With ever-busy daily lives and distractions, holidays are the place to truly escape and enjoy being ‘off grid’. So, how do we address this and create environments to buy holidays that are as inspiring and relaxing as the holidays themselves? This is the challenge that Virgin Holidays set out at the beginning of the year with their newest design thinking for their v-room flagship stores.
The starting point of all Virgin Holidays’ award-winning v-room store concepts is always, ‘how do we make the most of the time we have with you, to not only inspire you, but to recharge you and lift your spirits?’. An exciting challenge that experience design agency YourStudio have embraced for the newest iteration of the flagship store designs. The newly opened Liverpool v-room raises the bar as the newest and most human-focused store environment to date, with more than one new surprise for guests.
The store creates a warm environment, inviting you in with a hotel lobby style reception. The palette of materials is designed to frame one very important asset, the amazing Virgin Holidays’ hosts, who we’ve made unmissable in their cherry-red uniforms. YourStudio has created a host of new ways they can customise guests’ interactions and personalise the service experience.
The Sunset Bar at the entrance, is both concierge point and bar, offering everything from sparkling water and coffee to Prosecco. This welcoming starting point for guests starts the customise of guests’ consultation journey. The open space in front of the bar resonates with an airline lounge, giving a relaxing pause point as well as hosting talks and events. All furniture has been designed to reconfigure for this.
This V-room includes two of our latest store features, guests can grab a snack from the Vhols vending machine, a fun and interactive way to grab a sweet treat before their consultation. Should guests want to clear their minds and receive some sensory stimulation then The Sensory Pod is just the place to start. An enclosed portal that helps open their imagination, transporting them out of their everyday and into the holiday mindset, the perfect way to recalibrate the mind and cut off from daily distractions.
Upper-Class cabins complete with digital plane windows give guests a real-life taster of the premium experience and incentivise upgrades. As clouds float past, Prosecco in hand, guests feel one step closer to their holiday experience.
Lastly, and the biggest surprise for guests. Shhhh…the Secret Cinema. A hidden door at the back of the store reveals a plush private cinema where guests can view short screenings and have their own private movie moment with fresh popcorn, refreshments and surround sound and vision.
If guests have booked a Safari and want a little taster of what they are going to see on their travels, Virgin Holidays can whisk them away to the Secret Cinema for an immersive view of what’s to come on the big screen!
