Argos aiming to broaden appeal and become “digital retail leader”

Argos is focusing on digital innovation to transform its retail model in a bid to target higher demographic customers, said its digital operations director.

Speaking to Marketing at the Bazaarvoice Summit last week, Mark Steel reinforced the company’s commitment to broadening the brands appeal by employing a number of digital initiatives.

Steel referenced the retailers’ investment in a London-based digital hub to cultivate innovation, which has so far delivered a kids’ Christmas wish list app and has helped build the brands’ integration with Sainsbury’s to deliver more customer contact points.

“One of the pillars of our five year transformation plan (launched in 2012) is something that we call ‘universal customer appeal’,” he said.

“Over the last couple of years we’ve seen the rate of growth in mobile increase. It’s a really big part of our business now; it’s grown incredibly successfully for Argos.

“We know we have a high level of penetration of all different types of customer group across the UK but we have a slight skew towards a less affluent demographic group, so universal customer appeal is about trying to make our brand even more appealing to different customer groups. “

Steel hopes the brands real-time view of stock and its sense of immediacy will help to “reinvigorate” the brand to appeal to a wider audience and help it stay tuned to the digital age.