The famous British bookstore chain has just opened its second outlet in Brussels and we couldn’t be happier.
After years of success on Boulevard Adolphe Max (strategically close to Rue Neuve), the retailer has opted for a slightly smaller unit on the very famous Avenue Louise. And given how the areas around Rue Neuve and Louise have evolved respectively, I couldn’t agree more with this decision.
Indeed, it is undeniable that the chain’s target audience currently visits the first store in more of a destination shopping mindset, barely visiting surrounding shops at the same time. This is easy to understand given the gap between Waterstone’s specialty offer and the more commodity-focused offerings of the other retailers in that area. On the other hand, the Louise location offers more similarly positioned stores, thus providing target customers the opportunity to combine shopping tasks or make a more comprehensive outing out of the visit. Strategically, this is thus a very smart move!
Though smaller than the first, this new location offers the same high-quality experience, including an incredible range of English-speaking books in a beautifully crafted environment. As always, books are organised in easy to navigate categories and are complemented with stationary, games and gifts.
The store is designed to allow the full range of shopping missions to be addressed: from those seeking a specific title, to those exploring options in a given genre, all the way to those who simply felt like walking in to find a treat.
Two things which always stand out for me at Waterstones are:
- Its island tables with themed selections – most notably each genre’s “classics” with beautifully designed matching covers.
- The kids’ area which is always so well curated and organised: classic titles sitting across a display unit with plush toys matching the books, themed board games next to books covering the same topics, trinkets, etc. Whether you’re a parent or not, it’s almost impossible NOT to find a purchase.
A nice surprise in this store is the integration of local references in the product range. The art section in particular brings to light various Belgian artists and architects, a nice way to localise the offer, bringing closer international and local shoppers.
I was also pleasantly surprised to find the staff in this store so kind, attentive and patient, something which I am sad to say I have not always experienced in the other location. Most likely due to the number of requests they receive there.
One thing which some, like me, might find missing is the food range. However, a kind employee informed me this was only temporary, while the store awaits the necessary authorizations. So, rest assured: though most likely not before the end of the year (so no minced pies) and most certainly not as wide in range as in Adolphe Max, the sweets and munchies will be arriving soon to complete the store experience.
As a critical retail design expert, I do see a few potential points of improvement to this new shop:
- The windows display which is very dark. Perhaps a simple matter of adding some downlights.
- The cashier location, directly next to the entrance. Though I appreciate the choice from an operational and security perspective, I do wonder if it will not create traffic issues with customers trying to walk in and running into queues of paying customers.
- The shelving signs on the ground floor are sadly somewhat hidden by the beautiful ladder rails, making it a bit hard to navigate the categories.
- The density of the product presentation. Waterstones stores are known for their very full shelves. However, they also usually balance these out with breaks in presentation to allow for visual breaths. This specific store only offers a few of these. And its size further renders it very dense visually. Again, I fully understand the reasons for this design decision, but I can’t help wondering if perhaps cutting a few references wouldn’t have helped offer a slightly more comfortable experience.
These remain very personal notes and from someone who admittedly spends perhaps too much time studying stores. Having visited this shop only a few weeks after its opening and seeing how busy it already was, I doubt my notes above will be holding many customers back. It’s undeniable the store is already a great success.
So much so that part of me even wonders if, in the end, it might not cannibalise the original location. Time will tell; I guess.
For now, let’s focus on celebrating this new opening. I have also been informed we should be looking forward to a very nice holiday-themed window display. So, get those Christmas lists out and make sure to visit! With Halloween now behind us, the countdown has started.
Thank you for reading. I sincerely hope you enjoyed this edition of the Brussels Retail Edit. Keep an eye out next month for more Brussels retail reflections. And until then don’t hesitate to connect on LinkedIn to share feedback or visit my website to find out about my various services.
