English | Deutsch Victoria's Secret hoped to revitalize its retail design system with a new store in New York City's Herald Square - the world's busiest retail location. With neutral tones, black and white photography, and soaring spaces, the new look was set to establish Victoria's Secret securely as a luxury brand. Victoria's Secret asked frog to create an interactive video display system that would maximize the flow of traffic throughout the store, drawing customers deep into product areas while showing off their revamped new image.
In researching retail environments and buying patterns, frog found that the greatest returns came from in-store displays with branded imagery, rather than individual product promotion. With this in mind, we set out to create video feed that would sell the feeling of Victoria's Secret, rather than its specific merchandise, showcasing sensuality and sophistication rather than the latest panty lines.
frog worked with a Victoria's Secret brand marketing team to harvest outtakes from the company's many video shoots, so that unused footage of models could be included in the displays without a breach of contract. We then created a visual theme of drifting rose petals, the delicacy and luxury of flowers laying a digital path throughout the store. High-speed 35mm motion film was shot and enhanced so that the petals could be displayed at a size, speed, and clarity that would have otherwise been unachievable. And even with the introduction of seasonal video throughout the year, this imagery would integrate diverse displays, maintaining a consistent mood within the store. To demonstrate our ideas, we generated animated walk-throughs of the store, using embedded video streams to show the anticipated flow of customers.
frog worked with architects and contractors to construct a high-speed network to distribute the video signals. A series of twenty networked MPEG-22 players and LCD displays were installed along the length of the escalator, sending a new "wave" of imagery upwards each time a customer stepped onto the stairs - a visual escort to the second floor. There, the customer would be greeted by several larger-than-life video screens of models walking a Victoria's Secret runway, showing customers both the sexiness and the style. Rose petals tumble across the plasma screens whenever the interactive video system is idle. And since the system is completely networked, playback control and content updates are easily handled from a base station in the back office.
Since its grand opening, the Herald Square location has surpassed all corporate expectations, with sales volume far exceeding target figures. Within the first four months, Victoria's Secret had synchronized the displays with new seasonal events and messaging three times - each configuration, a success.
