In 2003, Michel van Tongeren wrote Retail Branding, which was reprinted several times. In this book, he introduced the Platform Development Model, a method explaining a holistic approach to developing retail brands and formulas. His approach was holistic in the sense that the customer experiences the whole retail operation in a single visit. Now, eight years later, Michel and his company, SVT Branding + Design Group, have expanded his model by exploring the whole customer journey. They found that not everything starts with the brand; the outside world is as important as the brand attitude. In his new book, 1 to 1 The Essence of retail branding in the ever changing world, Michel connects the inside with the outside approach, following the customer s journey from the couch at home to buying the physical product and covering all the steps in between, offline and online. The book is practical and inspirational. As a manual for retail brand and formula development, it offers many practical examples and cases and is easy to use. It is also inspirational because it speaks about our lives, our changing attitudes and about our favourite pastime: shopping!
