Store Layout, Design & Visual Merchandising

Shopper found dead in local store; cause of death boredom

No other variable in the retailing mix influences the consumers initial perceptions of a bricks & mortar retailer as much as the Stanley Marcus, Chairman-Emeritus, Neiman Marcus store itself. The store is where the action is and includes such minor details as the placement of the merchandise.

Objectives of the Store Environment

Get customers into the store (store image)

Serves a critical role in the store selection process Important criteria include cleanliness, labeled prices, accurate and pleasant checkout clerks, and well-stocked shelves The store itself makes the most significant and last impression

Once they are inside the store, convert them into customers buying merchandise (space productivity)

The more merchandise customers are exposed to that is presented in an orderly manner, the more they tend to buy Retailers focusing more attention on in-store marketing marketing dollars spent in the store, in the form of store design, merchandise presentation, visual displays, and in-store promotions, should lead to greater sales and profits (bottom line: it is easier to get a consumer in your store to buy more merchandise than planned than to get a new consumer to come into your store)

Objectives of Good Store Design

Design should:

be consistent with image and strategy positively influence consumer behavior consider costs versus value be flexible recognize the needs of the disabled

Types of Floor Space in Store

Back Room receiving area, stockroom Department stores (50%) Small specialty and convenience stores (10%) General merchandise stores (15-20%) Offices and Other Functional Space employee break room, store offices, cash office, restrooms Aisles, Service Areas and Other Non-Selling Areas Moving shoppers through the store, dressing rooms, layaway areas, service desks, customer service facilities

Merchandise Space Floor Wall Ceiling

Store Layout (and Traffic Flow)

Conflicting objectives:

Ease of finding merchandise versus varied and interesting layout Giving customers adequate space to shop versus use expensive space productively

Grid (Straight) Design

Best used in retail environments in which majority of customers shop the entire store Can be confusing and frustrating because it is difficult to see over the fixtures to other merchandise

Should be employed carefully; forcing customers to back of large store may frustrate and cause them to look elsewhere Most familiar examples for supermarkets and drugstores

Curving/Loop (Racetrack) Design

Major customer aisle(s) begins at entrance, loops through the store (usually in shape of circle, square or rectangle) and returns customer to front of store

Exposes shoppers to the greatest possible amount of merchandise by encouraging browsing and crossshopping

Free-Flow /Angular Layout

Storage, Receiving, Marketing
Dressing Rooms
Tops

Fixtures and
merchandise grouped into free-flowing patterns on the sales floor no defined traffic pattern Works best in small stores (under 5,000 square feet) in which customers wish to browse Works best when merchandise is of the same type, such as fashion apparel

Stockings

Underwear Accessories

Casual Wear

Checkout counter Tops

Pants

Feature

Feature

Skirts and Dresses

Clearance Items

Jeans

Hats and Handbags

Open Display Window

Open Display Window

If there is a great variety of merchandise, fails to provide cues as to where one department stops and another starts

Spine Layout

Variation of grid, loop and free-form layouts Based on single main aisle running from the front to the back of the store (transporting customers in both directions) On either side of spine, merchandise departments branch off toward the back or side walls Heavily used by medium-sized specialty stores ranging from 2,000 10,000 square feet In fashion stores the spine is often subtly offset by a change in floor coloring or surface and is not perceived as an aisle

Location of Departments

Relative location advantages

Impulse products
Demand/destination areas Seasonal needs Physical characteristics of merchandise Adjacent departments

Feature Areas

The areas within a store designed to get the customers attention which include:

End caps displays located at the end of the aisles Promotional aisle/area Freestanding fixtures Windows Walls Point-of-sale (POS) displays/areas

Fixture Types

Straight Rack long pipe suspended with supports to the floor or attached to a wall Gondola large base with a vertical spine or wall fitted with sockets or notches into which a variety of shelves, peghooks, bins, baskets and other hardware can be inserted. Four-way Fixture two crossbars that sit perpendicular to each other on a pedestal Round Rack round fixture that sits on pedestal Other common fixtures: tables, large bins, flat-based decks

Fixture Types

Wall Fixtures

To make stores wall merchandisable, wall usually covered with a skin that is fitted with vertical columns of notches similar to those on a gondola, into which a variety of hardware can be inserted Can be merchandised much higher than floor fixtures (max of 42 on floor for round racks on wall can be as high as 72

Merchandise Display Planning

Shelving flexible, easy to maintain

Hanging
Pegging small rods inserted into gondolas or wall systems can be labor intensive to display/maintain but gives neat/orderly appearance Folding for softlines can be folded and stacked on shelves or tables - creates high fashion image Stacking for large hardlines can be stacked on shelves, base decks of gondolas or flats easy to maintain and gives image of high volume and low price

Dumping large quantities of small merchandise can be dumped into baskets or bins highly effective for softlines (socks, wash cloths) or hardlines (batteries, candy, grocery products) creates high volume, low cost image

Three Psychological Factors to Consider in Merchandising Stores

Value/fashion image Trendy, exclusive, pricy vs value-oriented Angles and Sightlines Customers view store at 45 degree angles from the path they travel as they move through the store Most stores set up at right angles because its easier and consumes less space Vertical color blocking Merchandise should be displayed in vertical bands of color wherever possible will be viewed as rainbow of colors if each item displayed vertically by color Creates strong visual effect that shoppers are exposed to more merchandise (which increases sales)

POS Displays

Assortment display open and closed assortment Theme-setting display Ensemble display Rack display Case display

Cut case
Dump bin

Visual Merchandising

The artistic display of merchandise and theatrical props used as scene-setting decoration in the store Several key characteristics Not associated with shop-able fixture but located as a focal point or other area remote from the on-shelf merchandising (and perhaps out of the reach of customers) Use of props and elements in addition to merchandise visuals dont always include merchandise; may just be interesting display of items related to merchandise or to mood retailer wishes to create Visuals should incorporate relevant merchandise to be most effective Retailers should make sure displays dont create walls that make it difficult for shoppers to reach other areas of the store

StoreFront Design

Storefronts must:

Clearly identify the name and general nature of the store Give some hint as to the merchandise inside Includes all exterior signage In many cases includes store windows an advertising medium for the store window displays should be changed often, be fun/exciting, and reflect merchandise offered inside

Atmospherics

The design of an environment via:

visual communications lighting color sound scent

to stimulate customers perceptual and emotional responses and ultimately influence their purchase behavior

Visual Communications

Name, logo and retail identity Institutional signage

Directional, departmental and category signage

Point-of-Sale (POS) Signage Lifestyle Graphics

Visual Communications

Coordinate signs and graphics with stores image Inform the customer Use signs and graphics as props Keep signs and graphics fresh Limit sign copy Use appropriate typefaces on signs Create theatrical effects

Lighting

Important but often overlooked element in successful store design

Highlight merchandise

Capture a mood
Level of light can make a difference

Blockbuster Fashion Departments

Color

Can influence behavior

Warm colors increase blood pressure, respiratory rate and other physiological responses attract customers and gain attention but can also be distracting Cool colors are relaxing, peaceful, calm and pleasant effective for retailers selling anxiety-causing products

Sound & Scent

Sound

Music viewed as valuable marketing tool Often customized to customer demographics - AIE (http://www.aeimusic.com) Can use volume and tempo for crowd control

Scent

Smell has a large impact on our emotions Victoria Secret, The Magic Kingdom, The Knot Shop Can be administered through time release atomizers or via fragrance-soaked pellets placed on light fixtures

Props

Objects added that support the theme of the display.

Functional Props: used to physically support the merchandise. (mannequins, stands, panels, screens, etc) Decorative Props: used to establish a mood or an attractive setting for the merchandise being featured (ex: mirrors, flowers, seashells, surfboards, etc) Structural Props: used to support functional and decorative props and change the physical makeup of displays. (boxes, rods, stands, stairways, etc)

Signage

Includes individual letters and complete signs. Often on some kind of holder. Can tell a story about the goods. Should try to answer customers questions. Should be informative and concise. Can include prices, sizes, department location.

Window Displays

Seen from outside of the store. First contact with the customer. Can have a series of windows. Advantages of Window Displays: Establish and maintain an image Arouse curiosity Disadvantages of Window Displays: Expensive to design and maintain Requires space Merchandise can get ruined (sun ,etc) Glare

Types of Window Displays

Enclosed windows: have a full background and sides that completely separate the interior of the store from the display window.

Ramped windows: floor is higher in back than in front Elevated windows: from 1 to 3 feet higher than sidewalk Shadowbox windows: small, boxlike display windows

Types of Window Displays

Semi-closed windows: have a partial background that shuts out some of the store interior from those viewing the window Open Windows: have no background panel and the entire store is visible to people walking by Island windows: four-sided display windows that stand alone, often in lobbies.

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Planograms

This helps the planning of various products in the correct locations of the stores and make a systematic scheduling of displays.

Std Operating Procedures SOPs

Def- It is a set of written Instructions that document a routine or

repetitive activity followed by an org. (eg- Opening & closing time) Obj of SOPs Standardization-uniform procedure in org Technology- Business SW & POS system to track sales Inventory Mgt- regular counting of inventory and installing cameras /mirrors to limit/ prohibit theft Marketing- Media advts, special pricing, instore promotions and signs Labor Practices- devise schedules Store procedures in regard to exchanges and returns

Lay-by: purchase in instalments Refund-:as per law

Maintenance
Maintain repair cost Emergency services shd be available all 24 hrs/365 days SW maintenance Fixture installations and National Roll outs on time Fire extinguishers and yearly inspection tracking Open invoicing

Access to qualified facilitators

Communicate problems to contractors

Facilities & equipments for maintenance

Multiple locations Flooring Ceiling fans Windows and glass Ceramic tiles HVAC units Pipes Computers carpets

Lighting Signs POS machines Wood flooring Exterior finish