On 15 October 2024 a new VR headset launched with Batman: Arkham Shadow, and our ambassadors were in 59 stores on day one: Currys, John Lewis, Smyths and Argos, from Edinburgh and Newcastle to Belfast, Cardiff and Southampton. They stayed until Christmas.
- 2,750+shifts in store
- 59stores in five nations
- 4retailers
Start before launch day
Headcount had to grow quickly for launch, and every new starter went through the retailer’s own training before their first shift. Recruit and train two to three weeks before the launch date, and keep a bench of trained people in each region for illness and holidays. Plan the second week of a rollout as carefully as the first.
Get the store manager on side
Your ambassador is a guest in someone else’s shop. Store managers decide where the demo goes, whether there’s stock to sell and how the ambassador is treated on a Saturday afternoon. Introduce the ambassador before their first shift, agree the space, and make sure the store knows to call us, not you.
Plan the second week of a rollout as carefully as the first.
Keep a record of shared kit
On the VR launch there was one demo kit per store, shared between ambassadors on different days. So every handover was agreed with the store manager and photographed. A dated photo of every handover keeps the kit accounted for all the way through.
Send the same report every day
Every shift was reported through the client’s app, and planned against actual visits went to the brand every Monday, with mystery shoppers in stores. When you can’t visit 59 stores, the report is how you see them. Keep it short enough that ambassadors fill it in properly, and consistent enough that you can compare Belfast with Brentford.
Weekends first, then grow
For an AI laptop campaign in 2024 we started with weekends only, in 13 Currys stores from Kensington to Liverpool, before a month-long residency on Oxford Street. Weekends are where footfall is, and they let you learn before you commit to weekday cover.
Checklist
- Every starter trained before their first shift
- A plan for working with each store manager
- Shared kit handovers agreed and photographed
- One report per shift, same format everywhere
- A phased start before full rollout
Common questions
How big can a retail rollout get?
Our VR headset launch covered 59 stores across four retailers, with 2,750+ shifts in store.
How do you manage shared demo kit?
Every handover is agreed with the store manager and photographed.
How is a rollout reported?
Every shift through the client’s app, with planned against actual visits sent to the brand every week.
Send us the store list and dates and we’ll plan recruitment, training and cover region by region.
