Discounters trial innovative designs in Europe | Progresiv
As discounters look to expand their presence in new locations and target shoppers with new ranges we have seen several new store designs opened across Europe. 
Lidl continues to innovate, opening its smallest store in Munich’s city centre. Separately, Norma in Germany and Eurospin in Italy are opening their largest formats.
On 25 February, Lidl opened its smallest store in Germany, in Munich. The store is 503 sq m, less than half the traditional size and offers 80% of the standard range. The strategy for Lidl is to secure space near city centres and to attract new shoppers in areas where it currently underperforms.
Most categories have been reduced, but the store still carries the retailer’s entire fresh food offer. For the entire assortment to fit in, an additional shelf has been added to all shelves in ambient. No specific focus has been given to food-to-go as the store aims to provide local shoppers with a similar range to its standard stores. Four stores with the same format will open in 2019 in Munich.
In the meantime, Norma has announced it will build larger stores and increase its ranges to match Aldi and Lidl’s newest store formats. The new stores have an area of up to 1,200 sq m, which will enable Norma to add 160 SKUs to its existing range of 1,500 SKUs. Most of the new products will be in the chilled and fresh food categories, offering a better selection to shoppers. The discounter will continue its renovation program in 2019 following the upgrade of 100 stores in 2018. Norma currently operates 1,300 stores in Germany and generates a total turnover of 3.58 billion euros (FY2018)
The Italian discounter Eurospin has introduced its new superstore concept, in Legnago (Verona region). The store, with a sales area of 1,600sq m, offers a wider than usual selection of fresh food. Shoppers can get fresh meat cuts from the butcher. For the first time Eurospin has introduced a bakery counter, extending its range of services with a focus on fresh and quality.
Non-food special buys are still present, but posters have been added to inform shoppers they can also order items online. (retailanalysis.igd.com)
