“tarent was not just a service provider but a partner who was genuinely there for us and had our back.”
Dorothee Thielmann, Head of Customer Insights & Digital Division, PENNY International
PENNY International
“tarent was not just a service provider but a partner who was genuinely there for us and had our back.”
Dorothee Thielmann, Head of Customer Insights & Digital Division, PENNY International
PENNY has been a popular and successful retail brand in both Germany and other European countries for more than 25 years. In 2021, the group achieved total sales of EUR 5.6 billion. Customers in Italy, Austria, Romania, the Czech Republic, and Hungary value the country-specific product range that caters for every taste. This is supplemented by offers that change on weekly basis. Each and every day, approximately 1,600 modern stores showcase top-quality fresh produce that is – wherever possible – locally sourced.
In the Czech Republic, PENNY is the leading discount chain with 399 stores. Its network also includes more than 404 stores in Italy and 305 branches in Austria. In Romania and Hungary, meanwhile, the brand operates 301 and 227 stores respectively. PENNY International is constantly expanding its network by opening in new locations and modernizing its existing stores. Great importance is attached to ensuring that eco-friendly and sustainable principles are followed in the design of its stores.
In the summer of 2016, PENNY International decided to develop an app for its customers in Italy, Austria, Romania, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. The plan was that, one year later, the website – in terms of the design concept and user experience – as well as the underlying content management system (CMS) and IT architecture would also be updated for some of those countries. In this case study, however, we are focusing on the development of the app.
The objective was to ensure that the app would provide customers with an overview of products and offers available in all markets, along with information on the latest campaigns, promotions, and handouts. The main aim here was to make their shopping experience easier. The app also needed to include a feature for creating a personalized shopping list, and a store finder, enabling users to see relevant details for their local store. And, because people always appreciate a personal approach, holders of customer cards would also need to be provided with personalized coupons and content-differentiated push notifications.
As well as the technical requirements, we were particularly excited about the international scope of the project, in which a large number of stakeholders from Germany and five other countries would participate. The project also involved a number of review and decision-making committees, language and cultural differences, the development of special country-specific features, and mixed development teams including members from a variety of locations.
Dorothee Thielmann
Customer Insights & Digital Division
PENNY International
When tarent took charge of our project, we were pleased that we were entrusting it to a professional, responsible, and trustworthy team. Over the course of four years, we have built and continuously developed our app and website in cooperation with tarent. Thanks to tarent’s outstanding and methodical approach, based on agile principles, all of the stakeholders and in particular the country teams were constantly kept in the loop and were able to provide their feedback in a targeted and timely way. As a result, everyone benefited from rapid and straightforward communication. tarent was not just a service provider but a partner who was genuinely there for us and had our back.
Jasmine Aharon
Product and Project Manager
tarent solutions GmbH
Because of the range of stakeholders involved, all with different requirements and priorities, the project was an interesting challenge. Over time, the project taught us how to work in an even more agile way. It was a learning process that allowed us to develop our skills in fulfilling all of the requirements involved within the specified deadlines. We were working with a multicultural team spread across a number of locations, and the processes involved, in which we learned how best to work with each other, also helped us during the Covid crisis. The client’s trust in us and our frank, constructive communication with one another contributed enormously to the positive results achieved throughout the project period. We are very grateful for this, as all the experience we’ve gained has made us even stronger when handling multinational projects.
years of experience
office locations
IT professionals
digitization experts
partners
parallel development projects
Request a no-obligation fact-finding appointment now.
