Winter Spring Summer....Fall?

Let me show you a bit about retail display, and how a few fixtures or props can change a mood...



These are photos of one of the displays at Columbia Winery that was installed in January. The accent tables, made from wonderfully rustic grapevines, add levels to the large table surface and set the mood for the merchandise. Silver & pewter accessories, table linens in refined khaki, dark wood bowls & platters, and glassware in an abstract pattern are all presented together in a masculine style. Dark wine bottles add to the mood, and bunches of long pine needles in brown are casually tossed in to evoke the forest floor.

For the spring display installation, I decided to use the same tables in this location, as well as a few of the same products. Usually I will totally change all of the fixtures in an area - but this long dark table is the only one that fits here. (There is an elevator to the right of the display, and clear access to it is necessary. We can't 'stick out' too far into the walkway.) When the merchandise for this area was chosen, I knew that the grapevine tables would be perfect, so I left them - just rearranged the placement a bit. Then I added the 'new stuff'!



WOW! Quite a change, yes?!
With the addition of the new aqua ceramics, a different wine, and some seagrass props, the mood has changed from dark and wintry to a sunny day that feels like summer is finally on it's way to the Northwest! We have moved our scene from the deep woods to the sandy beaches....still indicative of the Pacific Northwest, still telling our 'story' of our terrior (place of origin) and style - but in a different mood. This is a guiding principle in the merchandising at Columbia: telling customers who we are, where we come from, what we offer. Branding one-oh-one.

Now, when the first of May rolls around and I install the summer merchandise, there is some AMAZING product that will be added to this aqua blue (that is, if there is any of the aqua left in the shop!!!). What I will do is relocate the grapevine tables to a freestanding location closer to the front entry, like this:

Then I'll add those large props shown above (trellises made from local driftwood - very cool!) and add in all of the new glass items, some seashells, and white ceramics to compliment the aqua blue. It will be a complete summer beach scene, perfect for the lengthening, warming days of the changing season.

If we tried to install the full blown summer look right now, nothing would sell....it's still in the fifties here and raining like crazy. (Heck, we had a BLIZZARD last week!) No one is quite ready for the beach yet! However, by presenting the aqua with just a hint of summer, it is more likely to appeal to someone who needs a gift or just a fresh touch of color for their home. Also, by presenting this merchandise in the rear of the shop, we are drawing traffic back through the space - the display is visible from the entry, and since aqua is a HOT color right now, people notice it and are drawn to it. This is a great method to direct traffic in a retail space: don't place your top sellers front and center - make them the visual vanishing point (think perspective in art class!!!) nearer the back of the space.

While some retailers can push the season by several months, the wineries are different...people come in to taste & buy wine, and to purchase gifts and items for entertaining. Their purchases are made when they need something, or as a souvenir of their trip, so keeping abreast of the current season actually increases sales. While this approach doesn't work for every shop, it certainly does for this type.

And when summer is over, (and all of the glass and aqua ceramics have sold out!), I'll move those grapevine tables to a new location and install new merchandise, and they will help to create another perfect mood for fall. Right now, I'm thinking that it will be purple ceramics, linens & dinnerware with grapes on them, and some silk grapevines climbing up the legs of the tables...almost like they are growing out of the ground.

Hey, like Roseanne RosannaDanna said, "It's always Something...If it ain't one thing, it's another."
I love making one thing look like another.....

Spring Has Sprung!

Spring lends itself to some pretty fresh and fun display ideas....case in point, these darling floral hats on mannequins. These are made from inexpensive fresh flowers and leaves, simply pinned into place in styro heads that have been covered with torn paper.

Nestled into a bed of wheat grass (available at the local grocer), these ladies evoke a lovely scene. Using fresh flowers, this idea is easily applicable for a table centerpiece, an entry table, a tableaux behind a register or window display for a special event at a shop. Use quality silk blooms and some faux grass squares, and you've got an accent that can work for a longer time period in merchandise displays....can't you just see jewelry in there? Soaps, lotions and potions? Scarves? Even flower seeds!!!

You can take this idea and run with it - imagine a bunch of thrift-shop shoes, covered in silk leaves and single rose petals, or perhaps actual shoes sitting on plump cushions & pillows covered with other flower petals in spring-y colors?

Photos were found ages ago online....I had saved the information, and now it has disappeared from the file info. I would certainly credit the designer if I could remember who it was!!! (If you know, leave a comment, please...)

One for the Money, Two Dogs for the Show....

A few years ago, I met an artisan at the Seattle Gift Show. Her name was Shauna Morrissey and her business was called Two Dog Design, after her...two dogs! I noticed her work because I thought some of it would be perfect in the Columbia Winery retail shop, and I stopped to talk to her. Amazingly enough, she lives and works in the same town as the winery! She was new to the show circuit, young, and enthusiastic as all get out. I knew instantly that she would make a success of her business. Skip to a year later, when she called me asking me to help her design a new booth setup for the San Francisco International Gift Faire. Her deal: She would work as my 'go-fer' at my upcoming SGS seminar in exchange for me sitting down with her and giving her some ideas. How could I pass that up?!!!!


So after I worked her to death (really, my seminars are very labor intensive...there was a lot of gathering of products from the show floor and then returning it after I spoke) I plopped down on the floor with her and asked her some questions. Already familiar with her artwork and her aesthetic style, I began sketching on a pad.

I was drawing four separate vignettes, each designed to focus on the subjects of each of her four collections of framed & canvas art, furniture, cards, etc. that would form the basis of her booth. By separating these four subjects into individual areas within her booth, the visual impact would be greater - and increase the likelihood of buyers to hone in on subjects that interested them.

The four areas were then arranged in a booth space in a diagram, adding in an area in the center to allow for sales activity to go on without blocking those displays. This kept the visual appeal intact from the aisle in front of the booth, attracting more attention.


We talked as I sketched, and within about fifteen minutes, I handed her the sketches. She looked up at me with a smile...."I could never in a million years have come up with this and you did it in fifteen minutes! THANK YOU!" I just wanna see the final booth and be proud, I said. She went home and built  a mock-up of the design in her studio.

About two weeks later, Shaunna sent me images of her booth mock-up as photographed by a pro:



I was thrilled to see the concepts I had sketched come to life, and then when I traveled to the San Francisco International Gift Show for my seminars there, I saw the booth in its entirety at Moscone Center:
I had no time to talk with her before my seminar, so I came back by to see her late Saturday afternoon.

Imagine my shout of glee when I saw THIS:

Yup, that's an AWARD for 'Best Booth' in the 'At Home' division of the show!!!

She was proud, I was beyond myself with joy, and the response she received from buyers was 'The BEST I have ever had!' she told me. Her image was professional, her style upscale, and everyone took her seriously because of the way she presented herself and her artwork.

She has since been featured in American Craft magazine, Gifts & Decorative Accessories magazine, and has licensed her designs for production on any number of products. You can find her at www.shaunamorrisseyltd.com.


THAT, dear readers, is why visual presentation and merchandising matter.
It doesn't take alot of time or money - just paying attention to details.

Spring Event Decor

It's that time of year in the wine industry - big spring events to launch the release of new vintages. This past weekend was the Taste of Red in the Yakima Valley - I wasn't there for the event itself, but was at Hogue Winery on Friday to begin my part of a redesign project. And I can't even begin to explain the excitement around there for the weekend event - mostly because they pre-sold a slew of tickets, but also because the weather forecast was for SUN! The incredible staff had a great weekend, I am certain.

Event decor isn't difficult to do right - just think large. Large scale, large impact, and the fact that there will in all likelyhood be large crowds milling about the space. The photo above is of the entrance to an event at Columbia Winery last spring...the curtained doorway to the banquet rooms makes a huge impact as guests walk up. Large, tall flowers and hot colors are impossible to miss and start the event off on a festive note. The fabric curtains and pipe supports were rented from Grand Rentals, and I did the flowers, which are real branches of plum blossoms and hot pink peonies mixed with silk green viburnum. I want what I want, and if it's not in bloom, I go silk. (No one EVER noticed!)

Inside the event room, we created a 'photo spot'. In keeping with the theme of a Bacchanalian Celebration, we rented the columns from AA Rentals. I added a bust of Bacchus, a small fountain spewing watered-down wine that sat on top of a wine barrel, several silk grapevines, faux grapes, and some grape lights. Tucked behind was a section of a laurel tree (a very Roman/Greek plant!) that a winery employee donated after chopping it off the huge tree in his year. Decor props come from EVERYWHERE - and free stuff from nature is my favorite to work with.

More columns, and a vase also rented from AA, filled with more blooming plum branches. This adds a nice bit of height and drama to the buffet table. Hot pink peonies and more silk grapevines all add movement and interest. The sheer green tablecloth is actually curtain panels purchased inexpensively at Ross - they have tiny pink roses appliqued all across the fabric. It just whispers 'spring'. Behind it, more pink curtains for impact.

This closeup shows a styro ball covered with Kermit mums and a few pink carnations sprinkled in. These were the centerpiece for each round table (and why I don't have a shot of those, I certainly do not know!) and sat up on a wire frame, which was covered with a silk grapevine. Simple - but effective. Even a crystal vase or bowl with a floating hot pink peony would have done the trick - a splash of color. The important thing at the table is the people, not the decor. (And at winery events, we have to consider that no fragrant flowers or candles are ever used - it interferes with the nose & palate of the wine.)

One other note: This event was held on a Sunday evening. The day before was the Wedding Showcase event, where Columbia is open for brides-to-be to view the facilities and see a mini- trade show of vendors who provide rentals and services for weddings. Suzanne, girl wonder, organized that event. SHE ordered the pink curtains, and because the rental company wasn't coming to get them until Monday morning, we were able to 'piggyback' and use them for the wine club event. Saved us MUCHO bucks. SO, if you can ever set up events this way, do it. Half the work (one setup), half the money, twice the impact. Smart budgeting!