Thursday 21 August 2014

Ideas for Visual Merchandising

Basic Window Dressing Rules to Make More Sales

Are you aware of the latest trend in the retail industry? Why do you think that the retailers are focusing on developing effective visual merchandising? Why is there such a high demand for the visual merchandisers?
The visual merchandising is the latest market norm and its demand is increasing at an accelerating rate. The concept “Visual merchandising” can be best described as the art and strategy of displaying the merchandise in the manner that has an aesthetic appeal that draws the attention of the customers towards the retail store. It basically sets the merchandise of the store in a way that customers get attracted to the retail store and enhance their shopping experience by visiting the store.
In order to develop an effective visual merchandising in the store, the store owners are looking for skilled visual merchandisers who know the art of enhancing the aesthetic appeal of the retail store. The professional needs to be creative and talented so that he can place all the merchandise in proper way so that the customers get attracted to the aesthetic appeal of the store. Hence, the experts need to have passion for design, creativity and innovation so that they can make sure that they are talented and highly skilled visual merchandiser.
The main visual merchandising duties comprise of working on every aspect of the retail store from the placement of the merchandise to the promotion offers on the merchandise. Therefore, the professional will need to work on attractive window displays, creative signs, aesthetic interior displays and other types of sales promotions that should be offered to the customers. Hence, the professional will have to ensure that everything is properly coordinated which means that the color of the store should be complemented with the display of the products and the stage of the retail shop.
Hence, the professional will also be up-to-date with the fashion world and must be aware of the changes happening in the dynamic environment and market so that the changes can be incorporated effectively. Therefore, the visual merchandisers will have to make sure that they are aware of the latest market trends and they must ensure that everything is coordinated and strategy must be properly designed and implemented.

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Wednesday 20 August 2014

What is Visual Merchandising

Visual Merchandising is the art of presenting the store and the merchandise in the best possible way. The aim of any retail visual merchandising is to maximise profit while minimising the costs.
Visual Merchandising is a key instrument in showing off the uniqueness of the merchandise for maximising the marketing and sales.
Especially in the developed countries, such as the United Kingdom, visual merchandising has an important priority in commercial product and store planning.
Most big retail chains understand that ill presentation and bad display will have a negative impact on the sales. As a result they adopt the scientific visual merchandising techniques rather than the traditional practices of display of merchandise.
Visual merchandising spans a wide range of activities from educating the customers on the use of a new product or service to creating desire, which is all aimed at augmenting the sales process. Retail visual merchandising not only helps the shoppers’ make the right purchasing decision but will also help establish a long lasting impact by setting the company apart in an exclusive position. It combines the marketing, product design and most importantly marketing.

Duties of Visual Merchandiser

The visual merchandising experts possess a mixture of skills including, technical aspects, creativity as well as extensive business and product knowledge. Depending on the nature and the size of the retail shop typical work responsibilities may be slightly different but the typical work activities include (but not limited to):
  • Following local and national marketing trends
  • Tracking the competition’s point-of-sale and window display ideas
  • Producing new promotional activities, events and displays
  • Having an awareness of stock levels to restyle the activities accordingly and easily
  • Understanding of sales figures and data analysis for shaping future activities
Whatever you decide to do with your business, do make sure to pay extra attention to your visual merchandising.



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Thursday 8 May 2014

Why is Visual Merchandising So Important

Visual merchandising is not, by any means, a new field of art or sciences, and it has been following the growing popularity of window and floor displays. This article will discuss the importance and potential of visual merchandising for small and medium size businesses.

The visual merchandising consultant who undertake the visual merchandising activities are called visual merchandisers. And they play a very key role in the visual merchandising process from inception to implementation.
It would be unimaginable and incomplete to think of the sale of services or merchandise without a supporting image. For the longevity of the brand loyalty as well as stressing the quality of the product, projecting the merchandise the best possible way is essential. To achieve this, many companies fall into the trap of investing enormous amounts of money on the promotions. But many businessesare naive about the holistic presentation; including, the way the products are displayed in the shop. If the visual merchandising is not handled properly, it can damage the brand loyalty and image.

Visual merchandising is the art of presentation that places the products and the services on offer as well as the shoppers at the heart of selling process. It aims to educate the customers, to entice them into buying the merchandise. In most cases, this is an area where some small business owners lack adequate knowledge and expertise.

If implemented properly, visual merchandising can be invaluable for accentuating the unique usage points of the products; therefore ultimately optimising the marketing and sales efforts.

Please check the visual merchandising portfolio before choosing the right partner though in order to make sure that they are the right professional for your shop window dressing.


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Monday 10 February 2014

Visual Merchandising for Valentines

Provided by VM Design Visual Merchandisers who have a wide range of visual merchandising portfolio.

Valentine's Day is one of those annual events where people are thinking of shopping for special presents to give to their loved ones. As a result, it is always a good opportunity for retail businesses. If you own (or manage) a retail business and you would like to maximise your sales and revenue this Valentine's Day, then here are the most important things that you should watch out for.
All Products are on Display
Make sure that you display your products well. It should be in the areas that are easily visible to the naked eye. Remember, if your clients can not see your products, then they are not going to buy it.
The key here is to display your merchandise in a manner that all your customers will be able to see it and eventually purchase them.
Display Popular Items in Hot Spots
Unpopular items do not need to take up the best spots in your shop. Reserve those "hot spots" for profitable items or best seller products. Since it is Valentine's Day, the best sellers are usually chocolates and other gift items. But this does not mean that you just simply ditch those slow moving items. Just relocate them elsewhere in the store for the meantime.
For best seller items, place them in areas that are easily seen by the customers the moment they walk inside your store. These items are the highlight of your store so you should emphasize them.
Directed Towards the Customer
Display your merchandise at an angle that is directed to your consumers. They should be at an angle that lie within the customer's line of vision.
Avoid flat surfaces because they do not work well when it comes to attracting the customer's attention. Create some height as this is the best way to emphasize a product. If you are selling men's and women's apparel for Valentine's Day, and you need to display them on a mannequin, make sure to place the mannequin on an elevated area.
Make your Feature Items Stand Out
You should not just merely display items in your window display and wait for customers to come in and buy them. You must also add some decorations and ornamentations to it.
As it is Valentine's Day, it is probably a good idea to display some flowers along with the products, hearts, cherubs, or any items that are related to the occasion.
Of course, proper colour combination must also be observed so the products will look even more appealing.




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Tuesday 7 January 2014

Window Dressing for Valentine’s Day

Some tips from a window dresser with a wide range of visual merchandiser portfolio

Now that Valentine’s Day is approaching, a lot of retailers are thinking of ways on how they can prep up their display windows to entice shoppers to check out some of their Valentine stuff. As you know, the display window helps to give a boost to the overall appearance of the store which also helps to entice shoppers to get inside. This Valentine’s Day, adding a burst of color to your display window, especially the shades of pink and red is definitely a great idea. Here are more ideas when it comes to decorating your display window this Valentine’s Day.

Crepe Paper Hearts
The crepe paper hearts are easy to make. Simply crumple some red crepe papers and attach it on a heart shape Styrofoam. Then tie the heart on a string and hang it on your display window. Create about a dozen of small hearts and scatter them on your store window.

Kisses on Window
Another great idea is to scatter kisses all over your display window. Just make sure it won’t appear too crowded and that there should still be some spaces that will be left on the window so your customers can still have a peek of what you are displaying there. You can cut out a red cardboard for the kissing lips or purchase kiss stickers at a craft store. These stickers easily come off so you won’t have a hard time removing them after Valentine’s Day. Also, set around some red clothing and accessories to match with the overall window theme.

Valentine Paper bags
Another simple design idea for Valentine’s Day is to make use of paper bags. You can simply make use of your own store’s paper bag. Stuff it with white, red or pink tissue paper. Scatter them all over the window floor or place them on the display rack inside your store.

Red Roses
Red roses are among the things that symbolize Valentine’s Day. Thus, include these flowers on your window dressing for Valentine’s Day. Arrange them beautifully so as to make your window look appealing to your customers. You can go for fresh flowers, plastic flowers or perhaps, create some red roses using crepe papers.

These window display ideas for Valentine’s Day are so easy to achieve. Just keep in mind that your merchandise should be the main focus on your display window and that the props and all other decors should not appear too cluttered.

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