OMV Format Innovation with CAF and Bona Design Lab

How are European convenience giant OMV preparing for the future? Shop Talk LIVE recently spoke to Gernot Gollner, head of OMV’s petrol station business in Austria and the organisation’s new concept store and supermarket collaboration. Then we discussed some of the key talking points with CAF’s Mike Zahajko and Joe Bona.

OMV has a 6B EURO turnover, 22,000 employees and operates 2,100 service stations in 10 European countries. Its’ own VIVA format focuses on foodservice and a premium coffee experience.

OMV has been busy developing partnerships with multiple supermarket brands and Gernot discusses progress and the decision making process to fit in with different customer needs with REWE, Billa (owned by REWE), SPAR and Auchan. Some of OMV’s biggest successes have come in markers like Romania, but only because OMV make very important adjustments to its retail offer to take in very distinct customer needs.

Overall, although convenience business is coming back across its European markets, OMV retail operations remain under pressure because of tightening labour markets and this has led OMV to join other retailers in experimenting with automated stores: OMV recently opened its first ‘OMV Fastlane’, an unmanned petrol station and convenience store format, which is contactless and completely digitised.

The new OMV Fastlane format has been opened at an existing site in Linz in partnership with start-up BistroBox, which offers a 24-hour self-serve pizzeria concept and UNIBox, which is part of the Austrian supermarket chain Unimarkt.

One of the interesting discussions we have is whether automated solutions can also be premium locations? The customer experience dimension is also a topic we really get into during Carolyn’s conversation with Mike and Joe which reflects on OMV’s offer.

Joe’s view is that retailers probably need to choose between a store built for speed and efficiency and store built to offer a high level of service, that it is difficult to do both. Mike quotes from an interesting CAF study undertaken in 2,000 sites across Europe which asks customers what drives a five star rating. He shares the results that friendliness was most important in customer experience, followed by food options, cleanliness, drink options and, only then, low fuel price.