Greece is new territory for the ÏDKIDS community. There are now three stores in Athens, two in Thessaloniki and one in Larissa, all in existing Letoshop stores selling babycare and children’s products.
The joint venture with Letoshop took just six months! Preliminary meetings, legal frameworks, location and business methods, site works, procurement, logistics, marketing, accounting, coordination – all requiring teamwork to succeed and a lot of effort by Maria, Greece brand manager, who was invited to Strasbourg to learn more about Okaïdi/Obaïbi by Stéphanie, Strasbourg store manager, and her staff. Training continued in Greece when Stéphanie visited to help out with the opening of the store in Peristeri in Athens.
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Timothée, international area manager
“The project took shape over a few months with two openings a week! We had an opportunity to work with Letoshop which wanted to join forces with Okaïdi as it was impressed with the brand’s strong international identity. This also helped it expand its product range which only catered to 0-5-year-olds. Thanks to Okaïdi, it can now attract parents of older children up to age 12 – a whole new customer base. We’re supporting them with their strategic change in positioning. Our brand is still relatively unknown in Greece, but early feedback has been very encouraging with comments such as ‘quality products’, ‘modern’ and ‘timeless’. The quality and attractiveness of our products give us a strong competitive edge. More store openings are planned for the second half of 2018, and stage two will involve opening stores in Greek shopping centres to raise Okaïdi’s profile even higher.”
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Stéphanie, Okaïdi store manager, Strasbourg
“Our Greek adventure started with a traditional training course when Maria visited our Strasbourg Rivetoile store in the middle of February. My first English lessons had already been quite a challenge. Supporting Maria in Greece was even more incredible! We were able to put everything we saw together into practice and train the team in Peristeri. We shared information, listened to each other, supported each other and laughed a lot together! It was a very educational experience with a strong message: if you can make the work meaningful for your staff, you can move mountains!”
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Maria, brand manager, Greece
“I’m really grateful for this great experience. Seeing how such a well-organized company works and how its brands are growing internationally was incredible. For me, the most important part of this experience was meeting such fantastic people. My first contact with Okaïdi was through Stéphanie who trained me and taught me everything I needed to know about the brand. She’s a wonderful person and very well organized with the perseverance and patience to communicate her knowledge. These store openings have boosted my skills and I really bonded with my colleagues. Okaïdi is more than a big brand – it’s a community that connects with people working together for the same purpose: to build a better world and a brighter future for our children.”
