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DreamLand lets more than 24,000 children video-call Saint Nicholas
27
November
2020
Enthusiastic parents and children: initiative turns out to be a bull's eye. The corona measures also apply for Saint Nicholas and so DreamLand came up with a safe alternative for his annual visits to the stores: parents could enrol their children for a personal online video call with Saint Nicholas. And they did, en masse. The original 13,500 places soon had to be expanded to 14,250. Due to the enormous enthusiasm, even these extra places have already been booked. During such a call, Saint Nicholas usually talks with several children from the same family, which means more than 24,000 children will enjoy a private online chat with the good man. They talk about wish lists, hobbies and idols of the children, but questions about the Saint Nick's mysterious age pass in review.
14,250 video-calls with Saint Nicholas, 24,000 surprised children
Even before the DreamLand stores closed due to the measures of the Consultation committee, DreamLand had already decided to cancel the traditional Saint visits in stores this year. Instead, they came up with a safe, digital alternative: parents could enrol their children for a personal online video-call with the Holy man. Originally, there were 13,500 time slots, but they were all taken in no time. Consequently, DreamLand increased the number of calls to 14,250, also all gone by now. This means that more than 24,000 children - usually several children in one family make one call - will meet Saint Nicholas online. Between 7/11 and 26/11, already 7,378 calls took place, the rest goes on until 5 December included.
Saint Nicholas knows everything
Parents could choose subjects to talk about and pass on interesting facts about their children. Most children are therefore stunned that the Saint knows so much about them. From the toys on their wish lists, their hobbies and favourite heroes to how well behaved they are: Saint Nick knows it all. Of course, the children also have questions for him and the classic question about his mysterious age always surfaces.
Children and parents
After the talk with Saint Nicholas, parents can leave a reaction as feedback for DreamLand, and these show that the children and their parents are thrilled about their chat:
"Everyone here has a smile on their face!"
"Children's hearts can clearly be warmed virtually as well."
"The kids are so amazed because Saint Nicholas really knows EVERYTHING!"
"Thanks! My daughter had her chat with Saint Nicholas. She is so happy! And we didn't even have to wait in line!"
"Great idea of DreamLand to make this possible for our daughter in these times of corona!"
"Saint Nicholas made us forget all about corona for a moment!"
"It felt as if Saint Nicholas was standing in our living room!"
According to Dieter Struye, General non-food manager at Colruyt Group, the initiative is a smash hit: "The project was a challenge especially at the technological level, so it required some preparations. When we see how many parents responded and how positive children and their parents react, we can only be pleased with the result. Giving so many children a nice moment with Saint Nicholas in tomes of corona, we have really achieved that."
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About DreamLand
DreamLand is the store for family and seasonal fun, offering an extensive range of indoor and outdoor toys (including the own Dreamland brand), exterior furniture, school supplies, multimedia and gaming products, furnishings for children's rooms, books and comics, and much more besides. It has been a subsidiary of Colruyt Group since 1994. DreamLand aims to inspire children and their families to have more fun together through play – after all, ‘Playing makes everything better’. And our staff and stores definitely bring that concept to life, with fun experiences every week coupled with guaranteed lowest prices from the toy specialist. As well as the webshop, DreamLand currently has 46 stores and employs more than 800 people.