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Oct 05, 2023

Iconic scores highly in customer survey

GERMANY: Viessmann’s futuristic semi-vertical freezer Iconic is said to be

GERMANY: Viessmann's futuristic semi-vertical freezer Iconic is said to be responsible for an 8% increase in sales following installation at a supermarket in Hamburg.

Iconic, a gondola-shaped semi-vertical freezer cabinet introduced by Viessmann in 2014, was installed at the Edeka Schlemmer Markt Struve supermarket in Hamburg, Germany. Immediately following installation, a closely monitored trial carried out in November and December 2015 reported a rise in popularity in the ice-cream and frozen pastry products selected for display. This appeal was also said to have been backed up by customer surveys.

A totally new design, the Iconic combines a gondola shape with customer-friendly height of 1.5m and inclined doors. These features are said to provide excellent product visibility and optimal presentation of frozen food products at the point of sale, while maximising capacity.

Ergonomically, Iconic is a described as a godsend for shoppers who no longer need to bend down into a freezer island, instead accessing their pizzas and chips etc, easily, from an upright position.

The rapid sales growth in the frozen food area exceeded the supermarket's expectations. Assistant shop manager Sergej Slyznak said: "The new Iconic has strong potential. All in all, the new Iconic freezer has led to two to three digit increases in monthly sales for all four of the products that were selected for the study.

"We had plenty of positive feedback on Iconic from colleagues and customers right from the start. Iconic creates more space, order and overview and attracts customers with its modern, gondola-style design," said Slyznak.

Alongside the product trial and sales analysis, a Hamburg marketing agency, PickMeUp Communications, conducted a survey of 200 shoppers as well as carrying out qualitative interviews with employees at the Hamburg supermarket. The study asked respondents how they perceived the frozen food section before and after the introduction of Viessmann Iconic.

Iconic performed strongly. A total of 62% of respondents are said to have preferred the Iconic over other store's existing freezers, with 78% naming the ability to see across the freezer section as the biggest advantage of the Viessmann unit.

Apart from the superior presentation of frozen food, supermarket staff cited greater capacity utilisation, easy handling and optimised ergonomics as key benefits.

"With Iconic we save more space, so that we can present more products compared to our former freezer," explained Hans Borchert, the construction manager responsible for the frozen food cabinets.