilot store in Eindhoven. Interior and exterior.
Result
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A contemporary fresh market instead of a nostalgic food market, fitting Albert Heijn's DNA.
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The first of a new generation of Albert Heijn XL stores in which we proof together with Albert Heijn to be the best.
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High turnover increase.
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Very good customer reviews.
New fresh departments
We developed a new layout with clear sight lines to the different fresh departments located on a diagonal axis. We added new fresh departments including ‘Sap & Sla’ and ‘Keuken’. In order to share the story of breadmaking we created an open bakery with transparent provers. To emphasize Albert Heijn’s love for food we designed highlights in the gondola’s for product groups such as specialty beer, coffee & tea and super foods.
A new omnichannel place of bol.com has been added to change the boundaries between online and offline forever.
Instore Communication
For the instore communication we worked with Blink, Stockholm. According to the idea of ‘his masters voice’ we developed a new graphic layer and tone or voice. The exterior is done by the architects of Pauwert Architectuur, under our supervision.
Team
Visit this place?
This Albert Heijn XL is listed 11th out of the 25 international supermarkets you must see before you die (source: the Canadian Grocer). The Canadian Grocer praised it for its combination of visual merchandising and store design: ‘The effect is traditional and modern at the same time'. Or, as Kantar Retail analyst Bryan Roberts notes, ‘nearly flawless’.
