Innsbruck: urban lifestyle in the Alps, the Golden Roof, the Four Hills Tournament and historic flair. Anyone who has strolled through the old town has usually fallen straight in love with the charm of its old buildings and houses. The heart of the Tyrolean capital is Maria-Theresien-Straße. Along this pedestrian zone, boutiques and cafés line up side by side, framed by magnificent historic buildings. Striking without ever being jarring, the modern architecture of Kaufhaus Tyrol nestles between the other buildings in the middle of this beautiful street. Glass fronts, a bright, lofty design and elegant interiors make the building a real eye-catcher. That looks good! So good, in fact, that Kaufhaus Tyrol (KHT) was even named Europe’s Most Beautiful Shopping Centre in 2011. Amazing! Thanks to AROMEA scent marketing, a delicate, pleasant scent has recently been welcoming visitors to the shopping centre. We spoke to Flora Schneider, Marketing Manager at KHT, about the shopping centre’s success and about AROMEA in action.
Question: In 2011, Kaufhaus Tyrol was named the most beautiful and best shopping centre in Europe and received the ICSC European Conference Award. The shopping centre remains a popular destination to this day. How do you explain this success?
Schneider: Surrounded by many famous sights, Kaufhaus Tyrol is located in the immediate vicinity of the historic old town of the Tyrolean capital. For locals and tourists alike, Kaufhaus Tyrol offers an unforgettable shopping experience in the heart of Innsbruck. Together with the pedestrian zone in Herzog-Friedrichstraße, Maria-Theresien-Straße forms a car-free shopping mile of a very special kind. The anchor stores in Kaufhaus Tyrol perfectly complement the colourful, small-scale retailers of Innsbruck’s city centre. The creation of Kaufhaus Tyrol made the whole of Innsbruck’s old town more attractive and brought it new economic life. In summary: Kaufhaus Tyrol owes its lasting success to its exclusive address, its visionary architecture and its first-class shopping experience.
Question: What sets Kaufhaus Tyrol apart from other shopping centres?
Schneider: The shopping centre always has its finger on the pulse and offers its customers a unique shopping experience through new, high-quality shop concepts. Top international brands and trendy labels are found here and nowhere else in Tyrol. Kaufhaus Tyrol, a modern inner-city shopping centre, was built in a central location in Innsbruck’s old town to plans by international star architect David Chipperfield. The particular challenge for Chipperfield lay in developing an independent building with its own identity as a “replacement” for the former Kaufhaus Tyrol buildings, and in designing a façade of a length unusual for the location, which resulted from the demolition of the old Kaufhaus Tyrol buildings. As the federal and state heritage authorities confirm, Chipperfield succeeded brilliantly in mastering this difficult architectural task, poised between tradition and modernity.
Question: Several diffusers are in use at Kaufhaus Tyrol: the AROMEA Nano Pro, the AROMEA Nano Power and AROMEA Nano Flex scent the customers at various points in KHT. How did that decision come about?
Schneider: Here, Kaufhaus Tyrol received excellent advice from Sönke Block of AROMEA, which led to the decision to install different diffusers and so draw on AROMEA’s full range.
Question: Which fragrances did you choose for which areas, to enhance the shopping experience at Kaufhaus Tyrol?
Schneider: We chose light, fresh fragrances for the entrance area, something floral for the toilets, and a cheerful, inspiring fragrance to give the underground car park a friendly note.
Question: What is this targeted scent marketing meant to trigger in customers?
Schneider: Customers should be pleasantly surprised when they enter and, in the longer term, associate this scent with Kaufhaus Tyrol. Places that are burdened with negative smells, such as the toilets or the underground car park, are to be given a positive upgrade through scenting.
Thank you for talking to us!
Flora Schneider on scent marketing at Kaufhaus Tyrol
