What role does GRANHAND's approach of operating only directly managed stores without entering external shopping malls actually play?
This raises curiosity about the background behind why the brand is hard to find in online shopping malls or large select shops. It prompts the question of why they insisted on offline direct-store-centered distribution without external sales channels and what the practical effect is.
It plays the role of creating an environment where they can communicate directly with customers and fully preserving the spatial atmosphere and customer service tone intended by the brand.
Although there were no advertisements and online sales, they steadily increased offline spaces to welcome customers. From 2014 to the present, GRANHAND has not conducted any advertising or promotions through media or celebrities at all[1]. In order to directly converse and communicate with customers, amid numerous store entry proposals, they focused on expanding offline stores without having an online sales channel for over 7 years[2][3]. The online store opened only when it reached 2021[4].
Sales channels remain directly managed stores only to this day. GRANHAND has an operating policy of not distributing or selling products through routes other than the online and offline stores it operates directly[5]. In general, operating only directly managed stores without going through intermediate distribution channels may narrow accessibility, but it allows the brand to fully preserve its intended standards, from spatial presentation to customer service attitude. hmmm, the persistence in refusing distribution paths that quickly gather customers can be read as an attitude of not leaving even the first impression of encountering scents to someone else's hands.
The specific motivation behind opening an online store in 2021 after not opening an online mall for over 7 years has not yet been confirmed.