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Op deze afbeelding staat een custom kinderhoek in een supermarkt

22 January 2020

Childs’ play is universal

Our colleagues at IKC Shanghai may literally be 8875km away from us, but our goal and our approach is exactly the same. Childs’ play is universal and brings the same benefits in Asia as it does in Europe. In 2019, our colleagues have been adding play value to organizations through whole Asia in order to make them more child friendly and improve the customer experience. We’re happy to share a few examples with you: Parts imaginative and safe play corner Romp n' Roll is a play-based American kids education center. Together with IKC, they created a trendy indoor playground in Anji, Zhejiang province, China. This playground is 100 square meters, with multiple colorful elements, evokes the imagination and creativity of children. Due the theme “Protect & explore nature's treasures”, we created a natural, wooden climbing structure with a slide. In addition, we created a mountain with climbing grips and incorporated a tunnel into the EPDM flooring. This motivates the children to explore all the fun elements, while letting their imagination run wild in a safe play area that meets all the local and European safety standards. Play castle adjusted to clients wishes What does a castle mean to a child? It’s the symbol of fairy tales and fantasies. Every child imagines to live in a castle like a real prince or princess. In cooperation with Euroswift, IKC has developed a play castle for all princes and princesses that visit the Fairprice Supermarket. Completely adapted to the wish of the customer, we designed and installed a castle with play modules both on the inside and outside of the castle to ensure that all children can enjoy themselves. The kids’ corner is an eye catcher which makes children feel welcome as well in the supermarket. Parents and children closer together by playing Children are the priority within a family. All parents aim to spend more time with their children and want to be a part of their growth and development.  In June 2019, IKC designed a 60 m2 indoor kids’ corner for Yongchaofu in Hangzhou. The main purpose of the play area is to create a unique playing environment, where children and parents come closer together while playing. The IKC design team has added multiple elements into the playground that allow children to enjoy themselves and they also allow parents to participate. The playground stimulates interactivity, promotes family harmony, and benefits the healthy growth of children. From their new office in Shanghai, our colleagues will support even more organizations in improving their customer experience. Interested? Leave us a note!

By 2025 half of the store space will focus on experience

It is expected that by 2025, half of the retail space in stores will be dedicated to experience. This is concluded in the How To Shop survey by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield retail property party. Dutch consumers already believe that a third of the sales space should be devoted to experience. For large stores like IKEA, 50% of the retail space means a lot of square meters. Yet Mirjam Stox, country retail solutions manager at IKEA, doesn't shy away from it. "I believe we have to get serious about experience. Currently kids up to eight years old can go to Smålland, but for the older children we don't really offer anything...", says Stox. According to the interviewees, experiences such as creative or cultural activities should have a place within a store. Moreover, a third of the people that were surveyed want inspirational shops that stimulate a creative use of the products. And, 39 percent says that they would benefit from the personal help of employees to find the perfect product for themselves. The survey also shows that the vast majority enjoy physical shopping and 80 percent would like to be able to browse freely through various collections. Two-thirds of those surveyed indicate that shops should be adapted to local traditions and customs. 50 percent says they prefer local brands above non-local brands.  Finally, one third of the people that were surveyed said that they were interested in a more personalized offer, especially when it comes to health solutions. If that requires them giving up a DNA sample, one third agrees.  Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield is building a shopping centre in city Leidschendam in the Netherlands. They also manage shopping centres in the cities Almere, Zoetermeer and Amstelveen. The How To Shop survey was conducted among a thousand Dutch consumers.   (2020, 01 13). 'Helft van de winkel op beleving gericht in 2025'. Source: https://retailtrends.nl/news/59083/helft-van-de-winkel-op-beleving-gericht-in-2025 & https://retailtrends.nl/item/59159/zo-komt-ikea-tot-een-juiste-winkelbeleving Would you also like to work on the experience in your store? A kids’ corner will give you more time and room to help customers with children select the perfect product for them. Our retail specialist will be happy to help you. Contact us now

A change in corporate identity, but still the same familiar quality

The new year has begun and we are taking the time to look back on IKC’s journey in  2019. A year in which we have supported many companies in adding play value to their organisation in order to increase their customer loyalty and customer experience. From the café on the corner to the large indoor playgrounds in European shopping malls. Each and every one of these projects contributed to a child-friendly world during the past year.  A nice place for children in a DIY store Our customer Bauzentrum Sandhack is a DIY-store that wanted to create a space especially for their smallest builders. At the request of the customer, we created a suitable design that was installed in the store a few weeks later. The result? A satisfied store-owner who indicates that customers now spend more time in his store. And even more important: the children are happy, so we are happy as well!   Play corner in Amsterdam style OLVG was looking for a free standing play system for their outpatient ophthalmology centre in Amsterdam. One of our designers gave our play system Four fun a complete make over with an Amsterdam theme. The Four fun offers maximum play value on only 1 m2 of floor space. OLVG was extremely happy with this design and the children who visit the OLVG eye clinic nowadays, can enjoy themselves while waiting.   Your own corporate identity in a kids' corner Mid 2019 we installed a kids’ corner for Swim centre Rotterdam. The positive effect of this play area, made the customer decide to choose us again. In January 2020 we will be installing a second, more extensive kids’ corner at the same location. The swim centre was looking for a safe and fun play solution to entertain the brothers and sisters of children who come in for swimming lessons. Both play corners are completely in line with the corporate identity of Sports facility Rotterdam.   An imaginative play corner for a childcare centre At the end of the year, the new Bora Bora location of Daycare centre Second Home in Almere as equipped with a climb and crawl playground. The kids’ corner is placed in the middle of the daycare centre and divides the entire space into two areas. Due to the large amount of play value in this kids’ corner, children of all ages can enjoy themselves every day. The kids’ corner fits seamlessly with the client's desired theme. In 2020 we will continue to support even more organisations in adding play value to their establishments. Will you be one of them? Discover more projects Contact us!  

A tailor made kids’ play area

Custom made play concepts ensure that your kids’ corner is fully in line with your organization. IKC can completely modify any play concept. From a unique idea to a realistic 3D drawing, our design team visualizes your wishes so you know beforehand exactly what you can expect. The follow-up steps, like production and installation, are also managed entirely by IKC, so the quality for each step can be guaranteed. A relaxed consultation through play Rijndam Rehabilitation Healthcare Institute already preceded you. In collaboration with the Erasmus MC-location and the DADA foundation, we placed a kids’ concept in the form of an ambulance. Children can enjoy themselves with wall games and an interactive play system. For a moment, the playing children can escape from their daily lives and worries, making them less nervous during their visit to the hospital and they’ll be more relaxed going into the consultation. Following the input from Rijndam Rehabilitation, one of our designers visualized the design in 3D. This design got an enthusiastic approval of the customer, giving us the go-ahead to start the follow-up process.   The journey from concept to end result During this process, production documents are prepared and shared with our own factory in China. Here the products are manufactured and tested. They need to pass the quality control to ensure that they meet all the most important European safety standards (EN-71). The approved products have a long journey ahead, from the factory to our warehouse in the Netherlands. After the play concepts reach our warehouse, the installation team will go and make the customer happy with their unique and safe kids’ corner. And all this happens within the timespan of only 12 weeks. Do you also want to improve the child-friendliness and customer loyalty of your organization? Contact us!  

Visit us at the Intersport Ordermesse this week

This week IKC is at the Intersport Ordermesse in Heilbronn Germany. Intersport Retailers come here to find new collections and inspiration for their stores. Since the 1960’s Intersport is the specialist store where you can find sports equipment and sportswear. Their aim is to contribute to a healthier world by offering sports equipment worldwide in more than 5300 shops in 44 countries. By adding a play concept to their stores, children will be introduced to different sports in a playful way. A game table tailored to your needs Together with Intersport, we have created a customized Delta 32-inch Touchtable with 8 Intersport Touch games. The touch games contain a sports theme and each game focusses on a different sport. The advantage of the Touchtable is that up to four children can play on the interactive screen at the same time. Meanwhile, their parents have more time to browse in the shop, find sports equipment and try on new clothing. The Touchtable offers a lot of play value for children of all ages and doesn’t take up a lot of sales floor space, making it perfect for any Intersport store. Are you attending the Intersport Ordermesse? Come to our booth and benefit from the special Intersport Ordermesse discount. If you're not able to visit the Ordermesse this week but you are interested in the play concept, please contact our specialists or visit our booth at the next Intersport Ordermesse at the end of January.

HEMA connects on a playful level with their youngest visitors

Dutch Retail chain HEMA is an experienced player in the department store industry, with almost 800 branches in 9 countries. Originally HEMA was a family-owned business, which has expanded all over the world due to their great branding strategy. A positive brand experience among young audiences Just like any retailer, HEMA want to build a strong, loyal relationship with customers so they'll choose their store everytime. By introducing children to a brand in a positive way from an early age, you build a lifelong relationship. Fun is an essential part of this. Children who playfully take in your colours, smells and other distinctive features of your business, will be more likely to choose your store when they grow up. In cooperation with HEMA, IKC has developed play concepts for in the store and restaurants. These kids’ corners completely match the recognisable HEMA look and feel. An additional advantage is that the play solutions integrate perfectly into the interior of the stores.  Hema play corners Kids' play kitchen For the HEMA restaurants we designed a matching kids’ play kitchen. This play concept consists of multiple modules that can be mixed and matched to create a kids’ corner of any size, making it suitable for every restaurant, large or small. The play kitchen is made from strong and durable materials, it doesn’t contain any loose parts and is easy to clean. This saves tidying up the play corner and it is also safer for the playing children. Discover the play kitchen Instore play concept The instore concept IKC has designed for HEMA is tailored to the standard shelf size that is used in the stores. This enables shop owners to place the play corner in the store without having to make many changes to the current layout. This efficient concept minimises the loss of sales space. Discover the kids’ corner Are you looking for a play corner for your organisation? Please contact us for the possibilities.

Playing and learning in the kids' corner at Kennemerduinen

Playing contributes to the learning process of children from an early age. Through play, children learn to understand situations and to think ahead. They become creative, inventive and they explore the world. The kids' corner of the Kennemerduinen visitor centre is a perfect example of how playing and learning can be combined. Check out the end result of this project here. Fun in tune with the nature reserve The visitor centre forms the main entrance to National Park Zuid-Kennemerland. This is a large dune area in the Netherlands with beautiful flora and fauna. The kids' corner consists of custom wall games that help children to understand the water cycle in these dunes. They also learn about separating waste to keep the nature reserve clean and about the animals that can be found in the national park. The Forex wall, which is placed behind the wall games, shows elements from the nature park such as the lake, the observatory and the Scottish Highland cattle.     The visitor centre has added the educational kids' corner to their exhibition area, because they want to offer enough activities for young and old. By placing the play corner in the exhibition area, children can enjoy themselves while their parents and other visitors have more time to admire the exhibition. The IKC play concepts are suitable for all children. Every child learns and plays in his or her own way with our play systems. Are you also looking for educational play concepts? Check out our products Back to the news overview  

Sneak peek: New furniture collection

The first samples of our new kids furniture collection "BUXUS", passed the quality check in our production facility in Jiaxing, China.  Innovation is one of the main reasons of our quick growth wordwide. Let's take our new collection "BUXUS" as an example. Our designers were challenged to create a kids furniture collection with a natural look while giving people the irresistible WOW feeling. This completely in line with the latest trends and yet our usual 100% quality. In our opinion, a real collector's item. In addition to a table with chairs, the "BUXUS" collection includes a beautiful sofa and as showpiece a lounge chair. We're thrilled to give you a sneak peek of the new collection:     Go to our current kids furniture collection Return to our news overview

The official opening of our new IKC Asia office

Today we officially celebrated the opening of our new headquarters in buidling 1933 in the famous XinXin creativity park in Shanghai. Our designers have developed unique office furniture that our factory produced from the same FSC-certified wood as our sustainable play solutions.  Check out our modern, new workplace:     In this new office, we will create new kids corners, innovate play concepts and expose our newest designs and kids concepts in the showroom. To keep up with the growth of the market, our company and the design wishes of our customers we are expanding our Shanghai team with new sales and marketing colleagues. More on this will follow soon. Would you like to make an appointment in our European or Asian headquarters? Contact us now Return to the news overview  