steve

ok my personal taste would rather see carpets and leather armchairs, and I hope they have good cleaners because all that gleaming white plastic on the displays is going to get very dirty. But overall I actually felt for the first time ever with mobile shops that I had walked in to a fashion store. They have made it a really enjoyable experience.

The only thing that still lets it down is that it took 15 minutes for the guy to register a PAYG SIM on his computer. 15 mins – ridiculous!!

But the staff were very much cooler and very helpful and knowledgeable than any I’ve ever met before. They walk round the [very] large store with you, rather than stand behind a counter staring down at you like you’ve just trodden in something.

But the weirdest bit for me…..it’s actually a Carphone Warehouse store!!!!!! I swore I would never shop in one again!! But this is totally different! There are discreet signs saying how it is managed and operated by CPW; and the guy who served me confirmed they all work for CPW. But wow, what a difference. CPW and Sony Ericcson have done a good joint venture here. They seem to have taken the best CPW staff and brought them in here. The entire experience is different; it’s all about buying a cool gadget; the “network/tariff” bit isn’t left to last, but it isn’t exactly the priority either. I like this and I imagine a lot of average ‘people in the street’ will too.

So hats off to CPW and SE for this. Apparently CPW have done a similar thing with Nokia down in Mayfair somewhere (can anyone confirm??)…..now maybe that one has the carpets and leather armchairs…..

steve

But is the execution of this store as good as it looks? If the staff are as thick as pig muck, the handset not real (hard to tell in these photos), the lenghts of cord attaching the handsets to the counter too short and then the actual purchasing process still cumbersome and time consuming, then you can do all you like to the fancy design but the store will still be in the last century.

But judging by the photos it is very promising indeed. I tell you what, I will do high st ken in next few days for my mums new handset and try out the store in anger…report to follow…..

steve

PS, If (???) the store actually sells music tracks (does it???) with immediate download to my handset (having first listened to a sample via the headsets) then this store has just become the music store of the future as well, never mind selling handsets!!!!!