• by Emily Burg , March 15, 2007

Just weeks after the completion of the AT&T/BellSouth merger when it was announced in mid-January that Cingular would be rebranded as AT&T, the company's retail strategy for handling that transition was vague.

An AT&T spokesman said the retail store branding changeover from Cingular to AT&T would be evolutionary, as in-store signage, point-of-sale materials and window clings were to be introduced over the last few weeks of January. Permanent signage was said not to be changing for a few months, with the company saying that stores with the highest visibility would be redressed first. AT&T targeted approximately 2,000 nationwide company-owned wireless retail outlets and store kiosks nationwide to be transitioned.

In less than two months, AT&T has defined a key component of its retail rebranding strategy, unveiling the first of what will be 11 nationwide AT&T Experience stores--retail outlets with a focus on entertainment in addition to cell phone handsets and service plans.

The 5,000-square-foot store, located in Houston's Compaq Center, replaces a 2,000-square-foot Cingular store. It was redesigned by award-winning retail design firm Callison, which also has designed Nordstrom, Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma retail locations.

It is the first of many planned conversions of company-owned Cingular stores from wireless-centric spaces to a high-energy retail format that showcases AT&T's complete provider profile. It is also the first to feature a fully integrated media experience made possible through convergence by encouraging interaction with the company's extensive portfolio of wireless, broadband, video and wireline voice products and services via several experience and personalization stations located throughout the store.

The AT&T Experience store demonstrates under one roof exactly what the merged AT&T plans to do as one company: offer consumers a one-stop shop for all their information technology and entertainment connectivity needs.

"The AT&T Experience Store in Houston is what the new AT&T is all about," says Stan Sigman, wireless president and CEO, AT&T Inc., in a statement. "All of the communications and entertainment products consumers want are in one place and under one roof."

Several other AT&T Experience stores are under development, with stores openings in San Antonio and Atlanta planned for May, the company says.

Apple Inc.--which is on the verge of launching its own handset, the iPhone--set the bar for electronics retail experiences with its stores, which debuted in 2001. Handset maker Nokia has tried to close the gap between itself and American favorite Motorola by setting up interactive retail shops designed by the same firm responsible for Apple's iconic look, eight inc. Its first, which opened in September, is just two blocks down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan from Apple's most uniquely designed store, with 13 more to come over two years.

Editor's note: The story has been edited since publication to correct an error.