Krispy Kreme Optimizes Customer Experience with Complete Digital Signage Solution

The infrastructure has different solutions such as menu board, in different formats and configurations, Vertical Totems and Video Wall. Embed Signage software is being used to manage this complete digital signage network.

Krispy Kreme is a company whose origins go back to 1937 in Winston-Salem (North Carolina). However, will be in 2003 when you disembark in the UK, in Harrods. Currently, sells its donuts at gas stations, Shopping malls and hypermarkets. It has a presence in more than 1.100 stores with partners such as Tesco, Morrisons, Welcome Break and outlet Center Parcs.

With the aim of carrying out a complete digital transformation, commissioned its IT solution provider, Theravada, that subcontracted to Eclipse Digital, to provide a variety of digital signage services, including hardware architecture, Supply, Installation and Support.

Krispy Kreme UK has been rolling out digital menu boards in its Theatre stores, Rockets, Drive Thrus and fresh produce from across the UK. These have been designed in different configurations and formats including totems Drive Thru vertical and horizontal internal promotional displays, as well as single-screen portrait and landscape equipment, in 5×1 and 2×1 in portrait, in 3×1 in landscape, and large format.

Theravada provides the complete solution to Krispy Kreme UK with display technology, Installation Services and Support. Provisioning and configuring media players, software and hardware has been carried out by Eclipse Digital.

Embed Signage is the digital signage software that has been used in this project and offers support for unlimited resolution settings. It provides tools that allow campaigns to be easily scheduled and rules to be specified to trigger different content.

The software includes functionality to synchronize content, integrate external systems such as LED lighting and for devices to activate content on other devices… plus many more features that Krispy Kreme uses depending on the store and the experience it wants to offer the customer.

The content displayed on the menu board consists of a combination of images and prices along with animated promotion sections. Some animations cover only one screen, other than small sections of a screen.

“The main reason for choosing this technology is the user experience. I think it's the best option and not only visually, but also intuitively. In addition, The features are extensive and the team has been very supportive”, comments Mike Tinnion, Senior Manager of Creative and Content at Krispy Kreme UK.

Although digital menu boards are a key element for in-store initiatives, Krispy Kreme has gone above and beyond to deliver customer experiences like GEN8 digital cabinets, located off-site and using presence sensing as well as experiences Hot Now with boards that trigger content and lighting changes. All this is possible thanks to integration.

“We are able to do things like content synchronization, Integrate external systems for processes such as lighting control and presence detection, Use tablets to turn on content on other screens, Add tags for playlist creation, Programming site-specific content, in addition to having all kinds of different resolutions, What is very important for our stores, where we use unique screen sizes such as headboards and Led walls", explains Phil Goldsmith, Content Executive de Krispy Kreme UK.

Menu board

Digital menu boards are used in most 'Theatre and Fresh' stores across the UK and have been deployed in various configurations,s as a single screen in portrait format, vertical of 5×1 and 2×1, Landscape 3×1, LCD video wall, Large large-format header screens, Shelf labels and IP65 outdoor solutions.

The primary menu board setting is 3×1 and each screen is used to display different content with promotions on either one or all screens.

In unique store configurations, as Canary Wharf, where it stretches along a walkway, A different approach is needed. With limited space, elongated header screens, shelf edge labels and direct view LED walls (Direct View) are used to deliver product information, Pricing and promotional messages.

“The infinite range of supported resolutions, through inlay, means maximum flexibility. When designing new stores or improving old ones, there are no restrictions on what we can do with digital signage, which gives our stores a really fun and creative feel. Practically, All devices are compatible and the variety is there to meet every need”, Goldsmith clarifies.

GEN8 Cabinets

Krispy Kreme was looking to make fundamental changes to the way donuts were presented and sold in stores at partner sites such as Tesco and Welcome Break, through the introduction of digital technology in your cabinets. The new digital cabinets, called 'GEN8' aimed to increase sales.

In January 2020, started a pilot project in 15 Tesco stores and 5 by Welcome Break. The results were analyzed not only in terms of income, but also to the behavior of buyers. The test was considered very positive and 140 More digital cabinets were rolled out in Tesco stores in October.

“The initial rehearsal went very well and now we will continue the rollout in many more. We are only at the beginning of this journey and there are great opportunities to further develop the content to surprise and delight our customers at the point of sale”, says Suk Nichols, Sales Director of Krispy Kreme UK.

GEN8 cabinets are a first for the Krispy Kreme brand globally. Include stretched header displays and shelf edge labels (SEL) that are designed to capture customers' attention. Brand Reinforcement Content, as 'Made Fresh Daily' is shown in the headers along with a waterfall covering all the SELs, giving the entire cabinet an undeniable presence. Curious consumers approach the cabinet and once they are close enough, its presence is detected and the SEL content changes to present the product name, Description, Price and allergens.

Each cabinet, which has been designed and manufactured by Alrec and Theravada, has digital header screens (a frontal 37 inches and one on each side of 21 Inch), that are used to reinforce key brand messages, as 'Made Fresh Daily', as well as to provide targeted and personalized content, depending on the store, Time of day and season.

Likewise, There is a high-definition screen of 15 internally mounted inches that is used to convey brand messages and promotional material such as film “How it's done” or “Buy a dozen”.

Display cases also include digital shelf edge labels (SEL) used to display looping images (for example, A cascade of 'doughnuts') to get customers' attention, as well as complete specifications of the product's ingredients, allowing customers to check for allergens.

Presence sensors are used to detect when someone is inside a specific area in front of the cabinet. This causes content to change in SELs, that go from a cascade of donuts to fixed product information for the customer to make their purchase decision.

The cabinets include an Led light strip at the bottom that illuminates the floor below giving a 'floating' effect. The color can be changed to match the brand's content and message.

All content, Sensor parameters, the triggers and colors of the Led strip are controlled through a cloud-based digital signage software Embed Signage.

“The introduction of the GEN8 cabinet has rewarded Krispy Kreme with unprecedented sales and revenues in the off-premise business, and we hope that this will continue with the introduction of more such solutions in the near future. None of this would have been possible without the expertise and support of Embed Signage”, comments Phil Goldsmith, Content Executive at Krispy Kreme UK.

Led Direct View

Krispy Kreme UK first experimented with Direct View Led technology at its Baker Street store, where a long and wide space was transformed into a digital screen. This served to attract customers from afar. Given its success, has expanded its implementation in other stores and in very creative ways.

Eclipse Digital opted for the Absen to be installed in different interior locations. Screens that offer a pixel pitch of 2,4 mm in different formats and sizes.

In Canary Wharf, two portrait banners have been installed on each side of the shop that attract the attention of people passing by; while the one on Baker Street has a header in portrait format. At the Westfield Stratford store, there is a curved concave Led screen that wraps around the condiment area, providing opportunities for smart, creative content to flow through the space.

Other stores will see the introduction of LED as Krispy Kreme adopts this technology.

With Embed software, Krispy Kreme can integrate direct view LED displays of all shapes, sizes and resolutions and also has the ability to control brightness with TCP or RS232. Embed has several features designed specifically for the deployment of Led screens, such as the ability to specify the exact size and position of pixels for content playback, as well as creating designs with the exact resolution of pixels.

Hotlight Experiences

At their Westfield Stratford location, A solution was sought that would offer a real 'show' when making the donuts. In the Hot Now they are made on the spot and customers see it. This is known as Hotlight.

It all starts with a touchscreen tablet 10 inches where staff can activate the Hot Now countdown. They press a button on the screen and this starts the countdown on the 5×1 digital board menus. While this is happening, The content changes every time 5 minutes, including a full-screen crescendo promotion on both the 5×1 portrait and 2×1 portrait menus.

Once the countdown ends, Content changes to menu Hot Now and promotional, The lights dim in the store and the main entrance of the store is activated.

To offer this experience Hot Now a POE touch screen is used 10 Inch, for the activation of the countdown; video wall screen Samsung with digital signage media players iBase for the 2×1 and 5×1 portrait menus, and Tiger power units with iBase players for lighting control.

Content integration, communication with the device and lighting system is managed through Embed Signage software.

Drive Thrus

The 'Krispy Kreme Drive Thrus' are hugely successful venues in the UK and Ireland, and more are released every year.

In addition to digital board menus inside stores, Krispy Kreme also needed digital displays to provide promotional material and menu content.

Theravada designed, supplied and installed Krispy Kreme's bespoke drive thru totems in collaboration with IVC Signs. These include Samsung's high-brightness outdoor displays along with iBase's digital signage media players.

Other articles about Absen, Absen LED, Alrec, Eclipse Digital Media, Embebed Signage, iBASE Technology, IVC Signs, Krispy Kreme, Samsung, Theravada