Colombo Stores Design New Stores in Southern States
The first Italian immigrants who arrived in southern Brazil in 1875 settled in a small village that resulted in the district of Nova Milano in the mountain region of Farroupilha (RS), and it was in this hamlet that Adelino Colombo spent his childhood and discovered, as a boy, his fascination with commerce. Third of eight siblings, he would always accompany his mother on the grocery shopping she made at Seu Manoel’s store in Farroupilha, and at each visit she felt that the urge to move to the other side of the counter was stronger. Being a salesperson was a dream.
Coincidence or not, in one of the visits the Colombo’s matriarch saw the dismissal of an employee and, immediately, offered the services of her son, already grown. Thus, at age 19, Adelino became an employee of Seu Manoel’s grocery store. Three years later, for the service and dedication to the clients, he achieved the management of the first branch of the store. In the late 1950s, Adelino bought the establishment and transformed it into the Columbo store. On November 30, 1959, together with his cousin Dionysius Maggioni, he opened Colombo Stores.
Stimulating sales was essential for the business to grow, and with the arrival of the first television signal in the Serra Gaúcha, Adelino had the idea of putting a television in the door of the store to get the public’s attention, to arouse their curiosity. But when a survey showed him that there were only four people in the city financially fit to have the device, he understood that another strategy was needed. He then brought more gadgets from the capital Porto Alegre, which he offered for sale with the offer of free technical assistance. That was the first step.
251 stores in three states
With televisions and other appliances giving good profitability, the company began its expansion project. In 1965, it opened the first branch in the neighboring city of Caxias do Sul, followed by others in municipalities in the region, including Flores da Cunha, São Marcos, Vacaria, Veranópolis and Bento Gonçalves. “Colombo store developed from the constant investments made in the business and a relevant work to strengthen the brand, an important asset of the company,” says Eduardo Colombo, commercial director of the network.
Today, Colombo has 251 stores in Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, and plans to open new stores in these three states, depending, however, on factors such as the economy development and areas opportunities. Its stores have an average length of 700 m² and equal guidelines for the exhibition and the merchandising of products, but the layouts take into account the format of the property and the site. It also has national e-commerce and more than 4 thousand employees. Its board of directors is chaired by founder Adelino Colombo, and the board is made up of market professionals, who support executive issues.
In its physical units, the most representative categories of sales are those of home appliances and consumer electronics. The network also sells home appliances, furniture and decoration, and home accessories. “In e-commerce, the product range is broader and expands at all times with the marketplace,” says Eduardo. Some examples are toys, automotive line, mattresses, decor items and range hoods. “Our expectation of revenues for this year is BRL 1.6 billion, an increase of 12% compared to 2018,” adds the director.
At the customer’s disposal
In the retail of electronics, what differentiates Colombo is the focus on customer service, says Eduardo. “The purpose is to offer ease and efficiency through agile delivery. The brand has high capillarity in the South Region. This provides greater confidence in the network and, with e-commerce, it is available to the customer whenever and wherever they want.” E-commerce represents almost 30% of the company’s revenue, a number that tends to grow in the coming years. “It is not treated as an independent channel, it is part of the business and it serves to planning as a network-bound operation,” he adds.
Colombo is working for the total integration between buyers, physical and virtual stores. The goal is to explore all possibilities of interaction with the omnichannel. It is possible, for example, to buy through the website and withdraw the product at any physical store. “The evolution of the multichannel concept, focused on the consumer experience, is a major challenge for retail as a whole. There are some logistical obstacles that have been worked on and are already in the process of evolution within Colombo,” explains the commercial director.
Fairly competitive, the retail market has been changing a lot over the years, and the consumer is becoming more demanding and informed. Factors of this order lead to the permanent search for novelties that facilitate the operation. “The biggest challenge for retailers is to understand the changes and direct investments to review processes, operations, structures, and, within this booming scenario, to keep the business profitable. Colombo is preparing for technological alternatives and developing people, they are the heart of retail,” says Eduardo.
Fonte: Revista Eletrolar News ed. 130
