This thenorthwestern.com article takes a look at Kimberly-Clark's Innovation Design Studio in Greenville: a state-of-the-art center equipped with advanced virtual reality technology that allows the consumer products firm to test merchandising layouts and chart a shopper's product choices all without the time and expense of constructing physical mockups or conducting ponderous in-store surveys. From the article: "Kimberly-Clark Corp. is working virtual miracles for its clients and partners these days.
Welcome to its Innovation Design Studio in Greenville. It's a state-of-the-art center equipped with advanced virtual reality technology that allows the consumer products firm to test merchandising layouts and chart a shopper's product choices all without the time and expense of constructing physical mockups or conducting ponderous in-store surveys.
In one spot, a high-tech kiosk simulates a person's shopping experience. By providing sophisticated eye-tracking technology, K-C can generate scientifically comparable data on a customer's product choices rather than testimonials alone.
"In virtual reality, you can actually figure out with some precision what's working." said Stuart Taylor, vice president of insights North Atlantic Consumer Products. "It's this idea of engagement: what actually is it that's capturing somebody's attention. Even with the best of methods, you're still trying to infer through observation what people are doing."
Concept to reality
The company said the center, which opened May 1, represents a significant investment but declined to reveal the amount.
The center occupies surroundings befitting innovation.
Taylor said marketing to consumers is more complex today.
"There's so much more fragmentation," he said.
Twenty years ago, for example, if a consumer products company wanted to reach 80 percent of the U.S. population, all it would have to do is run spots on network television, Taylor said.
"Today the average consumer is bombarded by 3,000 different media messages per day, so it's a much different world," he said. "Even when a consumer goes into the store, they're hit with messages from TVs mounted in the ceiling, product packaging and different isle markers advertising specials. We needed a way to cut through that and find a way to effectively reach consumers."
K-C acquired the property from Hoffman LLC, planning, architect and construction management firm on the leading edge of the environmentally conscious "green" building revolution. Hoffman eventually moved its headquarters to downtown Appleton last Thanksgiving.
K-C said it would eventually move about 100 employees into the studio along County CB across from Outagamie County Regional Airport.
Mooring said the center takes shopper surveys a steps further, because too often consumers say they do one thing when, in fact, they do something else sizing up products on the shelf.
K-C chose the Fox Cities for the studio rather than urban centers in Texas or Georgia where it has a significant presence.
The Fox Cities has long been the company's research and development hub.
"You have your core here. It just made sense," said Joey Mooring, a company spokes-man. "There was a pool of talent in the area we could leverage."
How it works
The precision of the Innovation Design Center is possible because of integrated retina-tracking equipment. Test shoppers eye up shelf merchandise and as they do so high tech imaging software records both what they're focusing on and length of time they do so down to fractions of a second. Information can be pooled, with the readouts yielding a visual map of greatest concentration.
Shopping carts can be guided down imaginary store aisles, and consumers can pull products from the shelf to study label information.
K-C recently hosted a group of strategic leaders from Target Corp. to introduce some innovative touches in a built-out section authentic to the last detail, right down to the four coats of wax and gleaming vinyl floor that's a hallmark of the big chain store, said Mary Logghe, K-C's event designer and planner.
But it was no mere mirror image of a Target store, either. Strategic planners for the big retailer know what they have and aren't looking for a clone. Rather, K-C sprinkled some innovative touches into the mix, said Mooring.
Using an interactive model, K-C researchers can modify real store settings in a virtual setting, affording strategic store planners an immediate glimpse how changes in colors, graphics and layouts affect marketability.
The payoff
Safeway, the giant California-based supermarket chain and one of K-C's leading client/partners, is a prime example how the technically advanced approach helped transform a merchandising strategy. K-C settled with Safeway on an activity-based theme, reconfiguring baby products scattered in eight different areas of the sales floor into one area.
The concept was a hit with busy mothers.
"Mom wants to see all those products merchandised in a central area," said Mark Rhodes, virtual reality/insights technical leader.
Safeway applied the insights into three test stores. Over an eight-week period, the test stores experienced increased category sales for all disposable diapers, disposable training pants, baby wipes and toiletries.
Rhodes said the studio was no less than 18 months in the making. And in a real sense it's not finished and won't be.
One section of the studio possesses six different projectors, changeable lighting, and even difference scents, like the aroma of baking bread, the fragrance of flowers and smell of baby powder to add to the sensual appeal for discussion groups of varying sizes.
For now the Greenville site is the only Innovation Design Center operated by K-C, Taylor said.
"Right now we're looking at more constructive ways we can bring the center to our strategic partners," he said. "