A DVANCED FASHION : S TANDARD 9 V ISUAL M ERCHANDISING

V ISUAL M ERCHANDISING

Visual Merchandising: The physical display of goods in the most attractive and appealing ways.

Store Layout: the interior arrangement of retail facilities. Selling areas: where merchandise is displayed and customers interact with sales personnel. (75-80% of the total space)

Sales support areas: devoted to customer services, merchandise receiving and distribution, management offices and staff activities.

V ISUAL M ERCHANDISING

Floor Plan: A drawing showing arrangement of physical space, such as showing the positioning of merchandise groups and customer services for a retail store.
Grid Layout: A retail floor plan that has one of ore primary (main) aisles running through the store, with secondary (smaller) aisles intersecting with them at right angles. Maze Layout: A free-flowing retail floor plan arrangement with informal balance. Fixtures: Shelves, tables, rods, counters, stands, easels, forms, and platforms on which merchandise is stocked and displayed for sale.

M ERCHANDISE P RESENTATION

Merchandise presentation includes the ways that goods are hung, placed on shelves, or otherwise made available for sale in retail stores.

Shoulder-out presentation: The way most garments are hung in home closets with only one side showing from shoulder to bottom. Face-forward presentation (face-out presentation): Hanging of clothing with the front fully facing the viewer. This should always be done at entrances and aisles.

VISUAL MERCHANDISING A NEW SUCCESS MANTRA TO RETAILING

C ONCEPT

Visual Merchandising (VM) is the art of presentation, which puts the merchandise in focus. It educates the customers, creates desire and finally augments the selling process

SCOPE

Mr Prathish Nair, Head, Marketing, RAMMS India, a Bangalore-based retail consulting company, says that visual merchandising (VM) is seeing some big spends this year. While large department stores are spending about Rs 30-40 lakh per season on VM, malls are spending close to Rs 15 lakh for every changeover that happens and this is at least four times a year.

CORPORATE EXAMPLES

Displaying Robes Without Using Mannequins

Industry experts believe that apparel sales in retail stores posted a growth of between 25-30 per cent in 2003 and according to an estimate by McKinsey, the branded apparel market is now worth nearly $ 1 billion

"Lowe's experts at each store have helpful tips about how to choose a tree that is just the right size and shape, plus ways to decorate and care for a tree so it will be beautiful throughout the season," said Patti Price, vice president of merchandising for seasonal living at Lowe's.

Whether real or artificial, when shopping for a Christmas tree, there are five key considerations to keep in mind: space, size, type, coverage and lighting.

USE OF LIGHT AND GLASS

In 1913, Mario Prada started the Prada label by selling leather handbags, shoes, and trunks. Following his gaining experience in the United States and Europe, he started two boutiques in Milan Today Prada is now a worldwide empire. It has stores throughout the western world. You can't find a celebrity that is not wearing Prada clothes

RACK DISPLAY
The U.S. Market for Footwear, examines four basic product categories in this dynamic market: casual shoes, athletic shoes, dress shoes, and rugged shoes. Casual shoes account for 52% of the market, athletic shoes for 31%, and rugged and dress shoes for the remaining

MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
Mannequins and body forms are essential for enhancing the appeal of the merchandise, Besides traditional life size mannequins alternatives such as torso forms,dress forms are cost effective Ex Westside,Ebony Globas etc

WRAPPED GIFT DISPLAY

Gift Wrapping is an add on offered by many players in apparel retailing ,cosmetics,jewelry and specialty product retailing For ex Shoppers Stop, Ebony, Pantaloon, Levis,Seasons, Lifestyle,Trent etc

ANIMATION DISPLAY

Animation Displays are used in merchandising products for kids like Toys R Us ,Gini and Johnny, Mattel,Life Spring

You Never Get A Second Chance To Create A First And Lasting Impression

"While TV ads leave a residue at 9 pm the previous night, and press does it at 7 am, and while radio has the potential of doing it all the time, VM is one medium that does it at the point of purchase."

Visual Merchandising is a field that demands the attention of the best creative minds in the country."

THANX

R ETAIL F IXTURES

Carousels: Circular racks that turn.

R ETAIL F IXTURES

Dump tables/bins: A rimmed table or bin used to hold sale or special merchandise on the sales floor, especially in discount operations; it has no formal arrangement.

R ETAIL F IXTURES

Four-way rack: A fixture with four extended arms, that permits accessibility to hanging merchandise all the way around

R ETAIL F IXTURES

Rounders: Circular racks on which garments are hung around the entire circumference

R ETAIL F IXTURES

T-stand: Freestanding, two-way stand in the shape of a T, that holds clothes on hangers, sometimes with one straight arm and one waterfall.

R ETAIL F IXTURES

Waterfall: A fixtures with an arm that slants downward, that contains knobs to hole faceforward hangers with clothing at various levels.

D ISPLAYS

Displays: individual and notable physical presentation of merchandise. Displays are intended to:

Stimulate product interest Provide information Suggest merchandise coordination Generate traffic flow Remind customers of planned purchases Create additional sales of impulse items Enhance the stores visual image

I NTERIOR D ISPLAYS

Locations for interior displays:

Just in the entrance Entrance to department Near cash/wrap Next to related items Across from elevators and escalators Ends of aisles

C OMPONENTS

OF

D ISPLAYS

Merchandise Lighting Props Signage

M ERCHANDISE

More interesting if in odd numbers

Groups:

One-category, or line-of-goods

Related groupings: go together or reinforce each other

Theme groupings: event, holiday, etc. Variety or assortment groupings: collection of unrelated items all sold at the same store.

L IGHTING

Used to direct customers attention to the display

Use more light for dark colors, less light for light colors

Beamspread; the diameter of the circle of light

Beamspread techniques:

Floodlighting: recessed ceiling lights to direct light over an entire wide display area

Spotlighting: focuses attention on specific areas or targeted items of merchandise

Pinpointing: focuses a narrow beam of light on a specific item

P ROPS

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)

S IGNAGE

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.

W INDOW D ISPLAYS

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

T YPES OF W INDOW D ISPLAYS

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

T YPES OF W INDOW D ISPLAYS

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.