Kohl's Launches Pilot Of Caribou Coffee Cafes To Entice Shoppers
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
Effort hope to get shoppers to linger in-store.
Two upscale Caribou Coffee cafes are now open at Kohl’s stores in the Milwaukee area. Kohl’s has launched the pilot as part of an initiative to get customers to linger in-store. The cafes offer espresso drinks and other fare.
The move is a response to sluggish turnaround efforts by the retailer in order to drive traffic and revitalize sales.
Kohl’s is not the first retailer to turn to food offerings to attract and keep customers. Uniqlo in New York features Starbucks outlets, Target is revamping its food concessions to be more cafe-like, and Ikea is famous for its iconic Swedish meatballs.
The new cafes are now open in the Delafield and Menomonee Falls shores. Jon Grosso, executive vice president and director of stores for Kohl’s, explained “You want the customer to dwell more. You want them to spend time in the building.” That will give them more opportunity to spend money.
Kohl’s chief merchandising and customer officer Michelle Gass came from Starbucks, making the café experiment an intelligent choice for the retailer. Grosso explained, “We want to test and learn and see what we can do in 2016….And then, wherever we expand it, if and when we do, we want to apply those lessons.”
Kohl’s recently embarked upon what it calls the “Greatness Agenda,” which included a number of new initiatives designed to increase sales by approximately $2 billion by 2017, under the tutelage of Gass.
One important distinction that sets the new Kohl’s cafes apart from those of its competitors is that they have virtually no seating. The idea is that customers can “sip while they shop.”
“Kohl’s is committed to providing our customers with an easy, convenient shopping experience in a way that is personalized and engaging – no matter how each customer prefers to shop,” said Kevin Mansell, Kohl’s chairman, chief executive officer and president. “Our digital teams are continually testing new ideas and capabilities to create a world-class omnichannel experience that is seamless across devices. With each evolution, we aim to elevate our offerings for an easy, inspiring shopping experience.”