Qualified advice, pleasant atmosphere

They are dedicated, experienced and well trained: Our shop employees are the public face of our company. They make a significant contribution to Tchibo’s good reputation through their immediate contact with our customers – and also determine our customers’ satisfaction. They provide information about our products and respond to the individual wishes and requests of those who visit our shops. Our salespeople’s skilled and friendly manner is founded on the regular training measures they take part in as well as on the outstanding working atmosphere they benefit from – the latest “Great Place to Work^®” study confirms that our shop employees enjoy a high level of satisfaction and motivation.

KISS – More freedom for our customers

Something being good, though, doesn’t mean it couldn’t be better. In 2009, according to a study, our shop workers spent about 40 per cent of their time at work completing administrative tasks such as inventory, counting cash, returns, inspecting incoming goods or doing paperless daily accounting. We want to change this within the KISS initiative. “Keep it Simple and Short” aims to lighten the load for our shop employees so they can devote themselves still more fully to our customers. We are conducting tests to find ways to optimise numerous areas of activity, such as logistics, supply chain, IT, office work and sales in the field. In 2010, we were already able to implement 16 individual measures.

A few examples: Since 1 August 2010, customers have been able to reach us via a central shop service hotline. Transferring about 7,000 telephone calls a week, the hotline relieves our shop employees while making sure our customers continue to receive top-class service. We have also implemented a simpler and more efficient way of processing complaints. Since the end of 2010, all products sold in Germany have a return label. Customers can make complaints about products for free and with very little effort, sending them directly back to us – which significantly shortens our processing times.

Multifaceted training for our shop employees

Our huge variety of products and the growing complexity of our consumer goods pose a particular challenge to our shop employees. We conduct regular training measures to enable them to give our customers reliable information about the entire product range, offering varied training courses with themed focal points and relating to the individual needs of shops and employees. In 2010, all training courses for 1085 employees were carried out by in-house coaches. We achieve a high success rate by individually preparing our training participants and following up with them.

The multimedia shop intranet, communication and integration via district managers and sales managers, and specialised training for shop managers at our headquarter are all examples of the multifaceted measures we take to ensure that our employees, including those working in our shops, are always comprehensively well-informed and up-to-date and that they are as thoroughly trained as possible.

New concept for Tchibo shops

In 2010, we embarked on the first reorganisations of our shops into our new shop formats “Filiale 2010” (Shop 2010) and “Tchibolino”. “Tchibolino” is our shop concept for small retail spaces; these shops are mainly located in small and medium-sized towns and in city suburbs.
The “Tchibolino” concept emerged from the 2010 shop concept and adapts ideally to the particular features of small retail spaces. Two Tchibolino shops opened in 2010, in the towns of Kamp-Lintfort and Mölln.

In large city locations and shopping centres, 2010 saw the introduction of the “Filiale 2010” shop concept with the opening of eight new-generation shops in locations including Hamburg, Lübeck and Passau. Regardless of the format strategy employed, the shops are united by Tchibo’s harmonious signature combination of coffee bars, the non-food section with consumer goods, and coffee retail. The shops’ interiors and exteriors have been revamped, with new furnishing formats and a differentiated range in the coffee bar area. These shops are beacons for the Tchibo brand.

Sustainability: an issue in Tchibo shops too

We have made it our responsibility to foster sustainable consumption. This also means that our shop employees should be able to clearly and simply explain the environmental and social quality characteristics of our products, such as our sustainable coffees. To support our employees in this endeavour, we have compiled a thorough, yet easy-to-understand shop information guide on “Sustainability at Tchibo”. This guide is continuously expanded, in view of the increasing percentage of sustainable goods in our product range, and ensures that our shop employees are not only informed about the most important standards, but also that they can explain our commitment to sustainability to our customers upon their request.