Aug 12, 2009

Touching the five sensesBy Jenalia MorenoChron.com

The aromas of olive oil and herbs greet customers first as they step into the culinary gift shop in The Woodlands.

Then they might notice the glass vessels filled with lime green, amber and red shades of olive oils and vinegars, lining the backlit walls of this Oil & Vinegar store. World music like the Gipsy Kings’ Bem, Bem Maria and Il Divo’s Ave Maria play over the music system. And shoppers can taste more than 30 olive oils and vinegars on tap.

“We try to touch the five senses,” said Debbie Gokhan, chief operating officer and franchisee of the Chicago-area Oil & Vinegar.

Owners of the gourmet retailer aim to give customers an international shopping experience, transporting them to food shops in Italy or Spain with the sights, smells, sounds and, most importantly, flavors they provide.

Offering a memorable and entertaining food experience is just one way retailers are trying to lure shoppers to spend at a time when sales continue to fall, dropping another 3.8 percent in June compared to last year, according to the National Retail Federation.

“Customers are becoming more and more fickle about what they are spending their money on,” said Matt Stermer, chief executive officer of Oil & Vinegar’s U.S. operation and a Seattle franchisee. “Their money is important, and every dollar spent needs to be spent wisely. Consumers can’t afford to make the wrong choice. We really focus on delivering an experience to the individual.”

Stermer and Gokhan were each captivated by the experience of the Oil & Vinegar stores when they lived in the Netherlands, the headquarters for the company that now has five U.S. stores and will expand to two other markets by the fall. The Woodlands location is the only Oil & Vinegar outlet in Texas.

Some retailers are famous for turning their stores into destinations, spritzing smells and beautifying locations, said Philip Nulman, chief executive officer of a marketing strategies company, the Nulman Group in New Jersey.

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