Flemish Kringwinkel thrift stores celebrate 25th anniversary with a new baseline

After 25 years, Kringwinkel gets a new baseline and a more contemporary store concept. Under the slogan “Phenomenally Social,” the secondhand chain aims to communicate its social mission more clearly, while a revamped store design is intended to enhance the customer experience.

Highlighting the social aspect

Kringwinkel is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a new tagline: “Phenomenally Social.” The organization unveiled the slogan last Saturday during Kringwinkel Day in Sint-Kruis near Bruges. After a quarter-century, the new message replaces the existing positioning and is intended to make it clearer that Kringwinkel is much more than just a secondhand retailer.

“We want to emphasize even more strongly why we exist and what we stand for,” Gino Van Ossel, chairman of the Kringwinkel Group, told Focus Wtv. “We’re socially responsible toward items by giving them an affordable second life. We’re socially responsible toward neighborhoods, because our stores are pleasant gathering places. We’re also socially responsible toward the future, because the circular economy is becoming increasingly important, and we’re socially responsible toward people as well.”

Focus on the shopping experience

The new slogan goes hand in hand with a revamp of the store concept. In Sint-Kruis, Kringwinkel has already introduced a contemporary design, with a more spacious feel, clearer product categories, and a more appealing presentation of the product range. The organization plans to roll out the concept in the coming months.

“We are, of course, a retailer. We have no choice but to embrace that experience to some extent in order to remain relevant and interesting,” says Director Bie Buelens. “In this way, we also strengthen our identity and, above all, our brand recognition with a single, clear store image.”

145 stores and 6,000 employees

Kringwinkel was founded 25 years ago when several Flemish thrift stores united under a single brand name. The organization now has 145 stores and more than 6,000 employees. The majority of them are employed through social employment programs, in close collaboration with sheltered workshops.

To celebrate its 25th anniversary, the 145 stores organized numerous activities on Saturday, ranging from workshops and styling advice to social gatherings around festive tables. Kringwinkel also distributed 3,625 unique, upcycled goodie bags, which employees made in the organization’s own sewing workshops. With its new positioning and the modernization of its store network, Kringwinkel aims to maintain its social character while simultaneously increasing its commercial appeal.

At the RetailDetail Night on November 19, experienced retail CEO Bie Buelens will explain how she plans to make Kringwinkel—as a unique game-changer—both more of a retailer and more socially oriented, and what industry peers can learn from this approach.