Fall Display ReSet: Play By Play

Ever heard of 'The Domino Effect'?

Hmmmn, sounds like a spy movie title, doesn't it?!

A former visual merchandising manager of mine used this term a lot. 

It refers to what happens when you undertake a retail display re-set: 

Start moving product from one area, and you have to find a place to put it. 

That means you have to change another area.....and so on, and so on, and so on. 

One thing moves, everything is affected - just like dominoes standing on end in rows. 

It can easily get completely out of control and come crashing down around you. 

A plan is essential. (Working at night after the shop is closed is helpful, too!)

When I was providing visual merchandising services to the Hogue Cellars retail shop,
I did a lot of seasonal re-sets of merchandise and fixtures.
Here's a play-by-play of one of the FALL re-sets - 

which will hopefully inspire you to make similar changes in your own stores.

Step 1: Walk in and survey the shop. Look at stock levels, placement, visual impact.
Step 2: Survey the storage area. Look at backstock quantities, types of merchandise, props, etc.
Step 3: Make a quick plan for where to start, what's new, what moves where, etc.

Of course, the shop was small, so it took no more than 15 minutes to make a plan....

at Columbia, where the retail floor space was more than five times larger, 

I'd spend at least two days drawing a floorplan and sketches of each display setup, 

plus a 'map' of the progression of displays to be changed - in order of attack. 

That helps to keep the mess to a minimum.

Step 4: Begin moving merchandise and re-styling displays.

There are several steps to THIS step, such as:
 

A. Empty one display area - merchandise on one set of fixtures - 

and place it on carts, or the counter, or the tasting bar.

B. Clean the fixtures!

C. Remove merchandise from a second display area - or unbox NEW merchandise - 

and CLEAN IT!

D. Place the second area/new merchandise into the first set of fixtures.

E.Style the display in a way that is DIFFERENT than it was styled before...

mix it up with new products and colors to make it look fresh and new again!

F. Clean the SECOND set of fixtures!

G. Repeat. Again and Again and Again. 

Note: ALWAYS clean the fixtures! ALWAYS clean the merchandise!

Here's how the summer-to-fall merchandise display progression worked at Hogue:

The back wall shelves looked like this ^

The main merchandise on them was grape motif items:

They moved across the shop to the window area, which previously looked like this:

After being loaded with the other merchandise and re-styled, it looked like this:

Close up

Can you see how the new display arrangement and the fixtures here 

make the merchandise look completely different?!
.

The merchandise from this display:

...was moved onto the shelf units where the grape merchandise had been:

The warm color here was a huge visual pull from the front doors...

much more so than the subtle palette of the grape motif merchandise that was here before.
It's a more contemporary pattern, and looks great in squared placements on these shelves.

The central display that previously looked like this

was stocked with brand new merchandise, to look like this:

A rearrangement of some of the fixtures 

allowed me to place the branched candleabra up high in the display, 

accentuating both the height and theme, because it looks rather 'tree-like'. 

This product was one of my favorites that season - 

it was fun to work with, and sold like wildfire in both wineries.

In the large oak cabinet to the left of that display was all of the glassware:

In the new display, the existing logo glass stayed 

(though in lesser quantities than before)

and large format bottles of wine were added, for contrast and scale.
Wine boxes were utilized as risers, and the graphic logos on them really punched up the display!

Clear glassware is BORING and needs color and contrast to make it stand out - 

and light to make it sparkle. 

The mirrored back of this cabinet reflects the light from the windows

so it's a perfect place for the glass to be shown off: 

Sales of glassware went up IMMEDIATELY!

The bank of shelves behind the register island held various food products:

Not much changed, because keeping the 'staples' consistent makes it easier to stock them

AND it ensures that customers coming in for specific food & wine accessories

can always find them easily.

A new Halloween product display was installed on the small counter 'feature area':

Corralling the Halloween-specific merchandise in one area 

made it easy to change that up on November 1st, so the shop looked fresh.

Behind the Scenes:
I can't even TELL you how much laughter was exchanged during the night of this reset,

as we discovered boxes upon boxes upon boxes 

of HUNDREDS of orange and black neoprene wine bags in the stock room!
 I guess maybe in Prosser, kids get candy when they trick-or-treat.....and adults get WINE! 

I could get into that!

Maybe a game of dominoes, too... ;) 

.content from this post originally appeared here on my design blog in 2009.

Hotel MoJo... and HoJo

I began my visual merchandising career in a hotel gift shop,
a brand new venture that my Mom worked with the hotel owner to develop and open in the 1970's

at the Howard Johnson's Hotel across the street from Disneyland...

 That window on the left (which used to have a neon 'Kathy's Gift Shop' sign in it)
is where I experimented with merchandise to create my FIRST window displays ever.
I was thirteen years old when I started, thanks to my Mom trusting my ability.
The shop has expanded four times since then, 

and one of my Mom's original employees now manages it 

(along with the new one in the new Marriott Courtyard Hotel across the street,

owned by the same company). 

Ever since working there for six years, 

I've been watching the evolution and demise of the hotel gift shop...
 viewing many on my travels to speaking engagements, gift shows,

and of course visiting the Disneyland Hotels to see what they are doing.

Hotel gift shops have devolved 

from huge shops that carry every possible thing a traveler might want (or forget)

and offering a plethora of souvenirs silly and sublime,

into the newly-coined 'quick stop shops' in an alcove next to the registration desk,
which carry a measly offering of tiny personal care items and bottled beverages.
The change is disheartening.

Today, I read something with a more positive outlook

regarding hotel gift shops...

a new view from some independent hoteliers that have created an opportunity: 

they reach out into the community to source handmade, artisan, local products,

and to give a more entrepreneurial / independent store spirit to their shops

than we've seen in the mainstream before.

Not only that, but the design of these new shops is less 'corporate' and more 'indy' in style!
Quirky, inviting, personalized, and decidedly forward-thinking,
they are spaces that would stop any weary traveler in their tracks!

BHG has a column in their magazine called 'FRESHSHOPKEEPER'

and it was in this column that I saw these photos and read about this new direction:

I encourage you to go grab a copy of the August 2016 issue of BHG Magazine

(Better Homes and Gardens)

and read up on this new outlook.

It bodes well for the hospitality industry, for retail in general, 

especially for artisans and makers who want to get their product into local shops.

It's a whole new sales opportunity that is not dependent upon

huge wholesale shows and mass-manufactured, imported goods.

Gift Shop Buyers at boutique hotels like these

are looking for exceptional, quality, unique merchandise

that will reflect the local community, attractions, and history

in a fresh, new, engaging way that customers respond to.

And that's evolution, my friends! 

Just an aside here....

I saw the Hotel Emma during construction last summer.

My son Joel is the Project Manager for the fire suppression system on the project.

Now that I have seen this photo of just one of their space designs,

I can't wait to visit him in San Antonio again so that I can see the finished hotel!

Display One OH One

A successful retail display doesn't just happen.
it is the result of a combination of  knowing the science of retail principles
and the art of composition and placement. 
Both combine to create a 3D work of art that invites customers in - 
and results in sales of product.
Welcome to Retail Display #101, my friends.

There are some retail display design principles that are oh-so-perfectly illustrated
by the following 'before and after shots',
and to discuss them means that I have to critique the 'befores'.
So while I point out all of the flaws in the design below,
know that I realize someone worked hard putting it together...
they just didn't know the most effective way to do so.
That's why the winery called ME in!

Take a peek at Columbia Winery, circa June, 2003:

This display ran front to back on the right side of the winery gift shop.
The view is from the front.
It was made up of approximately 17 different fixtures:
shelves, tables, stands, racks, planters, etc.
I don't have an exact accounting of how many different products were in it,
but I believe it was somewhere near 50.

Not a quantity count of 50 products, but 50 different products in various quantities.
From candles and soap to wine and food and linens and dishes
and glassware and tchotchkes and florals and silver and glass. Whew!

The display from the rear of the shop.
That one single display setup ran the entire length of one side of the shop -
2o feet, to be exact. Yes, the display was 2o feet long.
The shop is approximately 35 feet deep at that point. You do the math.

Ok, so just what are the problems there?

*First off, in either view above, you just don't know where to look.
There is no focal point in the display.

No use of color or scale or theme in the product selection to draw your attention in...
your eye just sort of bounces all over the place trying to find a place to land.

*The mix of fixture styles is distracting.
(oak & glass shelving, maple tables, dark wood shelving, mixed metal stands)
You tend to be overwhelmed by this cacophony of furniture styles,
instead of looking at the products.
Also, putting this many fixtures together creates a wall in the middle of the space -
very overwhelming and detrimental to traffic flow and visibility.
(I now actually refer to this formation as 'the train'!)

*The mix of products is not a good example of 'cross merchandising'.

This is a bunch of varied merchandise filling tables and shelves.
Cross merchandising is judiciously choosing several lines of product that work together
to create a story, mood, serve like purposes, etc.
and arranging it purposefully to show it effectively.

*The props are small in comparison to the fixtures, and they disappear.
(Did you even see the flowers and branches?)
Scale is important, especially when you want to capture attention.
.
Now let me show you some of the displays
that have been placed in that same area of the shop since i took over the visual merchandising:
Columbia Winery, circa Spring 2006:

This display is seen from the front of the shop.
The fixtures/tables all match and are placed in a way
that cascades forward and shows the products at their best.

The props match and are large in scale
(all black metal shelves & planters, with a large grapevine in one).
The color of the props is bright and coordinates with the merchandise
so it draws your eye in while setting a mood.
The merchandise mix is all built around the main products:
wine and the ceramic line.
There are approximately 15 products in this display:
ceramics (2 lines), wine, linens (2 lines), florals (2 types - hydrangeas and grapes),
metal planters, glassware, metal plate pedestals, food (3 lines), books (2 titles), and candles.
This display was approximately 10 feet deep, front to back, and eight feet wide.

Then there was a six foot pathway, and another display setup behind it
(which you can see in the rear left of the photo above.....)

This display is smaller than the one in the front: About 6 foot square.
Again, the fixtures/tables all match ( and cascade to the rear of this display).
The tower on top matches the black iron props/accents.

The green shutter props add color and coordinate with the merchandise(the ceramic plates have artwork of outdoor cafes on them - with awnings and shuttered windows).
The flowers add fresh spring interest.
By limiting the items to a sort of French Bistro theme,
the look remains simple and crisp.

There are about 12 product lines in this display:
ceramics (3 lines), glassware, linens, the iron bike pieces, wine,
florals (2 lines), fondue pots, and food (2 lines).

Columbia Winery, circa winter 2005:

Height is important, as is using color to pull a customer in closer.
That being said, note that the height is in the center of the display area,
not across the entire width of it -
room is left for the eye to focus on this display,
and then look beyond to see what else the space holds.

The stepped placement of the tables helps create levels
that hold products and entice the eye.


Summer, 2006: Wild vibrant color, fun props (sooooooo cheap)and you've got a fiesta.
note: The ceramic ware shown in many of these photos is all from the same line, in varied colors - 
by combining them in new ways along with new linens and accessory ceramics from other lines, 
a whole new look and mood can be created. that drives sales!

Spring 2007: Two separate displays, on new fixtures.
Two stories, different products,
but the colors relate to one another so the effect is not jarring to the eye.
This is the principle of 'adjacencies' - coordinating factors when displays are close together.

One other noticeable thing:
Removing the old dead grapevines overhead and painting the walls a lovely sage green
has made a major visual impact in the shop.
That helps all of the displays look better.
Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and do the big jobs. The expensive jobs.
Trust me, the visual impact will be well worth it.

successful Visual Merchandising is all about presentation, 
and effectiveness is in the details!

let me help you succeed.... email me to get started:
debiwardkennedy@gmail.com