Growth through Experiences

Growth through Experiences
– Ten case studies of Danish businesses in the experience economy

Ten stories about how some Danish businesses use experiences and creative skills to differentiate themselves in the market and become more competitive in the national and global economies.

ENTERPRISES:

VIPP
NORDISK SKOLETAVLE FABRIK ESRUM ABBEY
KVADRAT
HJULMAND & KAPTAIN
THE ROYAL DANISH THEATRE SAMSUNG DENMARK
THE MEYER GROUP
JYSKE BANK
ANTHON BERG

The experience economy is now on the agenda of consumers, businesses and politicians. On the one hand, the experience economy is selling “pure” experiences, such as a ride on a carousel in an amusement park, going to a Madonna concert, watching Speedway races, or visiting the National Art Museum. In these instances the experience itself is the primary product.

But the experience economy encompasses the entire business community – or at least it has the potential to do so. Experiences can be used systematically in the business community to create value. Businesses that are capable of giving consumers an experience can differentiate themselves from their competitors and thus enhance the possibility of being able to charge a higher price for their products and services.

The report “Growth through Experiences” published by the Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority shows how experiences have become an important driving force of growth throughout the business community. This collection of case studies presents ten specific examples of businesses that have all used experiences strategically as a source of innovation and growth.

The purpose of the ten case studies is to inspire all segments of the business community to use experiences as a source of innovation and growth. The case studies show how Danish businesses specifically use experiences as a means of creating added value for the business.

These businesses use experiences in many ways, e.g. to build up customer loyalty, strengthen their brand and develop innovative new products and services – all for the purpose of strengthening the value of their products and services as experienced by the consumer.

Today, many products and services are purchased in a quest for personal identity or fulfilment. At the same time, consumer behaviour has become less predictable. This makes many demands on the products and services purchased by consumers. In addition to quality and functionality, consumers are also seeking things like authenticity, and sensory, emotional and surprising experiences, as well as elements that can underpin their individual life story.^[1] This perception of consumers is shared by all ten businesses in the collection of case studies.

The ten case studies are from a wide variety of businesses:

VIPP; sells waste bins on the basis of storytelling and authenticity;
Nordisk Skoletavle Fabrik; a company that produces schoolboards and successfully combines industrial production with conference activities based on experiences, services and knowledge;
Esrum Abbey; distinguishes itself from its competitors by telling unique local stories and creating experiences and new products, e.g. by collaborating with a local microbrewery;
Kvadrat; consolidates its position as a leader in the world textiles market by giving customers unique experiences and by collaborating with international artists;
Hjulmand & Kaptain; a law firm that joins forces with a theatre director on product development, organisational development and service improvement;
The Royal Danish Theatre; replaces old-fashioned sponsorships with balanced corporate partnerships;
Samsung Denmark; strategically uses and conceives experiences throughout the value chain because this is just as important as being a technological leader;
The Meyer Group; sells food products and canteen food as self-indulgence products and as ingredients in consumers’ personal narrative and identity creation;
Jyske Bank; has created an experience concept so that its branches can render its values tangible to its customers;
Anthon Berg; uses wellness, storytelling and identity formation as the focal point of its efforts to make Anthon Berg an international luxury brand.

Common business characteristics in the collection of case studies

Four recurring characteristics run like a common thread through all the business cases. Although all four characteristics may not be found in each business, the characteristics recur regardless of sector, geographical location or business size and were identified on the basis of qualitative in-depth interviews with people involved with and/or representing the businesses. These characteristics are:

To meet the consumers’ demand for values and identity, the businesses acquire a thorough knowledge of consumers’ needs, dreams, emotions, dreams of the future and identity.
The businesses form creative alliances with other businesses or cultural institutions to increase their creative skills, generate organisational changes and develop products.
The businesses use experiences strategically by consistently and systematically incorporating experiences into the entire value chain and in the development of business models that can infuse traditional products and services with added value.
Applying experiences within the businesses requires originality, creativity, drive and visionary leaders.

# 1. Consumer demand for values and identity

The businesses are characterised by being good at combining their “traditional” products and services – e.g. waste bins, housing loans, blackboards and chocolate – with consumer demand for such ill-defined and intangible concepts as values, identity and a sense of community.

The businesses indicate that consumers have become more demanding. They are looking for more than just a functional product and they always expect good quality. They also demand that a product’s values are in keeping with their own.

The ten specific case studies show how the businesses have commercialised consumer demand for intangible, fleeting concepts such as values, self-realisation, inquisitiveness and a sense of community – assisted by experiences. This has made it necessary to enhance the “traditional” product with an extra dimension that is capable of distinguishing the businesses from their competitors, i.e. something that retains customers or which the customers in many instances are willing to “pay” extra to get.

This is expressed, for example, when Jyske Bank works to concretise and specify its values in a way that makes them come to life through the bank’s services and products. To achieve this, the bank has redesigned its branches to incorporate a small library, a café and meeting rooms where it is even possible to play table football. It is all elements for creating the perception that this is an informal bank where the customer meets the financial advisor as an equal.

Another example is the textile company Kvadrat which creates avant-garde showrooms that aim to stimulate the intellect of its target group, i.e. discerning designers and architects.

A third example involves satisfying consumers’ desires for a little luxury, such as a gourmet beer that serves as a bright spot in a stressful workday, or a product that indicates that you are off work. This is exemplified by Anthon Berg’s development of a wellness chocolate that aims to encourage consumers to pamper themselves. Or a variety of quality niche products from the Meyer Group where a lot of effort has been put into telling a story and strategically employing sensory impressions to ensure that the entire product is perceived as a delicious experience – this applies to the packaging, aroma and sale situation alike.

# II. Businesses enter into creative alliances

Another recurring characteristic of the businesses is that they enter into both formal and informal creative alliances with other businesses, organisations or artists outside the business to develop their product, service or organisation.

This is exemplified by Esrum Abbey, which allied itself with the local microbrewery to develop a new “abbey beer”, brewed on the basis of the local history, traditions and herbs grown in the abbey garden.

Creative alliances are also exemplified by Kvadrat. The textile company’s strategic collaboration with various renowned artists has transformed its products into premium products distinguished by high quality and prices strikingly above the average cost of equivalent products in the market.

A third example is the Hjulmand & Kaptain law firm of North Jutland, which joined forces with a theatre director to carry out an organisational development process. The director managed to give the business a new “perception” of itself, and at the same time he has specifically helped to improve and optimise the firm’s level of service.

# III. Businesses use experiences strategically

All the business stories presented here are distinguished by the businesses’ systematic approach to incorporating an experience into the core activity. The experience aims to infuse the business’ products and services with added value – in addition to functionality and proper quality – and all businesses deliberately endeavour to ensure that consumers can use the product and/or service to build up and retain personal identity through the products and services they choose to surround themselves with.

Adding value to products and services

Function + Quality + Experience = Market Value

At the same time, the business stories are distinguished by the integration of experiences into as many links of the business’ value chain as possible – not only in the marketing. Experiences in the form of dreams, identity and values are part of the whole product to make it credible, unique, identity-forming and surprising.

This is exemplified by the Hjulmand & Kaptain’s collaboration with a theatre director, which contributed to staff and organisational development in the law firm.

And by the Vipp waste bin, originally invented in a hair stylist’s salon in 1937: the Vipp company now bases its aesthetic DNA and authenticity on the bin’s history.

A third example is Samsung, which put great emphasis on its product development process to infuse an aesthetic dimension to underpin the consumers’ life story.

# IV. It takes originality, creativity, drive and visionary leaders

A fundamental hallmark of all the businesses is the desire to differentiate themselves from their competitors and appear unique and visionary. The business cases all show that the decision to use experiences for business development founded on creating a unique product or service was been taken by bold, visionary leaders who were willing to risk doing something different from their competitors, with an outcome that was more uncertain.

This is exemplified by the Hjulmand & Kaptain law firm, which collaborated with a theatre director on product and organisational development. Or the Royal Danish Theatre, which pre-empted the grim prospects for traditional sponsorships by modifying its strategy and forming equal partnerships with other businesses. Or by Nordisk Skoletavle Fabrik’s CEO, who followed his gut feeling and based the construction of the new corporate headquarters on experiences and wellness facilities.

At the same time, the leaders are convinced that more information, documentation and good stories are required if other businesses choose to follow in the footsteps of these case studies. Below, each of the ten case studies is presented individually. Each case study can help to inspire the wider business community to understand how experiences can be used to distinguish products or services and infuse them with added value.

[1] This is supported by, among other things, an interview with Solvej Lee, Senior Country Manager for Samsung Denmark, an interview with Jens Olsson, Sales Director for Meyers Deli, a report by Rambøll Management prepared for the Development Council of Greater Copenhagen [Hovedstadens Udviklingsråd] of September 2005, “Følelsesfabrikken” [The Emotions Factory, 2005], “Forbrugssituationer” [Consumption Situations, Apex 2007], “Vinkler på forbrug” [Angles on Consumption, Apex, 2007].

CASE 1: VIPP
A traditional industrial product that became the most expensive waste bin in the world

INTERVIEW WITH KASPER EGELUND, MARKETING DIRECTOR

Vipp exemplifies a business based on telling a story. The core product is a waste bin that is far more expensive than ordinary bins and which has attained a unique status through the company’s strategic application of storytelling and branding. The strategy has also been to enter into creative alliances by letting the products be included in unusual contexts as
art projects and storytelling.

The Challenge

In 1993, Jette Egelund took over a pedal-bin business from her parents. The business was almost worthless, and the product was an unknown pedal-operated waste bin sold only to dental clinics, hospitals and hairdressing salons. In order for the bin to survive and appeal to modern consumers, it had to be revitalised into an exclusive, modern, design-led piece of furniture. Initially, Jette Egelund tried to get her product accepted by Illum and Magasin, but these high-street Copenhagen department stores did not want an industrial product to figure in their range.

Applying Experiences

When Jette Egelund took over the business, she wanted to revitalise it and modernise the corporate vision. The business should appeal to contemporary consumers seeking quality and design-led objects for their homes. The revitalisation of Vipp was based on the bin’s unique, fortuitous history.

Jette Egelund’s mother opened a hairdressing salon in 1937 and on this occasion, Jette’s father, Holger Nielsen, decided to give Jette’s mother what she wanted most of all: a functional waste bin she could use for collecting the trimmings after a day’s work. The bin was put into production in 1939 and sold to other hairdressing salons, hospitals and dental clinics. As part of the revitalisation process, the company began to cultivate the original story and developed all its products on the basis of the authenticity of the hairdressing salon and the original pedal bin. The storytelling and fine design became the formula for a big Danish success story.

“Everything starts with storytelling and having a good product. Vipp’s greatest asset is the fact that we manufacture the original pedal bin used by dentists, hairdressers and doctors. Our job is to retell this story to the end-users.”
– Kasper Egelund, Marketing Director of Vipp.

Vipp’s modified strategy generated rising sales and increased earnings. Traditional marketing in department stores was part of the business strategy, but Vipp soon discovered that it would take more to generate visibility and attract attention. Advertisements are not usually a topic of everyday discussion: people are more likely to tell one another stories. Therefore, the company expended considerable resources on creating events and stories about Vipp as a marketing and branding tool.

A new design, a good story, aggressive marketing and events generated success for the Vipp bin, and soon both Magasin and Illum wanted to include the bin in their product ranges.

After achieving successful results in the Danish market, the company developed a shared aim of entering the French market as well. Vipp had difficulty penetrating the market and reaching French design shops and media. Because Vipp is not French, it was assumed in France that the product would not be of interest to French consumers.

But Vipp didn’t give up. The company joined forces with the Trade Council of Denmark and got the idea of asking a number of famous French designers and artists to decorate a Vipp bin of their own. The bins would then be sold at an auction to be held at Silvera a leading design shop on Avenue Kléber in Paris. The proceeds from the auction were donated to charity. Vipp found thirty French artists and designers willing to decorate their own bins, including big names like Philippe Starck, Christian Lacroix and lingerie designer Chantal Thomass.

The project succeeded. Using the event and the attention following in its wake, Vipp turned around the French cold shoulder. The bin was associated with charity, international design and French culture without compromising on the original story used by the company in markets like Denmark, Norway and Germany.

The Benefits

A good story, design, engineering art and French artists helped to revitalise a traditional industrial business and increase the experience value of the pedal bin originally introduced to hospitals and dental clinics in 1939.

Today Vipp is a competitive up-market business selling household furnishings assisted by good stories, identity and design and has had growth rates of 40–60% in the past five years. In addition to domestic success, the company has also sown the seeds of a minor export adventure. Its exports have risen from a minimal level to comprise 70% of total sales today.

“Our company’s crucial asset is the product’s story, a competitive factor no generic products can compete with.”
– Kasper Egelund, Marketing Director of Vipp.

In a matter of fifteen years, Vipp has gone from employing a staff of three to more than fifty. The company’s products are found in 23 countries and, after the French artist event, the company saw turnover rise by 163% in less than two years and received coverage by 500 French media outlets, including Le Monde and Le Figaro.

The next adventure for the most expensive bin in the world is the North American market. Here, the company was also compelled to take a novel approach. So they developed a new version of an old story – a back to the beginning of sorts. The company has purchased on old industrial property in New York City where they will build a hairdresser’s salon from scratch. An Italian architect will furnish the salon. The idea is identical to the original concept in 1939: the customers should experience the pedal bin’s qualities in a hairdressing salon based on the bin’s authentic history. And the whole venture will kick off with an artists’ event like the one in Paris, with Bono, Helena Christensen and others as the designers of unique bins that will be auctioned off for charitable purposes.

CASE 2: NORDISK SKOLETAVLE FABRIK A/S
Create a more open business by offering experiences

INTERVIEW WITH PIA THYBO, DIRECTOR

When Nordisk Skoletavle Fabrik had to relocate its headquarters, it also meant that the old industrial company went from being a traditional manufacturing business to a competitor in the knowledge and experience economy. The company has now created a showroom that is not just a passive expense but is also a conference centre and offers classroom facilities. At the same time, a coffee bar, fitness and wellness facilities and experience offerings for employees and visitors serve as the focal point of a new corporate concept. Visitors are no longer welcomed by a receptionist but by
a personal host.

The Challenge

The primary livelihood of Nordisk Skoletavle Fabrik^[1] (NSF) is the production of blackboards for classrooms and conference facilities. When faced with having to construct a new headquarters, the company saw an opportunity to carefully consider its business goals and development without being limited by the physical setting.

The company’s new vision, and also its challenge, was to enter the experience economy. Because it turned out that NSF needed to revamp the business and its image as it had lost market shares in Japan and elsewhere.

Applying Experiences

NSF wanted to make itself more open and knowledge-based. This was to be accomplished by establishing conference facilities, by providing a network for the members of the target group and establishing another network by leasing office space to other businesses. The company wanted to pass on its 57 years of experience in the furnishing of meeting and classroom facilities to show visitors how to optimally design and furnish such spaces.

For this reason, NSF did not establish a traditional showroom but an entire wing of classroom and conference facilities. Today, the facilities are not only an alternative to a classic showroom, they serve as conference facilities as well.

“In addition to the opportunity of coming here and being inspired by our facilities, people also have the chance to hire them, so it’s possible to attend a course here and be inspired at the same time. In contrast to traditional conference and training centres, we want to give them an experience.”
– Pia Thybo, Director of NSF.

The purpose of the new conference wing was to give course participants an entirely new experience while at the same time enabling the company to open itself up. To furnish the conference facilities, NSF teamed up with companies that furnish classroom and conference facilities. This resulted in the facilities being equipped with AV equipment, blackout curtains, furniture, etc. It also gave the conference wing a third function: a display window for a number of business partners.

NSF wants to give people who visit the conference facilities a brand-new personal experience, and it does so by replacing the reception with a personal host who welcomes all visitors and customers. The host knows who is coming, the purpose of their visit and whether they have been there before. The personal touch makes visitors feel welcome and feel they are having a unique experience.

The headquarters also includes a shared wing where production, salaried and managerial staff, as well as visitors to the company and trainees take their breaks. The shared coffee bar, fitness, wellness and kitchen environment is an experience offered to employees and visitors alike. The common area and its offer of experiences help to open up the business, provide a fine setting for employees and customers, and encourage knowledge-sharing.

People whose time is precious want experiences and personal attention. NSF is continually having this hypothesis confirmed by its visitors and trainees.

“People want experiences. They’ve become more quality conscious. Who isn’t tired of dreary luncheon buffets at course venues? People want more than that now.”
– Pia Thybo, Director of NSF.

The Benefits

NSF’s new concept started out as an attempt to create an alternative to a classic showroom, but has now become a huge marketing generator for the business.

Since NSF opened the doors of its new conference facilities, more than 2,000 business managers have visited the company.

And that was before any money had been spent on marketing the new facilities. If NSF had sent a sales rep on the road to get in touch with the same number of business managers, this would have taken several years.

NSF is beginning to notice the synergy effects between the company’s new initiatives and the production of blackboards. Through contacts established and built up in the conference facilities, NSF has received many orders for blackboards and has high expectations for the future.

“We’ve gone from being very unit-based to very knowledge-based. We’ve actually done a huge about-face. So I must have been smarter than I thought.”
– Pia Thybo, Director of NSF.

The vision and the new concept have resulted in some staff turnover at NSF, because all employees in both production and services had to readjust to the new circumstances. Yet at the same time, it also means that all the current employees are loyal and satisfied.

[1] [Nordic Schoolboard Company]

CASE 3: ESRUM ABBEY
A journey of experiences involving beer, monks, herbs and reflection

INTERVIEW WITH LONE JOHNSEN, DIRECTOR, AND ALLAN POULSEN, MASTER BREWER, BRØCKHOUSE

Esrum Abbey is a small, historic cultural institution that competes with large, illustrious centres of culture. The monastery differentiates itself from its competitors by creating a cultural centre of experiences offering time for reflection. Esrum Abbey has developed a concept for involving its visitors. At the same time, the abbey focuses on entering into creative alliances with local manufacturers and cultural institutions. This has resulted in things like an “abbey beer”, in close collaboration with a local microbrewery.

The Challenge

The location and the limited size of Esrum Abbey are challenging in terms of increasing the number of visitors. The visitor centre is situated in an area that already comprises several cultural institutions of international stature, including Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Fredensborg Palace and Kronborg Castle. Esrum Abbey does not have a large historical collection that would naturally attract visitors. This means that the abbey must offer something different and unusual which is not available at the large cultural institutions nearby.

“As the venue’s unique quality is authenticity and a pristine setting, how can we bring these features to the fore in a two or three hour visit? This is our big challenge.”
– Lone Johnsen, Director, Esrum Abbey.

Applying Experiences

To attract more visitors, Esrum Abbey chose to spotlight experiences associated with the abbey’s history, surroundings and nature. A visit to Esrum Abbey has now become a journey of experiences.

After making an effort to visit the area, visitors should be given a surprising, enriching day for their efforts. Accordingly, Esrum Abbey focuses on a consistent experience concept composed of exploring exhibitions, watching performances in a meadow, eating a delicious lunch and tasting beer, as well as an activity room for children. Other examples of experiences include a large annual medieval market, author evenings, lectures, a nature academy and an international abbey festival.

The experiences are developed in strategic collaboration with the business community and other cultural stakeholders. The wide variety of partners includes Frederiksborg Castle, local organic vegetable growers, a microbrewery, horse breeders, a local equestrian society and pharmaceutical companies.

One of Esrum Abbey’s creative alliances resulted in the launch of Esrum Abbey Beer. Esrum Abbey operates a restaurant with medieval specialities on the menu and, in 2005, the abbey entered into a strategic partnership with the Brøckhouse microbrewery to jointly tell the story about the tradition of beer brewing established by the abbey’s original monks of the Cistercian order.

“We’ve tried to remain faithful to the traditions by using some of the ingredients used back then and by applying what we know about how monks brewed beer in the Middle Ages.”
– Allan Poulsen, Master Brewer, Brøckhouse.

Allan Poulsen, the then master brewer, developed a beer inspired by old monastic recipes and added herbs like garden balm, meadowsweet, lavender, rosemary, juniper and aniseed, all of which grow in the gardens of Esrum Abbey. In this way, Esrum Abbey acquired its very own beer. In turn, Brøckhouse got authenticity and associated a good story with the launch of a new beer.

The creative alliances were based on visitors’ demands for unique experiences. Under the theme of “Time for Reflection
– Space for Experiences”, Esrum Abbey is using the Pine and Gilmore model showing how to engage the recipient in different ways by using experiences. A rewarding experience should preferably include every aspect, but the most interesting, most memorable experiences are those that personally and actively involve the visitor. For this reason, Esrum Abbey has paid particular attention to developing and offering experiences near the bottom right corner of Pine and Gilmore’s figure (see figure).

A unique challenge is to actively involve the visitors. The offers that make Esrum Abbey’s experiences unique and competitive compared to the other major experiences on offer nearby include; “Little Jon Jonsen” (a murder hunt in the exhibition about a local knight); “The Murder of the King in Finderup Byre” (a treasure hunt in the surrounding area); and hands-on culinary experiences like cooking herring over an open fire and churning butter.

When visitors return home from Esrum Abbey with memorable experiences, they will feel like coming back for more unique experiences in this peaceful, authentic setting. In this way, the experiences help to establish loyalty.

Four ways of engaging the recipient through experiences

Source: Pine and Gilmore, 1999: The Experience Economy.

The Benefits

The strategic partnership with Brøckhouse has made Esrum Abbey renowned for its specialities and its beer. This has generated high turnover and made it possible to develop a new experience product: beer tasting.

Beer sales and royalties have increased Esrum Abbey’s turnover by DKK 400,000 a year, corresponding to 8% of the total turnover. Even more importantly, however, the proliferation of the beer serves as invaluable branding for Esrum Abbey.

Using experiences, Esrum Abbey has strengthened its brand and increased its turnover. As a result of the many experiences it offers, Esrum Abbey now attracts visitors from outside the traditional target group of grandmothers and grandchildren. The experiences enable the abbey to differentiate itself in relation to other cultural institutions.

The strategy has enabled the abbey to increase its attendance figures year after year, to its current level of more than 50,000. This is more visitors than attend venues like the Royal Danish Navy Museum, the Danish Museum of Art and Design, the Danish Maritime Museum, Trapholt Art Museum and the Theatre Museum.

CASE 4: KVADRAT
Using experiences to intellectually stimulate customers

INTERVIEW WITH ANDERS BYRIEL, MANAGING DIRECTOR

Kvadrat is a textile company in Ebeltoft that uses experiences to maintain and expand its position as an international luxury brand. Using creative alliances with international artists and target-oriented communication of experiences, Kvadrat stands out from its competitors by not always having a uniform and easily recognisable style. Kvadrat does this by setting up extraordinary showrooms that live up to the expectations of its discerning and demanding customers.

The Challenge

Kvadrat develops and markets modern design in textiles. The company’s vision is to be one of the five strongest architect and design brands in Europe and Asia in 2010.

Kvadrat’s clients are primarily designers and architects – a discerning, discriminating target group. Accordingly, it is important to Kvadrat that its messages communicate an out-of-the-ordinary experience which is unpredictable and can stimulate the intellect, emotions and sense of aesthetics.

“Kvadrat’s target group is well educated and well informed, which enables them to decode complicated messages. That’s why our approach includes taking pains not to underestimate them.”
– Anders Byriel, Managing Director, Kvadrat.

Applying Experiences

Kvadrat’s aim of using experiences has been to establish the company as a premium brand in Europe and Asia. Kvadrat’s experience-based efforts did not originally evolve from a clearly defined strategy. In hindsight, Anders Byriel, Kvadrat’s managing director, ascertains that the company’s experience efforts have followed two paths, both requiring relatively large investments. Two different initiatives were launched to intellectually stimulate the clients.

One of Kvadrat’s experience initiatives is based on supporting world-renowned artists like Thomas Demand and Rosemarie Trockel. With Kvadrat’s fabrics as the point of departure, the artists created award-winning works of art. The intention of the art projects was to explore the area where architecture, design and art converge. Because this is precisely where the sound ideas and interesting experiences are found.

The projects started out as charity but ended as intellectual stimulation. The art projects were successful commercial initiatives. They gave the clients a good experience and helped to increase sales. As a result, Kvadrat will launch an entire series of similar projects in future as well.

The second initiative is Kvadrat’s branding strategy based on giving visitors a surprising experience when they visit Kvadrat’s showroom. An experience that differs from one showroom to the next.

“If you enter our showroom in Milan or New York, you shouldn’t have the same experience. To achieve this, we try to create spaces that provide a new, slightly thought-provoking experience.”
– Anders Byriel, Managing Director, Kvadrat.

Kvadrat has engaged a variety of internationally recognised artists to design and decorate the textile company’s various showrooms. This is exemplified by the prize-winning brothers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, who designed Kvadrat’s showroom in Stockholm. The aim of the various showrooms is to establish landmarks of sorts, attractions in their own right for architects and designers, i.e. Kvadrat’s target group. Both of Kvadrat’s experience-based initiatives attract attention to the company, and the experiences push the envelope of how their clients perceive that textiles can be used.

“All those involved with design and architecture want to be inspired and to widen their horizons. You want to see something you haven’t seen before; you want to be surprised. This is crucial!”
– Anders Byriel, Managing Director, Kvadrat.

Kvadrat uses experiences because designers and architects demand it – it’s that simple. This helps to maintain the company’s status as a supplier of premium products.

“Kvadrat makes its showrooms and undertakes its art projects with the aim of surprising, of providing an experience. We have a vision of becoming one of the five strongest design brands in Europe and Asia. To achieve this goal, we have to strengthen the brand and make it interesting.”
– Anders Byriel, Managing Director, Kvadrat.

The Benefits

Kvadrat expects to use experiences to improve its brand and sales.

The twin-track experience aspect of Kvadrat’s strategy has generated enormous positive publicity and attention for the business. In this way, experiences have also served as a successful PR strategy, which would have been far more costly without using experiences. The publicity value is two or three times the amount Kvadrat has invested in the projects.

Recently, Kvadrat was mentioned in The New York Times’ half-yearly design supplement – a good example to show that Kvadrat’s strategy works. Even though the company’s showrooms as an experience concept were not launched for the purpose of increasing the company’s bottom line, it turns out that the experiences have generated additional sales through brand-building, thereby improving the financial return.

CASE 5: HJULMAND & KAPTAIN LAW FIRM
Theatre director lays the groundwork for better service and organisational changes

INTERVIEW WITH ANDERS HJULMAND, PARTNER

Hjulmand & Kaptain, a law firm based in Northern Jutland, joined forces with a theatre director to become better at developing products, innovating and solving problems creatively. The director’s creative expertise has provided a new perspective for the business and created space for organisational development.

The Challenge

The deregulation of the Danish market for legal services and counselling has led to tougher competition and compelled traditional law firms to be far more active in winning new clients. At the same time, the very nature of legal services has been transformed, and clients’ requirements and perceptions of legal products have changed considerably. Clients continue to demand legal products but also seek much more general sparring and coaching than previously, and these services are now identified as client needs.

As a result of these developments, Hjulmand & Kaptain, employed an unconventional approach to meet the changing demands of the clients.

Applying Experiences

In a rather conservative sector like law, where the power of habit is difficult to break, the firm could see market benefits from teaming up with an artist whose tools and modus operandi are completely different. This prompted Hjulmand & Kaptain to join the North Jutland Creative Alliances project

in 2007. The firm participated to spur new thinking in terms of solutions and products and to strengthen its organisational development. Theatre director Per Smedegaard also joined the firm’s creative alliance.

Hjulmand & Kaptain wanted to become better at meeting specific client needs and offering an alternative to the host of standard products offered by traditional law firms. Over a prolonged period, Hjulmand & Kaptain had noticed a shift in the clients’ demand.

“In the past it was easier for us to add value for our clients as a law firm by mass production of things like title deeds. Today, legal advice is more important. A deed is a mere technicality -before they come to meet with us for the first time, they are well-prepared and have researched the topic on the Internet. This means they don’t walk through the door like an empty book, but are knowledgeable and informed.”
– Anders Hjulmand, partner.

Today, running a business is something completely different than in the past when lawyers had no cause to be outgoing or innovative to get customers into the shop.

“… [T]hat’s what we have to learn, to change our attitude. Artists have the ability to think in a totally different manner than the logical, rigorous way we lawyers do. It’s a way to profile our firm, too. We do things differently. Competition is tougher. Today, running a law firm requires a more multifaceted approach. The market is the driving force that defines the terms, and our clients demand solutions. It’s also about recruiting and retaining employees.”
– Anders Hjulmand, partner.

By introducing an artistic approach, the law firm was able to break the power of habit and the “usual” way of solving problems and dealing with challenges. This has enabled the firm to think more creatively and solve problems for the benefit of staff and clients alike.

Theatre director Per Smedegaard played an important part in this process by creating some optimal settings and frameworks for creative problem-solving. These initiatives included the many workshops where the firm’s employees played out a variety of daily situations. By using dramaturgy, the challenges and obstacles to innovative thinking became more visible to the firm’s management and employees. Dramaturgy has given the employees different conceptions and images of the business and a new way of communicating. Specifically, the process has helped the firm to identify routines and problems in the business that are inexpedient or counterproductive.

Anders Hjulmand explains that the real reason for having an artist is to set up a creative framework and space where the firm can change its way of thinking. In this way, the firm can depart from what is usually considered normal, fixed and traditional and can learn the requisite skills for being able to innovate. This is how an artist infuses the business with added value.

The Benefits

The teamwork with North Jutland Creative Alliances is still new. It has yet to make itself felt on the bottom line but is expected to do so soon.

Hjulmand & Kaptain did not enter into this creative alliance for fun. It costs precious time and lots of money, according to Anders Hjulmand. This is why he also expects the law firm’s teamwork with an enthusiastic artist to prompt clients, employees and other stakeholders to take a different view of Hjulmand & Kaptain, in contrast to their previous perception of the firm.

The teamwork has enabled the firm to be better and more specific at putting itself in the client’s shoes and understanding client needs. As a result, Hjulmand & Kaptain has created several new products comprising sparring and legal advice, where the finished, tangible product is developed in cooperation with the client to ensure that the product is tailored to his/her individual needs.

Secondly, the law firm uses creative people in its development efforts as part of the firm’s branding strategy, which can help to differentiate Hjulmand & Kaptain from its competitors by making the firm manifest itself as a far more dynamic, creative workplace and enhance the firm’s ability to retain staff and at the same time to attract new employees.

The firm wants to be a dynamic, interesting and creative workplace – based on values that are a top priority to existing and prospective employees. A visible result is rising employee satisfaction and a deeper sense of pride in being employed at the firm.

CASE 6: THE ROYAL DANISH THEATRE
Unique experiences result in lucrative partnerships

INTERVIEW WITH KRESTEN SCHULTZ-JØRGENSEN, FORMER COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, AND PETER LA COUR BENTZON, COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR

The Royal Danish Theatre has changed its approach to sponsorships. Instead of traditional, passive sponsorships based on handouts and altruism, the theatre has started entering into partnerships with members of the business community. The partnerships are based on mutual respect and equal relationships, meaning that both parties receive a tangible benefit from the partnership. The businesses get access to the Royal Danish Theatre’s creative expertise, authenticity and facilities. The Royal Danish Theatre gets access to the business’s commercial expertise and network.

The Challenge

Four or five years ago, the Royal Danish Theatre discovered that its sponsorships were on the decline. This prompted the launch of a large-scale analysis, which showed that the problem was not theirs alone, but a general sponsorship trend. The reason was that companies had moved the responsibility for sponsorships from the managing director to the marketing department.

“This made the relatively large sums that we received from our sponsors quite vulnerable, because the sponsorships became completely dependent on a few individuals.”
– Kresten Schultz-Jørgensen, former communications director for the Royal Danish Theatre.

As a result, sponsorships are no longer given out of an obligation to support cultural life, as in the past, but on the basis of an anticipated practical financial benefit instead.

Applying Experiences

In the sponsorship analysis, the Royal Danish Theatre also studied its own strengths and weaknesses and what companies expect from sponsorships. The new sponsorship trend and the theatre’s efforts to set up better sponsorship agreements prompted the Royal Danish Theatre to examine which core services the theatre could primarily offer its sponsors. The theatre discovered that it did not only offer high culture but that its core products are, in fact, unique experiences where people meet.

Therefore, the Royal Danish Theatre decided to establish unique partnerships. In order for the partnerships to be successful, it was important to establish a win-win partnership and for both parties to receive a tangible benefit. The solutions did not have to be complicated but could involve something as basic as making a facility available for a creative purpose.

The analyses showed that the Royal Danish Theatre represents a unique form of creativity that contrasts with the business community’s traditional development work, which is usually structured according to fixed time schedules for process milestones and goals. The business community is interested in this new creative aspect and finds it very constructive to talk about.

Secondly, the theatre identified the links of its value chain where it had something to learn from the business community’s commercial concepts, technology, equipment, etc. In this way, the sponsorships became partnerships – partnerships based on mutual benefits and acceptance.

Specifically, the Royal Danish Theatre now places its facilities at the disposal of its sponsors and partnerships, but with a requirement for artistic content. In this way, performance art and dramaturgy become a supplement to the sponsoring company’s project.

The Benefits

Rethinking the theatre’s sponsorships has given the Royal Danish Theatre valuable brand-new knowledge: in order for a partnership to be a success, both parties have to see a clear benefit from the partnership.

It is impossible to determine the cash benefit gained by a company from sending its employees to the Royal Danish Theatre, for instance. The new strategy has resulted in brand-new or renewed partnerships with Sonofon, Danske Bank, Samsung, In Wear, Montana, Canon, and Rosendahl.

A specific example is the partnership with Samsung. The Royal Danish Theatre receives various products from Samsung, ranging all the way from mobile phones to customer databases and other technology. In return, Samsung is allowed to use the Copenhagen Opera House and learn about the forces of Danish theatre. The partnership can teach Samsung about the Danish design tradition, but also about orchestrating their own business and its activities and about the means that need to be employed to excite an audience – skills that companies are very eager to learn. This will enable companies to tell stories, orchestrate their products and surprise and excite their customers. The mutual benefits are clear and both parties have much to gain, both materially and in terms of expertise.

Experience gives the theatre the opportunity to offer companies unique products that can be used for employment recruitment purposes and for retaining employees and customers alike, but experiences can also be used to inspire employees in developing products. The Royal Danish Theatre has become aware of its peak competencies in earnest, and particularly in terms of what the theatre has to offer the business community.

CASE 7: SAMSUNG DENMARK
Moving beyond bites and bytes to experiences and design

INTERVIEW WITH SOLVEJ LEE, SENIOR COUNTRY MANAGER

Nowadays, electronics companies like Samsung cannot differentiate themselves on the market solely on the basis of technological superiority. Because consumers are also buying electronics to fulfil a need for aesthetics, identity-formation and storytelling. Samsung cannot comply with such requirements alone. That is why the company is entering into creative alliances with other companies and cultural institutions to infuse Samsung’s products with creative values, aesthetics and storytelling.

The Challenge

Only a few years ago, Samsung was a manufacturer of low-priced electronics products, and its capacity for innovating and setting design standards was quite limited.

In order for Samsung to survive and attract design-conscious and quality-conscious customers with substantial buying power, the company would need to develop in order to keep up with the conditions prevailing in the experience economy, and get a better understanding of their consumers.

Applying Experiences

Over the past decade, Samsung has undergone a commercial turnaround. The company formulated a vision to become the leading electronics giant in the experience economy. To achieve this goal, the company needs to be capable of offering consumers something more than just good technology. For this reason, Samsung has redefined its business concept and is currently moving beyond bites and bytes. The company is now making a consistent effort targeted on experiences and design as integral, strategic elements of the entire value chain.

Consumers have never had as many offers and products to choose from as today. This compels Samsung to be able to offer something out of the ordinary and distinctive. To achieve this, the business has invested considerable resources in identifying how to engage its customers, affect them emotionally, get their attention and offer products that consumers are proud to show off.

Samsung uses experiences in the form of design, storytelling and values in a manner that distinguishes it in the marketplace and gives its customers a unique identity. Design and experiences must be strategically conceptualised in the early phases of product development. Even before a product is developed, Samsung uses anthropologists and ideas agencies to study the end-users. Their advisors study which values, experiences and expectations customers have with regard to electronic products like flat screens, mobile phones and refrigerators.

On the basis of the results, Samsung works to get the products to symbolise values like purity, minimalism and user-friendliness. At the same time, the products must be works of industrial design in the home. So Samsung has teamed up with artist Per Arnoldi to produce a five-minute DVD entitled “Colourful Journey” with thousands of different colours. The music was composed by renowned Danish jazz pianist Niels Lan Doky.

Another example is Samsung’s collaborative efforts with the Royal Danish Theatre (see case 6). This has given Samsung a valuable opportunity to learn something about the discerning audiences of the Royal Danish Theatre who appreciate creativity, quality, aesthetics, culture and entertainment – values that Samsung wants to stimulate and confer on its customers through experiences.

“The basis of the collaboration with the Royal Danish Theatre has been a partnership of equals which both of us have greatly benefited from. They need the technology. We know that technology doesn’t have to be complicated but can be very user-friendly. And we’ve tested products on their customers and users – a target group we’ve never had access to before in the past, not to mention in this setting,”
– Solvej Lee, Senior Country Manager, Samsung Denmark.

The collaboration has also enabled Samsung to draw on the theatre’s artistic knowledge about how to influence audience emotions and about the ability to seduce, excite and indulge audiences. Samsung actively uses this knowledge in its product development:

“We’re an electronics company, but we sell our products to people. We also want to widen our perception of existing and prospective customers. The Royal Danish Theatre has been able to help us to gain the insight we need for getting a broader understanding of their customers. Customers, who are whole people, multifaceted and different.”
– Solvej Lee, Senior Country Manager, Samsung Denmark.

The Benefits

The unconventional teamwork with the Royal Danish Theatre has provided an important insight because the theatre’s approach to its customers is strikingly different from that taken by commercial businesses.

“We also chose to team up with the Royal Theatre because their knowledge and participation can teach us to understand the complex person – if we want to be the best, we have to work together with the best. It’s been much more useful than if we’d paid huge sums for expensive reports that would’ve looked nice on our shelves. By partnering with the Royal Danish Theatre, we’re learning how to do it in practice instead.”
– Solvej Lee, Senior Country Manager, Samsung Denmark.

In a matter of three years, Samsung Denmark has grown from four to more than thirty employees, seen its turnover rise and gained market shares in Europe.

This is among other tings because the business has consistently focused on the significance of culture, values and experiences. Samsung has revamped its image from that of dull low-priced electronics products into prize-winning design and experience products.

In April 2008, Samsung received the “Respect of the Year” award during the DANSK Fashion Award Show for its successful integration of Korean technology and Danish design.

Samsung Denmark’s intense studies of values and human resources mean that the business is visited several times a month by designers from its Korean headquarters.

CASE 8: THE MEYER GROUP
Experiences generate value in the food industry

INTERVIEW WITH JENS OLSSON, SENIOR CONSULTANT, MEYER CONSULTING

Buying products has become an important part of consumer identify, as buying products and experiences helps to build up and construct the personal story of the modern individual. The Meyer Group incorporates experiences and identity throughout its strategic conceptualisation process, from product development to human relations, packaging and selling environments, because the group has recognised that shopping has become an important aspect of consumer identity. Experiences can be part of telling the personal story and shaping the personal identity of modern consumers.

The Challenge

Today, food and food products cover much more than basic needs for calorie intake. A meal should also ensure the fulfilment of a modern individual’s needs, like socialisation and self-realisation. For many years, the Meyer Group has been struggling to ensure that Danish cuisine is based on sensual food which in turn is based on quality, sustainability and distinctive characteristics.

On the basis of this vision, Claus Meyer (a danish chef and entrepreneur) has embarked on a wide variety of projects over the past few decades, and he is owner and co-owner of several businesses, including the Noma (a restaurant with a two-star Michelin rating), the catering business Meyers Kitchen & Deli, Meyers Canteens, Meyers Food house, and the Chocolate Company – all businesses that make money selling food by giving top priority to providing unique experiences.

“The Meyer Group’s companies have always wanted to take people by the hand and show them the way to more rewarding culinary experiences. We hope we’ve succeeded a little.”
– Jens Olsson, Senior Consultant, Meyer Group.

Applying Experiences

The Meyer Group generates experiences by telling good stories about the ingredients, tastes and nutrition. They are very much aware of the importance of thinking differently and all the way down the value chain – and it is important to remember that the value chain extends all the way out to the field being grazed by the cow, if you want to achieve long-term competitive advantages. The story of product origins must be based on a candid approach to product development and the production process, and the story must not be artificial or “embellished”.

The Meyer Group’s businesses were developed on the basis of identified user and market needs for better and more authentic food experiences. Based on user needs, the Meyer Group’s culinary business concepts have sought to improve Denmark’s culinary heritage. The Meyer Group deploys experiences strategically throughout its business development and product development processes. The experiences are capable of communicating the values and standards the Group wants to represent.

Sensuality and good stories are rendered tangible by telling the products’ stories about how they originated and by using packaging that stimulates consumers’ senses. Bottles, packets and labels must have the right colours and must convey the right signals.

In other words, they should be colours and signals that correspond to consumer expectations and values relating to quality, sustainability, etc. All of which must be stimulating in order to give consumers a good experience.

The Meyer Group is acutely aware that good experiences require an uncompromising approach to quality, because in order for the products to be credible, they must always be good. Inconsistent or poor product quality is useless.

Incorporating experiences into the conceptualisation of the company’s products early in the value chain makes the products less vulnerable to competing products as the company and the customer build up mutual loyalty.

“The products, we consumers surround ourselves with and the things we eat all represent something that we as individuals can use to influence our lives in the direction we choose; they are the fuel of enhanced self-realisation.”
– Jens Olsson, Senior Consultant, Meyer Group.

Whereas many businesses compete to be the lowest priced or the “best of the worst”, the Meyer Group competes in terms of the authenticity and credibility of its products and services. The products or services must conform to the customer’s self-perception as someone who enjoys life and consumes high quality products and ingredients, all telling an authentic story about their origins.

Accordingly, all products are developed in harmony with growing markets in Denmark and around the world where sensuality, authenticity and sustainability considerations are key elements. The business has developed its own unique identity, but at the same time provides consulting services to other food-based businesses like hotels and restaurants about the Group’s unique outlook and approach to business development.

The Benefits

The Meyer Group’s businesses have entered markets where experience products and new luxury products in the food sector can be sold at prices far above the average price for similar products with the same function and quality.

The lessons learned by the Meyer Group show that experiences help to increase the value of foods. Many customers are willing to pay a substantially higher price for Meyer products because they get unique quality and experiences into the bargain. Experiences have become a way for the Meyer Group to differentiate itself not only from traditional supermarkets but from other speciality shops as well.

The constant expectation that the Meyer Group will continue to present interesting new concepts and products is an important driving force for the business. It provides a dynamic working environment – something the Meyer Group knows its employees appreciate.

The Meyer Group currently employs around 350 full-time staff and generates turnover of around DKK 300 million.

CASE 9: JYSKE BANK
Unique customers experiences – a competitive factor in the financial sector

INTERVIEW WITH FRANK PEDERSEN, MARKETING DIRECTOR

The “Jyske Differences” concept involves different experiences to manifest and concretise the values on which Jyske Bank is based. A library, coffee bar, amusing advertising videos, a personal host, table football games, and doing away with the traditional bank teller are all elements of the bank’s strategy for differentiating itself from its competitors by being an informal bank that takes its customers’ needs seriously – and sees them as equals.

The Challenge

The globalisation and deregulation of financial markets has toughened the competition in the banking sector. It has become increasingly difficult to compete in terms of the price and selection of the financial products offered. Therefore banks also have to position themselves in terms of other parameters.

Using the Jyske Differences concept, the company wants to create a different bank that seeks to significantly distinguish itself from its competitors.

Applying Experiences

The first major change introduced by the bank for the Jyske Differences concept was to modify and redesign the interior layout and décor and furnish all 120 bank branches with various experience elements.

This drastic decision was prompted by factors like an inspirational trip to the US where the project committee behind Jyske Differences visited businesses that are especially renowned for creating experiences in connection with buying situations.

The Starbucks coffee bar chain and Barnes & Noble bookstores in particular served as important sources of inspiration for how Jyske Bank worked to create unique settings that give customers a different banking experience.

In the Jyske Differences concept, the bank uses experiences to manifest and visualise the values on which its business strategy is based. For instance, the values of “genuine interest and equality” and “different and informal” are expressed by having a personal host greet visitors at each branch.

This host invites the customers to explore the various experiences offered by the bank. This could be enjoying a cup of the bank’s quality coffee, visiting the teller (called the “Moneybar”) or paying a visit to the bank’s library where the customer can leaf through lifestyle magazines or other literature while relaxing in an easy chair. The host can also show the customer to the Question Bar to be inspired by the numerous product packages that the bank has developed.

The product packages include traditional marketing material about the bank’s various services. But the packages all feature different visual expressions and are furnished with a barcode linked to a flatscreen that can play a film recounting more about the product.

For instance, the bank has developed a product package called “My First Rented Accommodation” designed as a miniature removal box. A barcode on the box can be read at the Question Bar. On a screen at the bar, a short informal, amusing film provides good advice about what to include in a good housewarming party, as well as general tips for keeping tabs on your financial situation. It also gives information about a specific loan product, e.g. a loan for the initial advance payment, furniture, and other necessities required when moving away from home.

The unique experience Jyske Bank wants to give the customer should differ strikingly from the experience the customer has in other banks. The bank wants to orchestrate a customer experience based on four tenets: learning, inspiration, individualisation, and humour & informality. The aim of this is to increase sales to existing and new customers.

“We also use the orchestrated customer experience to say who we are and make it possible for the consumers to actively choose us or reject us.”
– Frank Pedersen, Marketing Director, Jyske Bank.

To achieve this, the bank has invested a lot of resources in creating experiences at the bank’s physical branches, and the following text is also found on their website: “Read more about Jyske Bank, but you are welcome to visit the bank – to see, smell, touch and feel the bank for yourself”.

The Benefits

The bank has invested huge sums in the Jyske Differences concepts, but this has paid off.

The different customer experiences have served as a positive competitive factor and have been valuable in attracting and retaining customers. Jyske has not only become better at retaining customers but also at getting new customers. Since the launch of Jyske Differences in September 2006, the bank has increased its net influx of new customers by almost 70%.

This is one of the reasons the 2007 profit forecast had to be revised upwards three times.

CASE 10: ANTHON BERG
The modern connoisseur leads the way for Danish chocolate giant

INTERVIEW WITH STINE KJÆR LOMHOLT, BRAND MANAGER

For Anthon Berg, experiences like self-indulgence, identity formation and orchestration have been the focal point of the relaunch of the business initiated in 2007. Anthon Berg’s new strategy uses experiences not only as marketing but, together with enhanced chocolate quality, as the company’s guiding light in the struggle to win new market shares and create a product associated with quality, innovation and daring.

The Challenge

Demand for quality chocolate is rising in Europe, Asia and the US. The perception of chocolate has changed, and many consumers talk about and taste chocolate as they’ve never done before. According to the international chocolate industry, Japanese consumers in particular are prepared to pay, even dearly, for exclusive chocolate.

Even so, Anthon Berg has been losing market share for many years because of the business’s rather staid image. Especially because younger quality-conscious target groups have deserted Anthon Berg’s products. In this light, Anthon Berg’s vision was to change its image from a slightly staid chocolate company into an internationally renowned quality brand. The aim is to increase turnover by DKK 600 million to more than DKK 2 billion in 2012.

Applying Experiences

To achieve this, Anthon Berg has changed its strategy and built up a new brand and a better image based on quality and experiences. The strategy is driven by the fact that consumers are prepared to pay more for chocolate.

The business has realised that in order to win new market shares, the staid image needs to be revitalised, and Anthon Berg has to be refashioned into a strong, modern brand – based on a good story and finer, better-tasting chocolates in exclusive boxes and packaging. The company intends to create chocolate products that appeal to and directly target the customers who are willing to pay for out-of-the-ordinary chocolate experiences.

On the basis of focus groups, ethnographic studies and data gathered by major opinion and media agencies, Anthon Berg has identified a new target group they call “the modern connoisseur”. This segment is made up of people who are brand-conscious, discerning, inquisitive, interested in aesthetics and design, reads lifestyle magazines and are acutely aware of the products and brands they surround themselves with. At the same time, they are good at orchestrating their own life.

“When a modern connoisseur buys chocolate, the chocolate has to be an experience. An example of this is when buying chocolate for a dinner for two. Perhaps the hostess has cooked the food and the host chooses the chocolate for coffee. Similar to the process of carefully selecting a wine. For this reason it is important for a story to be included with the chocolate. People want to know which country the cocoa beans come from.”
– Stine Kjær Lomholdt, Brand Manager, Anthon Berg.

Based on Anthon Berg’s new-found knowledge about their customers, the company has launched a product that inhabits the zone where wellness and enjoyment of chocolate converge. It is a soft, high-quality chocolate that you can spread over your body like a cream. The chocolate contains extracts of other natural products like ginseng, green tea, Chinese “schisandra berries” and guava, or extracts of South American “yerba mate” tea and papaya. The packaging experience should also be unique. It should be completely in keeping with the expectations of a modern connoisseur. Anthon Berg wants to enlarge the assortment to include chocolate that is different and more luxurious in terms of both quality and aesthetics than the chocolate it sells today.

These chocolate products cut to the very core of the growing wellness culture, which the modern connoisseur is also part of – both in Denmark and in the rest of the Western world.

For Anthon Berg, experiences have become a competitive factor because they provide access to a discerning segment, but also one with great buying power. The wellness chocolate enables the company to differentiate its products from those of the competition and at the same time represents a response to the modern connoisseur’s demand for new experiences.

“Coffee is not just a cup of coffee any more, and a beer is not just a beer. Today, chocolate has to tell a story, provide an experience that goes beyond just eating a few processed cocoa beans, because chocolate isn’t just chocolate any longer.”
– Stine Kjær Lomholdt, Brand Manager, Anthon Berg.

In efforts to create chocolate that contains something extra, the company developed a product comprising a large solid bar of chocolate, weighing 220 grams, which comes with a sort of awl that is used for chipping the bar into pieces. This breaks the chocolate into uneven pieces and provides a totally different serving experience. It also becomes an event similar to cutting a roast or opening a bottle of champagne.

The Benefits

The extra experience provided by the chocolate enables the products to attract a far higher price but puts a limit on the volume at the same time. In return, the business can charge a totally different price per kilo.

The relaunch has enabled Anthon Berg to make a breakthrough in international markets, and its products are now included in the assortments of department stores in New York City and the trend-setting delicatessen section of Takashimay. Anthon Berg is a subsidiary of the chocolate manufacturer Toms Gruppen A/S. In 2007, the Group generated a profit after tax of DKK 75.4 million.

“…[I]t’s a question of having a ’blue ocean’ strategy, where we seek to leave the ’red ocean’ and turn things around for our benefit. Fortunately, reactions have been very favourable whenever we tell our story abroad. But it wasn’t until recently that we discovered how to actually make use of Anthon Berg’s long, proud history steeped in tradition.”
– Stine Kjær Lomholdt, Brand Manager, Anthon Berg.

Much of the success is attributed to the relaunch of Anthon Berg as an international experience-based brand, as the Anthon Berg products showed a 14% increase in turnover compared to the year before.

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Growth through Experiences