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CASE STUDIES • El Corte Inglés

El Corte Inglés and Planet improve Tax Free shoppers' experience

El Corte Inglés is the biggest department store group in Europe and the third largest worldwide. International shoppers needed to get their Tax Free forms and refunds at their clients Service Desk. To deliver a specialised, personalised customer experience, Planet opened two Tax Refund Lounges on El Corte Inglés flagship stores in Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca.

Challenge

Aware of the importance of the international shopper and the attraction that tax free has for luxury shopping, El Corte Inglés aimed to offer these customers a VIP service that would encourage them to spend more. At the same time needed to free up its in-house customer service to improve its efficiency when providing non Tax Free related support.

Solution

Located in Plaça de Catalunya (Barcelona) and Avinguda d'Alexandre Rosselló (Palma de Mallorca), international shoppers enjoy a VIP service that includes issuing Planet tax-free invoices from El Corte Inglés shops, refund of tax-free vouchers from Planet merchants, advice from Planet professionals, a rest area with complimentary water and coffee, automatic refund kiosks to speed up transactions and an area with greater privacy, an incentive for this customer profile. In addition, El Corte Inglés encourages recurrent spending in the shop by rewarding with 10% those who choose the El Corte Inglés gift card and decide to reinvest the amount of the VAT refund in its shops.

Planet VIP Tax Refund Lounges at El Corte Inglés stores

Planet VIP Tax Refund Lounges at El Corte Inglés stores

Results

As a result of Planet's technical solution and dedicated space, El Corte Inglés was able to issue higher volumes of tax-free voucher and process VAT refunds quickly, leading to a better in-store customer experience. Thanks to Planet's expertise in top-class service for department stores, El Corte Inglés provided a better shopping experience for international shoppers, impacting in higher match rate and refunds.

Efficiency

Tax-free vouchers issued and processed in the same place, providing a better in-store customer experience

Flexibility

Shoppers benefit from attended or self-refunds provided in cash, credit card or El Corte Inglés gift card, with an additional incentive

Increase

Match rate by offering detailed information about the validation process & Refund volumes thanks to the simplicity and convenience of the process

Javier Fernandez Andrino, Chief international retail and luxury officer

“I believe that the evolution of the company together with Planet as a partner in the Tax Free service has made us go from a weakness in the way we do things to being leaders or one of the leading companies in Europe in this process, as our clients tell us.”

Javier Fernández Andrino

Director of International Retail and Luxury Business Development, El Corte Inglés