Solid Displays' Corporate Culture

2024-08-10

Solid Displays' Corporate Culture

Why Do We Display?

We show to sell. Display or visual merchandising is showing merchandise and concepts at their very best, with the end purpose of making a sale. We may not actually sell the object displayed or the idea promoted, but we do attempt to convince the viewer of the value of the object, the store promoting the object, or the organization behind the concept. Although a cash register may not ring because of a particular display, that display should make an impression on the viewer that will affect future sales.

The display person used to be the purveyor of dreams and fantasies, presenting merchandise in settings that stirred the imagination and promoted fantastic flights to unattainable heights. Today's visual merchandiser, however, sells "aspirations." Today's shopper can be whatever he or she wants to be by simply wearing certain lifestyle brands that have a built-in status. The visual merchandiser dresses a mannequin in slim-fitting jeans, flashes the lights, adds the lifestyle graphic depicting the fashionable crowd, and reinforces the image of sexuality and devastating attractiveness that is part of the prominent brand. Wearing Brand X jeans, whether size 8 or 18, makes the wearer feel special. She imagines herself to be that slim, sensuous Kardashian she has seen on social media, surrounded by crowds of admirers. She feels special when she is wearing her slim-fitting jeans.

Today's mannequin represents any shopper on the other side of the glass; it may have a flawless figure, abstract facial features, an egg head, or a branded neck cap, but it still prompts the customer to think, "That mannequin looks great, so why not me?" That's reality; that's selling! The visual merchandiser, therefore, presents more than the merchandise. He or she presents the image of who or what the shopper can be when using the merchandise displayed.

It has been said by presidents and vice presidents of large retail operations, and it has been uttered by experienced shoppers and consumers: There is very little difference between the merchandise sold in one store and that in another. Many department and specialty stores carry the same name brands - the same globally advertised lines seen on fashion blogs and in magazines. Often, the real difference is in the price of the merchandise being offered for sale.

Why, then, does an individual shop in Store A and pay more for the same item selling for less in Store B? Why does a shopper tote the shopping bag from Store C rather than an equally attractive bag from Store D? Why do shoppers cover themselves with garments branded with a store's name on pockets, patches, shoulders, and hips? It has to do with the store image! If everyone believes that people who shop in Store A are young, smart, sophisticated, and so on, The visual merchandiser reinforces that belief with merchandise displays, the types of mannequins shown, and the manner in which the mannequins are dressed, positioned, and lit. In this way, the visual merchandiser promotes the store's the store's image and fashion trendiness. Often, the visual merchandiser is not selling any one piece of merchandise, but rather the idea any purchase from that store will guarantee social success and the stamp of the "right" taste level. However, visual merchandising is still selling. We will return in later chapters to the concept of image and image projection in merchandise presentation.

In addition to selling actual merchandise, displays can be used to introduce a new product, a fashion trend, or a new look or idea. The display may be the first three-dimensional representation of something the consumer has thus far seen only in ads or on the website. Displays can be used to educate the consumer concerning what the new item is, how it can be worn or used, and how it can be accessed. Displays may also supply patient information such as the price, promotion, and other special features.

The visual merchandiser may create a display that stimulates, tantalizes, or arouses the shopper's curiosity to such a degree that he or she is "challenged" to enter the store and wander through it, even though the shopper is not motivated by the displayed product itself. This is still a victory. It gives the visual merchandiser and the merchant many more opportunities to sell that shopper once he or she is inside the store. To make a shopper a stopper and a "walk-in" rather than a "walk-by"is a commercial achievement. And always, as mentioned earlier, the purpose of visual merchandising is to promote the store image - to let people know what the store is, where it stands on fashion trends, what one can expect inside it, to whom it appeals, its price range, and the caliber of its merchandise and merchandising.

The visual merchandiser always puts the store's best "face" forward. His or her duty is to bring shoppers into the store, while at the same time ensuring that the interior presentation is in keeping with what has been promised on the outside.

It is important to remember that visual merchandising and display has always been a hands-on career. Whereas some jobs may be desk - or table-bound, visual display and merchandising have always been out on the floor, in the window, up a ladder, or down in the shop getting ready for the aforementioned activities. It has always been creative and interactive and has involved the person's hands, body, and brain to create something special or memorable. What did the display persons of decades ago do before staple guns, Velcro, and hot glue? Pins, tacks, tape, and small nails worked maybe not as well, but the display person managed. There have been many advances in the tools used today; most visual merchandising departments resemble design labs with the advances in technology. It's not unusual to find a vinyl cutting machine, a large-format printer, and several computers near the workable and mannequin storage bins. Visual merchandising has progressed way beyond just the display of merchandise in windows and the store interior; it's grown 360 degrees to encompass the "total retail experience."

Why Do We Display? A Recap

Sell by showing and promoting.
Encourage the shopper to enter the store.
Get the customer to pause and "shop" the selling floor.
Establish, promote, and enhance the store's visual image.
Entertain customers and enhance their shopping experience.
Introduce and explain new products.
Educate customers by answering questions on the use and accessorizing of a product or fashion trend.
Omnichannel retail practices changing the retail experience.
New strategies to promote customer engagement.

Types of Displays and Display Settings

The four major types of display.
Promotional and institutional displays.
Five categories of display settings.
The purpose of buildup presentations in display.

Fashions change, and so do the ways in which fashion is presented. During the "golden age" of display-back in the 1950s and 1960-window displays were events or happenings, and shoppers were to spectacular trims that are now only seen at Christmas. Shoppers couldn't wait to walk down Main Street to see the newest extravaganza in the department store and specialty store windows. Mannequins were stately, glamorous, and beautiful beyond belief. They were models of perfection, fashioned after the movie stars of the day.

In the 1970s and early 1980s, such spectaculars gave way to "street theater". Shocking displays were meant to disturb or provoke the viewer. Mannequins developed human-like imperfections, personalities, bumpy noses, eyes too close together, squints-and they took on more animated poses to complement the fashions of the day.

In the 1980s and 1990s, displays became static, minimalistic, and industrial. Hanging, draping, or laying garments down on the ground was common. Mannequins with heads made a rare guest appearance; more often we'd see hangers, drapers, forms, and torsos and a sameness of presentation as we walked done Main Streets or covered the aisles inside malls and shopping centers. Closed back windows gave way to open-back, and "propping" was sometimes limited to a plant.

But the display is not dead today, nor is it dying. It is simply evolving with our lifestyles, and visual merchandisers are learning to accept and even triumph over budget cuts and staff cuts and even over the loss of display windows, production facilities, and the magical lighting systems that once turned a display space into a theater. What has not changed is that shoppers, now more than ever, are looking for entertainment in the retail store and that the entertainment is often to be found in the displays. The displays have, in some stores, disappeared from the windows only to revive and thrive inside the store on platforms, on ledges, on T-walls, or around the fascias over the stocked merchandise. Although it is only one of the techniques used to bring attention to the new and featured merchandise, "humor" is more and more frequently being used to deliver the store's fashion image statement. It has become a significant element in visual language.

A humorous or amusing display says something up front about the store about its customers; it humanizes the process of shopping. The humor can be broad and obvious or subtle and clever. It can be a "belly laugh," a giggle, a titter, or even a knowing smirk. It is entertaining and establishes an emotional bond. With humor, we reach out to our particular customer and say, "You'll love this one!" Americans have a long history of appreciating humor-we are a fun-loving nation that would rather smile than sigh, laugh than ary-and it is a great approach to effective displays, especially because improvisation is what display is all about.

Types of Displays

The primary purposes of displays are to present and to promote. A display is at its best when it simply shows a color, an item, a collection. or just an idea. Types of displays include the following:

⊗ One-item display
⊗ Line-of-goods display
⊗ Related merchandise display
⊗ Variety, or assortment, display

One-Item Display

A one-item display is just that-the showing an advancement of a single garment or item. It might be a gown designed by a top designer, a one-of-a-kind piece of ceramic or jewelry, or a Saarinen Tulip chair. Using one item can suggest exclusivity, simplicity or minimalist style.

Line-of-Goods Display

Buildup Display

Types of Display and Display Settings: A Recap

The purpose of a display is to present and promote.
A one-item display shows only a single item.
A line-of-goods display shows one type of merchandise, through the merchandise might vary in size or color.
A related merchandise display shows items that are meant to be used together.
A variety, or assortment, display is a combination of unrelated items.
A promotional display emphasizes a particular theme, for example, Father's Day.
An institutional display promotes an idea, rather than an item or a product. For example, a national hero or a community drive might be promoted in a window display. This presents the store as being a part of the community.
Display settings can be realistic, environmental, semi-realistic, fantasy, or abstract.
A realistic setting display is a recognizable display, such as a room.
An environmental display shows how and where various related or coordinated items can be used.
A semi-realistic setting presents the essence of a setting and leaves the rest to the imagination.
A fantasy setting is usually suggestive, creative, and unusual.
An abstract setting is an arrangement of lines and shapes, with the merchandise as the dominant feature.
A buildup carries the viewer's eye from grouping to grouping by means of a combination of steps, such as a series of forms of different sizes arranged in a straight line, but all leading the eye to one point.

The Retail Experience

It is an exciting time to be part of the visual merchandising and display industry! More thought, energy, and imagination goes into designing retail spaces than ever before. The consumer no longer comes to the store to shop but rather is on a quest for new experiences, sparking the growth of what is termed "experience design." Shoppers empowered by technology and smartphones have changed the retail landscape. They are making up the rules, and retailers are listening-providing customers with the products they want, when they want it, at the price they are willing to pay. Technology may have changed the strategy for getting products to consumers, but the job of the visual merchandiser and store designer has remained the same. We continue to innovate new ways to entertain customers and inspire them enough to post, tweet and Instagram about it. The impact of technology on retail has generated the phenomena of omnichannel retailing. "Omni," meaning all, and "channel," referencing the many retail mediums, merge an array of shopping experiences to reach consumers. Consumer preferences are reinventing the essence of shopping, as they choose to blend shopping channels either for fun or convenience, or to simplify their busy lives. Smartphones, computers, tablets, social media, email, television, direct mail catalogs, and call centers all afford consumers shopping opportunities. They may visit the retail store to try on the product and then return home to make their purchase online, possibly taking advantage of a value-based offering not found in the brick-and-mortar store.

Omnichannel shopping has increased the needs for retailers to stay focused on what customers want, and data analytics are increasingly relied on to aid in this process. The crystal ball, or customer's "click." has presented new ways for retailers to track and learn about consumer behivor. This has spawned a new level of engagement and shifted the approach to visual merchandising and store design. Through observation we know more about consumer habits thanks to social media, websites, or eye-tracking devices within the store environment. Kiosks, digital scanners, and NFC (near field communication) technology allow consumers to find and pay for products more quickly while enabling the retailer to better predict consumer expectations. Retailers are leveraging this information by providing more energetic retail activities including additional space for food services, free Wi-Fi access, and tablets anchored to fixtures to support mobile app purchases during the brick-and-mortar store visit. Omni-retailing and social media have inspired new segments in the marketplace. There are smaller niche shopping environments designed to appeal to a targeted demographic, merchandise offerings that connect luxury goods with value-based items, and online stores establishing temporary or permanent brick-and-mortar store; they are all ways that retailers seek to gain more traction. It is evident that retailers can no longer depend solely on brand loyalty and expect the customer to return - each day is a new day, and satisfying each customer is the first goal on the retail home front.

Consumer Engagement

In the present economic climate, designers, firms, and recognize that forging an emotional bond with consumers - much like a good friendship - is one key strategy in keeping the relationship steady. The following twelve retail strategies are energizing and humanizing the retail landscape:

Customer-Centric and Service: Oriented American Girl set a standard by extending its brand, providing personal services for young customers and their dolls. It has partnered with leading NYC hotel brands and offers in-store amenities such as a doll hospital, a hail/nail salon where customers can have their ears pierced, and a cafe experience to have lunch or a birthday party. These activities not only promote repeat store visits; they forge a heritage and a longterm relationship with consumers.

Value Proposition: Provide services and features that are innovative and add value to your brand. Apple was the first to inspire retailers to step up in-store customer services and offer educational programs with the "genius bar." The friendly brand of Apple associates eased uncertainties about learning new technology and convinced users that the iPhone was as simple as touted in the company's Apple ad campaign. Small niceties go a long way, and add-on services are now "a given" consumer expectation. Retailers need to simplify the checkout process and adopt a friendly payment solution. The checkout experience should be as simple and engaging as the displays in the store; shoppers want to use mobile devices to shorten the wait.

Esteem and Aspiration: Promote product quality, transparency, and sustainability. Customers are forming emotional bonds with brands and businesses that align with beliefs and rewarding them with their loyalty. Retailer Marks & Spencer leads by example through programs that keep employees engaged in social responsibility, sustainable business practices, and customers' health and well-being. Panera Cares stores feed thousands of hungry Americans each day, asking patrons to pay what they can afford. Panera Cares community cafes are designed to help raise awareness about the very serious and pervasive problem of food insecurity in our country. Timberland employees can receive forty annual paid service hours to support local environmental projects.

Sense of Community: Build kinship. SoulCycle brings consumers together in an atmosphere that motivates individuals, encourages teamwork, and nurtures community. Capital One Cafes, designed to feel more like a gathering space than a bank, often including public seating, private nooks, coffee bars, and more. Lululemon provides in-store yoga classes that instill a sense of connection to neighbors, friends, and like-minded community members. Comfortable customer-focused spaces are core to humanizing the new retail experience.

Personalization: Incorporate opportunities that are personalized; engage the consumer along every step of the shopping journey. Nordstrom's partnership with the online retailer Shoes of Prey invites consumers to design a custom pair of shoes in-store. Once seated at the elegant design station, the consumer can explore 170-plus swatches of materials and feel how the different shades and textures work together. A shoe stylist guides the customer through process, from choosing the style, heel height, and materials to deciding which size and special add-ons are perfect for the individual. Nike, Converse, and Adidas all offer personalized services that enable consumers to customize their athletic footwear based on their sport, style, comfort, or endurance level.

Entertainment: Williams-Sonoma's center-of-the-store "island kitchen" inspires customers to experience and indulge in culinary arts via product demonstrations and hands-on opportunities. Shoppers of all ages can learn how to prepare exotic recipes and use work gadgets purchased in the store. House of Vans, a retail destination located underground in New York and London, entertains visitors with an art gallery, a VansLab artist incubator space, a cinema, a live music venue, a premium cafe and bar, and a gifting suite. Their skater-built and designed concrete bowl, mini ramp, and street course provide a full entertainment experience to customers and community.

Emphasize the Journey...

In-Store Animation...

Cross-Selling...

Sweet Spots...

The Product Is the Hero...

Retail and Technology: As retail and technology continue to merge to provide support and experiences, omnichannel shopping will unify with the brick-and-mortar store. Virtual reality and augmented reality will present new opportunities for customers to experience products and spaces.

The successful retail store of the future needs to be all of these bundled into one. The next generation of designers will align these to craft a new store model fusing the physical store, the online store, and the consumer experience.

Brand and Brand Identity

Unless you have been hibernating or totally out of the retail scene, you must have heard the word that is reverberating through the media - the word is brand. Everything we do or say seems to refer back to the brand and how it is presented. Just exactly what is a brand and how do we get it? If we have it - how do er show it so that others will recognize and acknowledge that brand?

The other definition of brand - the brand or mark that cowboys burn into the hides of cattle - is not quite the same, but it is close. The brand identifies who you are-what you are or who is the producer of the object of the service. It distinguishes you or your products from the same or similar ones. It can be a word (Kleenex), a name (Campbell's Soups), a symbol (the "swoosh" of Nike or Apple's bitten apple), a color (the red and white bull's eye of Target), a graphic design that is applied to a product or service (Starbuck's crowned siren), or a combination of any of the above. Companies get graphic artists to the "look" of the brand, selecting the just-right signature color, a specific (if not original) font, a quirky logo that they hope will be memorable-anything that will make the representation of their brand unique, appealing, and memorable to a specific audience.

What is the brand? In the book Designing B to B Brands: Lessons from Deloitte and 195,000 Brand Managers John Wiley and Sons 2013, Carlos Martinez Onaindia, global brand senior manager, and Brian Resnick, global brand director, both at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd., answered that question. In that book, Onaindia said that the brand was more than the logo, tagline, or mission statement - "It's what people say when you leave the room - it's about perception. It's about reputation - why you are different from your competition."

Resnick said, "A brand is a collection of distinguishing intangible assets that are most commonly associated with and shaped by a product, person, or organization, but ultimately defined by the consumer or audience. At the heart of any successful brand is that idea of consistency in communications and consistency in experience." Now, what happens when that company or corporation invites the public into its domain - be it a retail store, a trade show, a cafe or restaurant, a bank. or even a gone-in-a-minute pop-up shop? How is the corporate brand made evident in that specific site: We now come to brand identity.

What is the brand identity" Brian Resnick provides us with the definition in his book. "Brand identity is expressed through the most physically embodied aspects of the organization. It is the manifestation of the brand that can be seen, heard, and immediately experienced. Brand identity encompasses visual identity, aural identity, and other sensory components of a brand" -like walking into a shop and selling, feeling, and being totally involved in and surrounded by the brand imagery. It is about adding emotions and sensory appeal. This is where the store planners, visual merchandisers, and display persons make their contributions. This is where the creative and talented show people step in to create the desired ambiance that will define the story that the brand wants to project with an appeal to all five senses. It is the designers who give it form and shape-add texture and materials, a color palette, an emotional context and appeal, the sound, or the specific aroma. This is the drama that will create the desired perception of what the brand stands for and add extra value to the product. And you can be the talent that makes it happen.

There is no special formula, no magic word that suddenly provides the ideal brand identity. The presentation of the merchandise and the displays that bring shoppers into the store are vital to creating the brand identity. If the store uses mannequins, are they distinctive? Do they truly represent the retailer's selected shoppers? Do they complement the merchandise? Are they as smart, sophisticated, and stylish as the garments or as amusing, young, and trendy as the retailer would like the wares to appear? What does the display of stock on the wall and floor fixtures on the display tables and racks say about the brand and the merchandise? If your brand is elegant and refined, is that evident in the look and texture of the shop interior - the materials and colors used? If it is a fun, funky sort or brand, how much of that feeling does a shopper get as he or she walks into the store? Is the shop fun to be in, and is the presentation of merchandise lighthearted as well? If your brand is represented by a white jungle cat leaping off of a signature red background, how do you make sure that image is woven into the store's decor and its displays? How do you work this familiar logo or trademark into your display calendar so that is always present but always looking fresh and new? Add a red Santa hat to the puma and maybe a sack overflowing with sports shoes on its back for Christmas or turn the red background into a giant heart through which the puma leaps to greet Valentine's Day. Where the brand features a special or signature color, find clever and surprising ways to use that color in your visual merchandising and your displays. If "heritage" or "tradition" is an important part of your brand, emphasize it by the use of "antique" or just very old items that refer to the product or the theme you are developing. Reuse and repurposing can be applied here as well.

Go Green: Sustainable Retail Practices

There are lots of opportunities to "Go Green" and reuse, repurpose, and recycle while enhancing brand identity. Old and maybe seemingly discarded objects can add new life and interest in a retail environment. If the brand is elegant and refined, and real antiques are not within the reach of a limited budget, try making your own "antique" furniture or furniture-as0fixtures by using paint and imagination. A visit to a local secondhand store or a search at garage sales may turn up reproductions of period furniture in imperfect condition. Depending upon your brand and what it stands for and who the customers are, strip off the upholstery fabric; paint the frame a neutral color, a sophisticated shiny black, or a cool, matte white; and reupholster with a fabric that carries through the store's theme - or, if there is one - the signature color of the brand is young and trendy and a bit frivolous, the same frames can work in bright, sharp colors or an array of happy pastels.

Always consider the brand first and the clientele you are trying to impress. No matter how contemporary your shop is, there may be a spot for a focal fixture that stands out. That fixture may be an armoire that is now a color it was never intended to be or wallpapered over in a striking pattern. A tall chest of drawers with several drawers pulled out to display merchandise can also be a rescued piece from a refuse heap.

When it comes to display props, have fun. A shopper who steps into the store with a smile after seeing the window or up-front display is easier to satisfy than one who is glum or frowning. Throughout this book, there are references to the use of repurposing everyday objects - especially obsolete ones - in new and enticing ways. Sometimes, you don't even have to refinish the pieces; just dust them off and let the shabby, scaly finish contrast with all the new and bright products. A weather-beaten, age-stained dress form on a cast iron roll-around base can do more than highlight the new arrival. It can suggest tradition or hand tailoring or maybe the vintage quality of the dress form wouldn't. Relics of the past that perform similar functions as new household products - like coffee makers, steam irons, toasters, and air conditioners - are sure attention getters that may come off refuse heap and be recycled as decorative props that contrast the items for sale. It is all about enhancing the brand by making the brand identity more appealing and more memorable while finding a new use for an old disposable device or object.