Toronto-based branding and design firm Shikatani Lacroix has designed revolutionary new branch formats for China Zheshang Bank to create a holistic and agile banking experience for its customers.
“We learned that the banking platform needs to evolve into a hub of both conventional banking and digital services that starts with the customer at the center of the experience,” said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, President of Shikatani Lacroix. “This is important because customers are looking for a comfortable banking experience that provides them with confidence in making the right financial decisions for today and well into the future.”
Shikatani Lacroix partnered with leading Chinese strategy and brand identity firm MetaThink to design vibrant and contemporary new branch concepts that reflect consumers’ growing appetite for digital services. The branch designs leverage the new brand positioning and corporate identity created by MetaThink. They also highlight the bank’s new strategy to focus on cutting-edge internet and financial technologies, innovative products, and improved efficiencies.
CZ Bank’s new branch experience allows it to connect with consumers on an emotional level, instead of competing on size or price.
The new branch designs include several innovative technological upgrades such as a digital queuing system, internet-enabled tablets that customers can use while they wait, an electronic learning zone with a curved digital screen to answer questions and educate customers on CZ Bank’s wide range of services, and an innovative virtual reality zone where customers can experience a virtual banking concierge or relax in a beautiful park setting.
CZ Bank opens two new branches in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, and Chengdu, Sichuan province, this month, and a flagship prototype in Beijing in November 2016.
