New Phygital Store in Poland for Decathlon

Located in the Vis a Vis retail park in the Wilanow district of Warsaw, many are calling the new Decathlon venture a ‘phygital’ store thanks to its integration of digital systems. As well as all the traditional aspects you might expect from a Decathlon store, this Warsaw location has interactive portals where customers can scan product ranges and read information (also with access to online products!).

As the customer traverses through the store, these devices are strategically located and should contain relevant content depending on the department in which they stand. Rather than looking for an employee or wasting time searching, customers can learn of the full product range before even having options to purchase instantly and have the order delivered to a home address.

According to Decathlon, this is the first ‘store of the future’ and they plan to introduce more. As well as the devices, the fitting rooms also boast RFID virtual mirror systems.

According to Decathlon Polska’s e-commerce and omnichannel director, Wojciech Zieba, Decathlon ‘believe that the blurring of the boundaries between offline and online – where customers can buy the product on site but also familiarise themselves with the full product range, read customer reviews and place an order for home delivery by using interactive kiosks and specially designed screens – is of key importance for effective shopping. Our sports stores of the future are not only places filled with such technology, they are places where you can familiarise yourself with the goods easily and make purchases.”

In order to bring this technology to the customers, Decathlon has enlisted the help of Nanovo; not only did they design the communication systems, they helped with implementation. Both companies will be hoping for success, so even more ‘phygital’ stores can open elsewhere.