STORE DESIGN Essay Example

Innovation in Store Design

Innovation in Store Design

Executive Summary

The retail businesses have found themselves in the midst of market dynamism that has resulted from changes in trends and technologies and an increasing competition in the industry. In order to remain profitable and enhance business growth, retailers have extensively engaged in visual merchandising. The main motive behind this practice in the contemporary retail industry is the need for increasing sales by attracting more customers. While it is becoming increasingly an important foothold for the success of many store owners, visual merchandising is a gold-mine only for those who are proactive and flexible to the changing promotional activities.

Introduction

If you get into a retail store you will notice a common behavior among customers who enter a retail store. They often survey the area by walking in various stations where products have been displayed. In fact, much of their time is spent on looking at items, the store outlay and outlook and the arrangement of products among others. Hence, the retail store owners tasked to ensure that they choose the right display schemes that suit their nature of business so as not to lose an opportunity when a customer arrives into the premise. For this reason, innovation in visual merchandising has gone a notch higher as many retailers have invested in technology to advance their know-how regarding display of products and design of stores.

5 Best Practice and Innovation around the World

The use of technology has been at the core to store owners as they struggle to remain relevant and competitive in the market. The innovation that is observed in areas such as making purchase, displaying products, designing retail stores and making payments is thrilling. For instance, store designs are shifting to using virtual elements to stimulate customers’ shopping experience. The following are examples of the five best practice and innovation:

Figure 1:

The above type of display is referred to us open-window display. Notably, the open window display occurs when the product is placed in an open space but within an airspace that is enclosed with a glass-made wall. From the above picture, the jogging machines are displayed inside and the light is used to create the visibility of the edges of the structure. The light also adds to the color of the background, which is black so as to avoid creating a dark mood. The brand of the products (NRC) being displayed is visible even from a far distance. The products being sold and the type of display that is used here suits the gymnasiums. The importance of open-window display is that it allows customers to view the products’ features in all aspects. Furthermore, the retailers find it suitable since it makes the interior of the shop visible from outside. However, this type of display is not suitable for small retailers since it is very expensive. The above picture is innovative since more visibility aspects are used to ensure that customers see the right thing that is being displayed.

Figure 2:

The above display is an out-of-store display. It an exterior display where the product is advertised outside but the design requires a lot of creativity. In the above picture, the brand of the product that is being displayed is already stated in the visible logo on the left-corner of the picture. Additionally, the background of the image has been designed to reflect a 3D-version of the road, the bridge and other components in the behind. This visual merchandizing technique targets the market segment that likes playing video games. The elements of design used in this case include color, decorative props, background and lighting. The strength of this technique is that it attracts many customers especially due to the level of creativity involved. Nevertheless, this visual display method does not provide the customers with the much shopping experience since the display is made outside the store. This type of display is innovative since the designer has been able to reflect the real world in a 3D-mode that makes it simply to look like a game.

Figure 3:

The type of display used above is the closed-window. In this type of display, there is usually a large solid back wall and two solid side walls. In addition, it also features a large pane of glass at the front through which the customers are able to see the products. The target market of the products being displayed are the women. From the picture, it is notable that the stands have been used as fixtures. Furthermore, the background color is white and the products have been displayed in different color to indicate that they exist in various colors. Other display elements such as lighting and merchandize have also been integrated into the design. Also, the images in each partition create ascertain impression of the occasion that the dress may suit. Hence the design strategy that has been used here is one that combines color and product design with the occasion of use of such products. The importance of close-window display is that customers are able to view the item. However, this type of display makes the interior of the store invisible from outside. Closed-window display in this case is an innovative practice the right use of products have also been incorporated in the display window.

Figure 4:

This type of interior-display is called in-store visual merchandising. It is usually used to capture the attention of the customers while in the stores. Most of the interior display designs focus on the wordings, flooring and the color. In the above picture, the word “Read” has been designed using some artistic creativity. The coloring of the word is made by books that have varying colors. The target market of this stores are students and researchers. Some of the display elements used by the artist include decorative props, lighting that highlights and increase the visibility of the word “READ”. The design strategy used is designing a relevant word in an artistic manner to communicate the purpose of the product and to entice customers into buying them. This type of display is cheap compared to open and closed windows. This visual merchandize technique is innovative since the products are displayed in a shelves that have been designed to create the word “Read” which is the sole purpose of those products.

Figure 5:

Showcase window is used in the above picture. This type of display is often practiced by retailers who specialize in small items. The shoes are organized in shelves and are showcased in manner that is visible to customers. The lighting is used to create more visibility on the shelves and to attract customers. The store is spacious such that customers can move around and shop whatever they want. Moreover, they can also do whatever they feel they want when they try out to fit cloths or shoes. The retail fixtures such as the shelves, hangers and T-stands are common in these types of businesses. The target market are the lovers of sports and exercises. The strength of showcase window is that it attracts more customers because of the organization of products and the store layout. The display technique in the above picture is innovative since the products are put into use so that the customer can see how it will work or how he/she will look in it while at home.

Conclusion

There is a need for making sure that products are visible to customers. This can be achieved through various display methods in visual merchandizing. The elements of display must be blended in a manner that will ensure that the product reflects what the company offers. Some of these visual elements that are used during product display include lighting, functional block, structural props, background, color, decorative props and fixtures. These elements are combined in different proportion to design the interior of the store which include the shelves, floor, roofs and walls among others. There are a number of display designs; open-window display, closed- back window display, in-store visual merchandizing, showcase window and exterior display. The open back window display is one that allows the interior of the store to be visible from outside. The closed window display is the opposite of the open window technique. In instances where a product is displayed outside the store the method is regarded as the exterior display. It cannot go without being said that each of the display methods depend on the nature of store and the goals of the business. More importantly, product visibility in terms of how it functions, material used to create and the price, are crucial in achieving the goals of marketing.

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