THE largest dedicated DS Store in the north-west of England opened its doors yesterday in Manchester.
Located on a new site in Windsor Street, off Albion Way, the 268 sq m showroom combines the physical and virtual and can display six DS cars around a lounge area. It also boasts crafted items from collectors’ models to leather bags, which DS Automobiles says will allow people ‘to try before they buy in a stylish and chic environment that is nonetheless a warm and welcoming atmosphere’.
Jason Chick, general manager for DS Store Manchester, said: ‘The new DS Store Manchester has a very different feel to a traditional car showroom, being very obviously premium and spacious while providing customers with a feeling of well-being while within the DS experience.’
Architect Mike Strain, from Scaramanga Design, spent two years working on the project and said: ‘This showroom concept is unlike anything I’ve worked on before. Everything from the floor tiles to the wall cladding has been carefully chosen to exude quality. We’ve even worked on lighting that picks out specific design features of the cars on display.’
DS Automobiles UK marketing director Mark Blundell added: ‘We’ve used intuitive technology such as DS Virtual Vision to be at the forefront of new ways for our customers to specify, experience and buy a new car in order to make their lives easier and better informed. DS Store Manchester has been finished with great attention to detail. The result has the French savoir-faire we’re renowned for and, most importantly, we’ve created an appealing environment for our customers to immerse themselves with the DS brand.’
Visitors can touch, feel, see and even smell a comprehensive collection of sample materials in a dedicated area, while donning the DS Virtual Vision headset will enable them to be fully interactive with their chosen selection of DS models using high-definition, state-of-the-art, 3D technology. They can personalise trim levels, interior materials, exterior colours and wheel designs as they build ‘their’ ideal DS. They can then explore around and inside the full-size virtual car as if the real thing were in front of them.
Throughout the opening week, DS’s all-new SUV the DS 7 Crossback is being exclusively displayed at the showroom.
DS was hived off from Citroen in 2015 as the premium brand of Groupe PSA.
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