- Università: Bocconi
- Docenti:
Fabrizio Zerbini
- Studenti:
Bianca Bevione, Marco Cantarella, Eadwin Chehdi, Melissa Frigerio, Charlotte Hazotte, Annalisa Parisi
Si chiama Pietro is a highly-technological rental store ideated to satisfy the increasing demand for board games in the Italian market. Game lovers demand for variety and most of them do not reuse the same board game more than once. Also, the vast majority of them struggles with finding board games when wishing to buy them. This
piece of information casts a light on a gap in the market that Si chiama Pietro offers to fill.
Si chiama Pietro is a specialty store with a product portfolio of 500 different board games. The name, that refers to an Italian idiom used when lending something to someone, emphasizes the rental format in a fun way and will easily remain in people mind.
Its main competitive advantage is to create an enhanced, unique customer experience through the use of AI and technology. The targeted consumers are mainly university students, who often meet in house with their friends and want to do some bonding activities. The other main segment to target are the so called “kidults”, middle
aged individuals who love games despite their age.
The store will be located in Milan, in Porta Ticinese, close to all major universities of the city (Bocconi, IULM, Naba, Statale). The reason for this location is to be in line with our target, mainly constituted by university students. Moreover, opening in such a central area will allow to be visible and attractive at the eyes of the "kidults". The opening hours will differ from other regular retail stores: Si chiama Pietro will be open 6 days a week from 2 pm to 10 pm, in order to better suit the needs of the targeted consumers.
The store is 250 m2 and the layout is divided into subsections that are outlined by shelves and are themed based on the category of board games included into that section (family, investigations, drinking night, fantasy, puzzles and intellectual games). The subsections are interconnected and the visitor is forced to walk through all of them.
The entire stock, which is comprised of 4 copies of the 500 different games, is placed on the shelves, hence, there is no warehouse. QR codes are placed on the shelves and when scanned will lead to descriptive videos of the games and their instructions. In the entry hall there are two totems that allow users to find the games they are looking for and also give them personalized suggestions, based on their previous purchases.
The customer journey begins before visiting the store by creating an account on Si chiama Pietro application. The app has a double utility. Out of store, it allows the user to check games availability, book them and pay online followed by an in-store pickup and also encourages users to review the games by rewarding them (special discounts). In store, the app will guide the user through its journey, allowing to scan QR codes, connect to the
totems and also split payments through different players. When entering the store, the first thing visitors will do is to login into their account by tapping their phones on the totem’s screens. In case the customer is not sure about which game to rent, the software will ask basic details to the user (age, gender, number of players and occasion of use) and will suggest few games suited to these characteristics, showing their location in the store.
The experience will be highly digitalized: there will be screens providing personalised messages, movement sensors at the entrance that will activate themed lights and music when visitors enter. Once the visitors arrive at the end of the store, they will be able to pay at the automatic checkout machines. Through the app they will be able to split the bill among the other users with which they will be playing that specific game. The price of
renting each game is variable, depending on the retail price of that game. For a game for 5 people with a retail price of €26.99, the renting price will be the 25%, which per person will be an irrisory price of €1.35. A deposit fee is also charged, which ensures the business from customers stealing or damaging the games. The deposit will be refunded as soon as the game is brought back to the store.
Although the in-store experience is completely automatized, there will be one employee to assist the customer in case of need. The main task for the employee is to check the returned games to see if they are in good condition and to sanitise them. There will be special events held in store to contribute to community building and attract new visitors. The first event is called Monday funday and will take place every Monday of the month, in which visitors will play a treasure hunt to find a hidden game in the store. The 4 winners will be able to rent the game for free. The second event is called Pietro’s night and is an in-store game night where customers can come and play and make new friendships with one another. Traditional promotion will also take place, mainly social media campaigns on Instagram and TikTok and personalised app notifications, to stimulate repeated visits.
