Rebecca By field enters a retail space 'like no other' in Sony World
Modern Electronics Company Limited - a subsidiary of Al Faisaliah Group Holding Co. Ltd. - is the sole distributor of Sony products in Saudi Arabia.
Sony World is the direct retail division of MECL which has the entire range of Sony products through its Sony World Retail Stores.
The main focus of Sony World, of which there are 27 in the Kingdom, is to create an experience with interactive display, well trained staff, financing options and free delivery and installation.
GMR visited the outlet in Riyadh's Al Mamlaka to check out if the brand promise lived up to expectations.
Al Mamlaka is visible from all over the Riyadh and is the tallest and most iconic building in the city. The Sony World store is just as easy to locate in the centre of the ground floor.
Signage is in large type spelling out the name Sony World above the door, although this would benefit from a little illumination to make it even clearer. The word Sony is in both Arabic and English on each side of the glass doors, which open up directly into the 180 square metre store.
I first visited the store with my husband not long after it opened. He found it virtually impossible to pass by without stepping in - much like a kid in a candy store - with the promise of high tech gadgetry just too great to ignore.
As you follow the cream and green tiles into the store, you are confronted by a wall of state-of-the-art Bravia LCD flat screen TVs to the left, a long row of digital imaging devices to the right, and in the centre, a circular table with Sony's full range of VAIO laptops. No wonder the men have such trouble passing by.
Each TV projects an image of such startling clarity that one can't help but be surprised.
The digital sections stocks a range of point and click digital cameras, video cameras and the brand new Sony SLR, based on the Minolta range that Sony has just launched.
Further along on the left hand wall is a huge range of accessories for all Sony's products. The gaming section is just opposite but is not obviously interactive.
The PSP is hidden behind a dome of perspex and the PS3, Sony's latest offering to the gaming market, stands idly on the shelf - no monitor, no controls and certainly no kids madly playing the latest games.
This is a real let down, as this is the perfect opportunity to draw disposable-income families into the store. But the staff assured me that children, and adults alike, were free to try them out.
Industry pundits believe that the biggest opportunity for Sony is to move from an experience store to a 'try-out store' - a trend identified by trendwatching.com.
Apple's retail stores have elaborate try-out facilities, which have helped make record sales in the USA. Towards the back of the store, there are comfy leather sofas strategically placed in front of full sized Bravia TVs and a small corner set up with the total home theatre system.
Where Sony World really falls down is attention to detail.
Little things like a crack in the skirting board or small tears in the banner ads have been left unfixed. Even the mats and carpets are stained.
Yet the knowledgeable staff goes some way to compensate. I wandered around, pointing out obscure items that I thought would trip them up but they cheerfully rattled off price after price.
One of the customers, told me he loves the way that all Sony products interface together.
"I'm really impressed that I can interface my mobile with the contacts list on my laptop," he said. He was also very happy with the staff's knowledge. 'I wouldn't buy Sony products anywhere else. Sony World has everything Sony and there is no need to be confused by yet another brand."
The store was quite busy and I noticed a number of women in the store and each one had the full attention of a sales assistant. Nobody was left waiting for long.
Despite the few small complaints about the dcor, there was nothing to fault Sony regarding its products or service.
Overall, this Sony World store lived up to the brand promise to be 'like no other'.
© Gulf Marketing Review 2007
