Cheil Worldwide Shakes Up Home Home Appliance Retailing with 'CenterStage'

Samsung Electronics is taking innovation in the home appliance category beyond physical products and into the retail realm with its new digital in-store display, CenterStage.

Conceptualised and planned by Samsung Electronics and Cheil Worldwide with development by The Barbarian Group, the new concept will launch at a pilot store in the UK today.

CenterStage is an interactive 4K UHD display that will be used by retailers to showcase the whole of Samsung’s appliance portfolio in true-to-life size. The picture-perfect quality and interactivity enables Samsung to display entire product suites with little investment in showroom square footage. The technology is powered by Cinder, top creative open source creative coding software, originally built by Cheil-owned The Barbarian Group.

The display will be used by retailers to captivate and educate consumers, showcasing the appliances in a highly accessible and intuitive way. In-depth product details and explanation of features enable consumers to picture what Samsung Electronics appliances will look like in their own homes. In addition, an intuitive and user-friendly touch-screen interface has been integrated to leverage people’s familiarity with smartphone gestures and interactions.

“By blending the physical with the digital, we are transforming the way consumers experience our products and making it much easier for them to shop for appliances,” said Yoon C. Lee, vice president, Samsung Electronics. “With retail floors getting more and more cluttered, CenterStage™ offers virtual access to every Samsung home appliance on the market with an immersive UHD display, engaging graphics, and clear explanations of product features and benefits. It’s a one-stop-shop for all appliance needs, and we believe it will appeal to consumers by enhancing and making their home appliance shopping experience easier than ever.”

Simon Hathaway, president and global head of RX [retail experience] at Cheil commented: “CenterStage is truly a game-changing retail innovation that will reset people’s expectations of the in-store experience. An endless shelf of life-size product in UHD quality enables retailers to sell their full inventory in every format and gives them the potential to create go-to retail environments in the most convenient locations for their customers.”

“CenterStage has been a hugely interesting project to work on, and one that has only been made possible through the partnership between Samsung Electronics, The Barbarian Group and Cheil. I am very proud that our RX Group continues to deliver some of the most innovative solutions for retailers and brands across the world.”