Chapter 17 Store Layout, Design, and Visual Merchandising

Store Design Objectives

1) Implement retailer's strategy 2) Build loyalty 3) Increase sales on visits 4) Control cost 5) Legal considerations—Americans with Disabilities Act Design trade-offs

Space Planning

1) Productivity of allocated space (sales per square foot, sales per linear foot) 2) Merchandise inventory turnover 3) Impact on store sales 4) Display needs for the merchandise

Suggestions for Effectively Using Signage

-Coordinate signage to store's image -Use appropriate type faces on signs -Inform customers -Use them as props -Keep them fresh -Limit the text on signs -Use appropriate typefaces on signs

Design Trade-Offs

-Ease of locating merchandise for planned purchases -Giving customers adequate space to shop -Exploration of store, impulse purchases -Productivity of using this scarce resource for merchandise

Grid Layout

-Easy to locate merchandise -Does not encourage customers to explore store -Limited site lines to merchandise -Allows more merchandise to be displayed -Cost efficient -Used in grocery, discount, and drug stores: Why?

Free-Form (Boutique) Layout

-Fixtures and aisles arranged asymmetrically -Provides an intimate, relaxing environment that facilitates shopping and browsing -Pleasant relaxing ambiance doesn't come cheap - small store experience -Inefficient use of space -More susceptible to shoplifting - salespeople can not view adjacent spaces. -Used in specialty stores and upscale department stores

Prime Locations for Merchandise

-Highly trafficked areas -Store entrances -Near checkout counter -Highly visible areas -End aisle -Displays

Usage of Signage and Graphics

-Location - identifies the location of merchandise and guides customers -Category Signage - identifies types of products and located near the goods -Promotional Signage - relates to specific offers - sometimes in windows -Point of sale - near merchandise with prices and product information -Lifestyle images - creates moods that encourage customers to shop H & M effectively uses graphic photo panels to add personality, beauty, and romance to its store's image

Racetrack Layout (Loop)

-Loop with a major aisle that has access to departments -Draws customers around the store -Provide different viewing angles and encourage exploration, impulse buying -Used in department stores

Idea-Orientation Presentation

Present merchandise based on a specific idea or the image of the store Encourage multiple complementary purchases Women's fashion: -Furniture combined in room settings -Sony Style mini-living rooms Fifty percent of women get their ideas for clothes from store displays or window shopping

Web Site Design

Simplicity Matters Getting Around - Easy Navigation Let Them See It Blend the Web Site with the Store Prioritize

Rounder

Smaller than straight rack Holds a maximum amount of merchandise Easy to move around Customers can't get frontal view of merchandise

Increase Sales on Visits

Store design has a substantial effect on which products customers buy, how long they stay in the store, and how much they spend during a visit.

Build Loyalty

Store design provides utilitarian benefits when it enables customers to locate and purchase products in an efficient and timely manner with minimum hassle. Store design provides hedonic benefits by offering customers an entertaining and enjoyable shopping experience.

Visual Merchandising: Fixtures

Straight rack Rounder (bulk fixture, capacity fixture) Four-way fixture (feature fixture) Gondolas

Location of Merchandise within a Category: The Use of Planograms

Supermarkets and drug stores place private-label brands to the right of national brands - shoppers read from left to right (higher priced national brands first and see the lower-priced private-label item) Planogram: a diagram that shows how and where specific SKUs should be placed on retail selves or displays to increase customer purchases

Creating an Appealing Store Atmosphere

The design of an environment through visual communications, lighting, colors, music, and scent to stimulate customers' perceptual and emotional responses and ultimately to affect their purchase behavior Color Scent Music Lighting

Store Design and Retail Strategy

The primary objective of store design is implementing the retailer's strategy. -Meets needs of target market -Builds a sustainable competitive advantage -Displays the store's image

Space Management

The space within stores and on the stores' shelves are fixtures is a scare resource The allocation of store space to merchandise categories and brands The location of departments or merchandise categories in the store

Store Layouts

To encourage customer exploration and help customers move through the stores: -Use a layout that facilitates a specific traffic pattern -Provide interesting design elements Types of Store Layouts: -Grid -Racetrack -Free Form

Web Site Design Continued

Type of Layout: When shopping on the Web, customer are interestedin speed, convenience, ease of navigation, not necessarily fancy graphics Checkout: Make the process clear and appear simple Enclose the checkout process Make the process navigable without loss of information Reinforce trust in the checkout process

Gondolas

Versatile Grocery and discount stores Some department stores Hard to view apparel as they are folded

Learning Customers' Movements and Decision-Making

Videotaping Consumers Learn customers' movements, where they pause or move quickly, or where there is congestion Evaluate the layout, merchandise placement, promotion Virtual Store Software: Learn the best place to merchandise and test how customers react to new products

Visual Merchandising

Visual Merchandising The presentation of a store and its merchandise in ways that will attract the attention of potential customers.

Color

Warm colors (red, gold, yellow) produce emotional, vibrant, hot, and active responses Cool colors (white, blue, green) have a peaceful, gentle, calming effect Culturally bounded French-Canadians - respond more to warm colors Anglo-Canadians - respond more to cool colors

Scent

Has a positive impact on impulse buying behavior and customer satisfaction. Scents that are neutral produce better perceptions of the store than no scent. Customers in scented stores think they spent less time in the store than subjects in unscented stores.

Lighting

Highlight merchandise Structure space and capture a mood Energy efficient lighting Downplay features

Straight Rack

Holds a lot of apparel Hard to feature specific styles and colors Found often in discount and off-price stores

Four-Way

Holds large amount of merchandise Allows customers to view entire garment Hard to maintain because of styles and colors Fashion oriented apparel retailer

Merchandise Presentation Techniques

Idea-Oriented Presentation Style/Item Presentation Color Organization Price Lining Vertical Merchandising Tonnage Merchandising: -large quantities of merchandise displayed together Frontal Presentation: -display as much of the product as possible to catch

Location of Merchandise Categories

Impulse Merchandise- near heavily trafficked areas Demand/Destination Merchandise- back left-hand corner of the store Special merchandise - lightly trafficked areas (glass pieces, women's lingerie) Adjacencies - cluster complimentary merchandise next to each other

Store Design Elements

Layouts Signage and Graphics Feature Area

Control Cost

Control the cost of implementing the store design and maintain the store's appearance. Store design influences: -Shopping experience and thus sales -Labor costs -Inventory shrinkage

Music

Control the pace of store traffic, create an image, and attract or direct consumers' attention A mix of classical or soothing music encourage shoppers to slow down, relax, and take a good look at the merchandise thus to stay longer and purchase more

How Exciting Should a Store Be?

Depends on the customer's shopping goals: Task-completion: a simple atmosphere with slow music, dimmer lighting, and blue/green colors Fun: an exciting atmosphere with fast music, bright lighting, and red/yellow colors

Feature Areas

Areas within a store designed to get the customers' attention Feature areas Entrances Freestanding displays Cash wraps (POP counters, checkout areas) End caps Promotional aisles Walls Windows Fitting rooms