Over 150 participants from eight countries came together at the STI Group's POS congress to discuss the display of the future and the future of the display.

To commemorate 50 years of corrugated cardboard displays in Europe, international experts from the branded goods, retail and advertising industries accepted the STI Group's invitation to partake in a journey through 50 years of display history followed by a daylong congress with high-quality presentations from internationally renowned trend researchers and POS experts.

Moderator Hans G. Güldenberg, formerly Chairman of the Board at Nestlé Deutschland AG and himself for many decades the person responsible for the POS strategy from numerous household brands, deftly handled the role of moderator, tying the many different elements of the programme together into one fascinating whole.

The speakers all agreed that POS communication bears tremendous importance in this age of online communication, perhaps more so than ever before. After all, the POS is precisely where the customer and the product come into personal contact. Dr. Martina Kühne, Senior Consultant at the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute of Zurich describes the store as the "third place, alongside the living room and the workplace, that people treat as a key point of contact". "Roughly 220 times each year, people visit one of an average of 13 commercial establishments", confirms Dr. Hendrik Schröder, Chair for Marketing and Trade at the University of Duisburg-Essen. He is calling on the decision makers of the marketing work to focus their advertising activities under the motto "less is more". Overly complicated advertising confuses the customer instead of providing orientation at the POS.

Ibrahim Ibrahim, owner and operator of the London-based design agency Portland, focused his speech on the shopper and her needs. "When they go shopping, customers aren't just looking for values, they themselves are looking first and foremost to be appreciated."

Dr, Frank Ohle, CEO of the STI Group, challenged his listeners to tell stories with their products. For him, this is a portion of the emotional image of a brand, one that ought to stand as a counterweight to the logical image. In his speech on "Displays between Logistics and Emotions", he and co-presenter Scott Neidhold focused on how well-considered designs could build a bridge between the two aspects. Mr Neidhold was for several years responsible for the look and execution of displays for Procter & Gamble in the USA. "What is ultimately important for all involved," Ohle says, "are numbers and facts: the question is whether the display was in a position to increase sales and also reduce process costs at the time. That is what the STI Group is after."

Just how to measure those numbers was the subject of the talk by Bram Nauta, Managing Director for the Benelux at POPAI. His highly insightful presentation revealed the results of an eye-tracking study conducted in 2008 and 2009 with the support of Dutch retailers and branded goods makers. The goal was to quantify the value of individual in-store measures.

"The consumer requires a positive confirmation of his or her brand selection at the POS. Existing brand consciousness should be called up and turned into the final push to buy. If the consumer is disappointed at the POS or if a different brand or more affordable generic product appears more attractive, then all of the marketing work is for nothing!", reported Henk Knaupe, Managing Director at Scholz & Friends Sales Affairs. He summed up the central statements of the congress into one pithy phrase: "from soloists to an orchestra".

Alongside the congress itself, participants also had a chance to visit Europe's most modern display factory in the Hessen town of Grebenhain. Broadcasters RTL and Hessische Rundfunk also used the opportunity to peek backstage and report on the 50 year success story of the display. Their pieces are available online at www.rtl-hessen.de and www.hr-fernsehen.de .

For the STI Group, the POS Congress was just the start of an addition project: in mid-June the Deutscher Fachverlag will be releasing a reference guide based on the insights from the congress. The title, perhaps wisely, comes from the congress itself: "Greif zu und kauf mich".