Why a new brand purpose?
Kitchen design is easy to imitate, making it a challenge for manufacturers to stand out in a crowd – and develop within the broader market. Therefore, Kunde & Co and HTH made a decision to focus on the emotional aspect of the brand, including the entire customer experience. And so, while HTH was happy with sales and the overall stability of the business, the manufacturer knew it had to create a clear brand story that could inspire. A brand story that could strengthen HTH’s brand position and allow it to continue growing.
The two-in-one brand
HTH was among the first kitchen manufacturers to offer customers free interior design help – in addition to delivering fully assembled cabinets to people’s front doors. And so, in the mid-90s, HTH decided to harness the strength of its corporate brand and launch a new sub-brand: Do It Yourself HTH. Here, customers had the option of drawing, assembling and picking up their HTH kitchens themselves – in order to save money. Over time the sub-brand became a huge success, and, until 2016, was the third best-selling kitchen brand in Denmark. But there was a downside. HTH had to spend a lot of resources on communicating the differences between both of its concepts, resulting in a loss of focus. With this in mind, HTH concluded there was a need to create a new brand narrative. One focused exclusively around the original HTH brand – with the ‘Do It Yourself’ sub-brand being folded into the main brand.
Developing the right process
Together, HTH and Kunde & Co facilitated a process that would, ultimately, result in a new brand narrative and brand purpose. The scope of the project focused on producing sustainable and relevant insights from the right stakeholders: in order to identify that "sweet spot" between consumers' needs and wishes, and the special competencies and values that characterise and distance HTH from its competitors.
Understanding the customer journey is key
In order to make a real difference, companies need an in-depth knowledge and understanding of the emotions that influence consumer behaviour and preferences. Buying a new kitchen is not done on impulse. It is a process by which several factors have to be considered before the customer finds the kitchen for them.
To take into account the entire customer journey, the project, therefore, consisted of a comprehensive quantitative consumer analysis, as well as interviews with HTH employees who deal with customers on a daily basis.
Identification of HTH’s unique selling points
Another important task was to identify the unique values HTH brings to the market. This part of the project consisted of in-depth interviews and workshops with members of the management team and internal stakeholders within sales and marketing. A mix of people who had been with HTH for decades and who had years of industry experience – to ensure the real core of HTH could be identified.
Kitchen love doesn’t fade
Kunde & Co converted the results of the analysis into a brand purpose and conceptual narrative that puts words, feelings and images into what HTH contributes to the market. It is a story
that HTH’s employees and customers can gather around, and which is expressed in the concept: “Kitchen love that lasts”. A platform that fulfils HTH’s goals across every level, and which speaks to the target group's kitchen dreams.
Omnichannel rollout
HTH and Kunde & Co collaborated to unfold the brand concept and narrative across digital and analogue channels, as well as relevant brand touch points along the customer journey. Each element was optimised in relation to its role in the customer journey, thereby allowing HTH to attract even more customers through its sales funnel. For example, Kunde & Co developed in-store concepts and elements to build a bridge between brand and sales, turning stores into an integral part of HTH’s marketing and product/brand staging.
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