Denmark's first sustainable timber store has great success

STARK HØRSHOLM

December 30, 2019

Denmark’s first sustainable timber store has great success

In February 2020, STARK opened the doors to a brand new and sustainable timber store in Hørsholm to make it easier for customers to build sustainably. The timber store has gotten off to a flying start despite Corona and general restrictions in the industry. With electronic price tags, the staff also save large amounts of time, which can instead be used to give customers the necessary advice.

Sustainability is increasingly in demand in more and more places. This also applies to the construction industry, where Denmark’s first sustainable timber store has opened in Kokkedal Industrial Park in Hørsholm, close to the main road and highway. The STARK chain has opened the new 5,500 square meter timber store, which is built according to the DGNB standard in terms of environmental, social and economic sustainability.

STARK’s focus on sustainability is based on the craftsmen’s own wishes, as many today see sustainable construction as an advantage. According to Britta K. Stenholt, CEO of STARK Denmark, the idea is to give both craftsmen and STARK an advantage at a time when interest in sustainable construction is increasing.

– “Our new timber store in Hørsholm is the epitome of our desire to make it easier for craftsmen to build sustainably. We see this as one of our most important tasks,” she says.

"Installing electronic shelf labels in the new store was a natural fit - simply because we can use the massive time savings to provide even better advice. We also have more time to concentrate on the assortment."

Jonathan Bisgaard, Timber Director at STARK Hørsholm

SIGNIFICANT STREAMLINING OF THE TIMBER LOAD

STARK moved its timber loading operations from Nivå to the brand new premises in Hørsholm. Since the move, the business has got off to a great start with massive customer flow and great growth despite Corona and general restrictions in the industry. The new timber store also offers significant efficiency improvements, both in terms of product range and logistics.

The new location close to access roads and the highway exit will help to further streamline the everyday life of professional customers, where many craftsmen and contractors pass by. In terms of assortment, the new and larger store allows for a significantly larger basic assortment, which ultimately benefits customers.

IT MUST BE EASY TO FIND THE PRODUCTS

The interior of the new timber store is environmentally friendly, as all fixtures are made from sustainable materials and low-energy light sources are used. But for STARK, it’s about more than just sustainability. For customers, it’s important that they can find the right product in the right place. That’s why every STARK store has a guaranteed range of the 1000 most frequently picked items. STARK also has a strong focus on having the right products on the shelves.

– We have a huge selection of products in all price ranges. In addition, it has become particularly easy to find the sustainable products that more and more customers are demanding today. All products have also been given electronic shelf labels that not only show the price, but also mark the sustainable products so they are easy to find,” says Jonathan Bisgaard, Timber Director at STARK Hørsholm and continues

– If the customer requests a specific item, we are happy to order it and we also do our utmost to have the requested item available the very next day.

ELECTRONIC SHELF LABELS ARE A NATURAL ELEMENT

STARK has a clear strategy that the staff must always be ready for customers and have the necessary time to provide professional advice. According to Jonathan Bisgaard, customer service is an important focus area because that’s exactly where you can make a difference with customers.

That’s why STARK started a collaboration with IT company Delfi Technologies on electronic shelf labels for the store, which saves staff a lot of time.

– Installing electronic shelf labels in the new store was a natural fit – simply because we can use the massive time savings to provide even better advice. We also have more time to concentrate on our assortment, ordering and replenishment,” he says.

In the past, it could take up to 2-3 days to get the store ready with new prices in connection with newspaper changes. The same was true when a newspaper ended and prices had to be changed again.

MANY BENEFITS OF ELECTRONIC SIGNAGE

STARK also experiences another benefit from the electronic signage in the store. There are a number of ongoing corrections to price and product information that have nothing to do with the regular newspaper changes. This includes items that are particularly dependent on supply and demand. In the recent Corona era, products such as masks, disposable gloves and hand sanitizer, for example, have seen a particularly high number of ongoing changes.

– Normally, it might take an employee one day every week to handle the ongoing price and product corrections, but with the electronic price tags, we are completely beyond that now, explains Johan Ankerstjerne, store manager at the new STARK timber store in Hørsholm.

Although the majority of STARK’s customers are professional craftsmen and contractors, STARK also sells to private customers. That’s why STARK has a special offer for both professionals and private customers. The electronic price tags also show the price of the product excluding VAT and including VAT. In addition, multi-piece prices are also shown on the signs.

– The biggest advantage is clearly the time saved, and we also now know that the prices are always correct – there are no longer signs that may have a different price on the shelf than at the checkout,” concludes Johan Ankerstjerne.

ABOUT STARK

Stark is a chain of local lumberyards for both professionals and private individuals. The chain saw the light of day in 1896 and has since then had several name changes. The name STARK was added in 1987, when the Danish timber yards came together as an independent division under DDT Detail. Later the group was called DT Group and changed its name to STARK Group in 2017. Today, STARK employs over 2,700 employees and is nationwide in Denmark and Greenland.