The Mystery Shop
(Christmas window display)
First Impressions:I always like the Oasis windows - their visual team must put a lot of time, effort and money into each season as they always deliver an exciting window for passers-by. They use window decals to their advantage that creates a "scene," and unlike the previous store investigation, I felt that these mannequins were styled exactly as you'd expect for this time of year with pretty occasion wear pieces to WOW at any Christmas party! They always make use of their easel stand, too, which draws customers in right at the entrance - this time with an in-your-face-fuchsia 70% off sale sign!
Staff Acknowledgement:
An impeccably-dressed sales assistant clocked Abby and I within seconds of entering the store, immediately picking up on our buying signals of trawling the occasion wear rails for the perfect festive frock. I picked up the blue Sequin Wrap Dress (I'm like a magpie, anything shiny and sparkly and I'm there!) and also picked up the red Mona Embellished Dress. They had played heavily on red in their window so I thought I would see what all their fuss was about! The sales assistant commented on how lovely the sequin dress was, that it had been popular since its arrival, and also that it came in sizes XS-L, rather than normal women's sizes. I thought that was really good of her to just mention that, it shows her knowledge of the stock through casual chatter and immediately I felt happy to browse the rest of the store.
There was a clear shopping layout as we walked through the store, and for this time of year it was very seasonal which I what I like to see as a customer who needs to shop quickly and efficiently during peak trade. Starting with occasion wear, it led on to winter knits and cold weather accessories with gifts. Then it went onto casualwear, other accessories and sale. Bizarrely, coats were situated at the back of the store, which I thought was rather odd considering the temperature outside is nearly freezing? Oasis was calmer than Topshop in atmospheric terms, but still pleasant to shop without hordes of other customers bashing their shopping bags into you!
Fitting Room Challenge:
Abby took on this challenge whilst I tried on said dresses. She picked up a red blouse, knowing it was on display in the window. Most stores dress their mannequins in a size 8 or 10 (her size) depending on the store, but unfortunately the blouse wasn't in either of those sizes on the shop floor. She approached the sales assistant who happily offered to locate the blouse for her, and took her to the till point to try and order it in. As it happened, the computer was actually able to tell the sales assistant that there was 3 x size 8s in their stock room, which she quickly grabbed for Abby. I liked that the sales assistant was eager to help Abby out with trying to find her desired size in another store or online, but the fact that it was actually just sitting in the stock room means Oasis loses points there.
Meanwhile, the Sequin dress was amazing on! It flattered my body shape, however could've been a little bit more fitted. When I came to show Abby how it looked, I asked another sales assistant who was manning the fitting room to grab me a smaller size. She returned quickly with it and that size was a lot better. I was a little disappointed that she didn't comment on it herself, or offer to get me a different size when Abby and I was discussing the fit of the dress. However when I left the store Abby mentioned that she saw that the staff member had her hands quite full with another customer who had three kids in tow. I think it's great that she was so willing to help her out, but it meant that my experience wasn't as good as it should've been. Had there been more staff on hand than two members on a busy Saturday afternoon this might've been a different story.
The Internet, The Store, and More:
Oasis has a great website and utilises social media very much to their advantage. They have combined the layout of each of these websites to have a continuous scheme, which ties in nicely together. They are more "human" than Topshop, by Tweeting occasionally about their days in Head Office, but still Instagramming pictures of press days and uploading Vine videos of fashion shoots. They re-Tweet customer buys and outfits, especially from their "Seek and Send" service - items which have sold out online are located in stores and posted to the customers personally.
(A customer receives an item via "Seek and Send," which has been re-Tweeted by Oasis)
If I could implement one thing from Oasis into my brand it would be to include some sort of ordering service in ALL stores, such as the computer to locate items for customers. Unfortunately, working in a concession means the only form of ordering I have is to either ring other stores - which takes time - or to use the host store ordering kiosks - which doesn't always have the same stock as us.
In conclusion, I had a really enjoyable experience in Oasis. I like their quirky, human nature on social media sites, and that they don't throw the stock down people's throats - they display them through the customers' eyes rather than linking them from website to website. I was impressed by the appearance and knowledge of the staff, but know that the second half of my experience was let down only because the store was under-staffed which is beyond their control.
Kirsten x
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