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BUSINESS: UNIT 16 VISUAL MERCHANDISING How Should We Set Out the Shop and Why?

Natasha Barclay

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising

Contents Introduction…………………………………………………………………… …

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Visual Merchandising…………………………………………………………… Page 2 Display Techniques……………………………………………………………...

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Product Placement……………………………………………………………….

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Product Segmentation……………………………………………………………

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Examples of Product Placement………………………………………………… Page 5 Examples of Further Display Techniques………………………………………

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How Visual Merchandising has Increased Asda and Primark’ Success……..

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How Visual Merchandising is affected by Legal and Safety Regulations…….

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Legislations and Safety Considerations………………………………………..

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Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising Introduction As a part of my trainee manager apprenticeship at a major clothing retailer, I am to create a report exploring visual merchandising and display techniques used in two contrasting retailers Asda and Primark, what influences their buyer’s behaviour as well as the legislation and safety considerations of visual merchandising conducted within stores. Throughout the report I will be investigating the visual merchandising and display techniques that can be used within our fashion retail outlet as well as analyse the different approaches to visual merchandising used by both Asda and Primark as previously mentioned. The reason for me choosing these contrasting fashion outlets is because the both aim towards different markets. Asda, a supermarket that has a subsidiary called George who makes the clothing that is sold within Asda stores, aims towards a mass market so that means that their clothing ranges in particular appeals to all genders and ages. Their prices are competitive with other supermarkets and so aim to those who do have some disposable income. Whereas Primark, who are located more often within town centres and shopping centres, aims more towards customers who want a bargain and want as much as they can buy with the money they have. Their target audiences are reflected in the way that they display their products and the way their stores are laid out. This I will explore in further detail later on.

Visual Merchandising As a part of this report I have been asked to investigate the visual merchandising display techniques that can be used within our retail outlet, I will be doing this by also comparing the two contrasting businesses, Asda and Primark, mentioned before. Visual merchandising is the practice within the retail industry of creating floor plans and displays in order to maximize sales. The reason for using visual merchandising is to attract, engage, and motivate the customer towards making a purchase. The more appealing a display is the more likely a customer is going to want to purchase that item or go into the shop. There are some generic factors that every retailer would use when it comes to visual merchandising, such as; using a story or theme with displays or products, coordination, colour or style blocks, complimentary or contrasting colours and repetition (small product displays are repeated on various shelves, this is effective in boutiques). I will explore these further later. Page | 2

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising Places such as Harrods, in London, are known for their amazing displays especially when it comes to Christmas, professional window dressers/ visual merchandisers are brought in from around the world just to create their famously known displays.

Visual merchandising is essential as it is the first impression customers/ potential customers get of the shop. If the shop front and shop floor are unappealing and do not grab customers’ attention then it is likely they will not be motivated to want to buy from that retailer, instead displays need to ensure that they are able to persuade the customer to buy from that store as appose to looking elsewhere. Primark and Asda both address this, however in contrasting ways due to their target audience and the image they are portraying to each target audience, Asda is a supermarket and so primary sells food products therefore most of their customers predominantly come in store to purchase food, some may choose to browse within the clothing section and so this is not the priority for Asda. Whereas, Primark solely sells clothing and so they focus all their attention on displaying these products.

Display Techniques Product Placement Retailers such as Asda and Primark display their products where they feel they can attract the most customers’ attention. Window, entrance, bottom of stairs/ escalators, high traffic aisles and aisle end displays are often the most affective. However sometimes products are displayed in ‘out of context’ ways whereby promotions are placed next to other products that are not similar in order to encourage sales due to the surprise of them being there.

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Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising Product Segmentation When creating visual displays there are other things that retailers like Asda and Primark need to take into consideration such as; 

The theme- these could be displays around seasons like Halloween, new school year, Valentine’s Day etc or even colour themes and events.

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The season- displays that would come under this category are often based around summer, winter, autumn, spring etc, for example you wouldn’t advertise swimwear in the winter.

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Promotion and events- sometimes within window displays and in store there are some displays offering things such as half price, buy one get one half price, January sales etc. this makes customers more willing to purchase those products.

When displaying products within retail, they are often separated into categories like;

Outdoor- these are things such as coats, shoes, umbrellas etc, 

Casual- such as t-shirts, tracksuits, ‘lounge’ clothes.

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Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising 

Workwear/ sportswear- this ranges from gym clothes like yoga leggings and sports bras to smart clothing like office trousers and blouses.

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Maternity- in some retail outlets maternity clothes are available and are displayed, however not all retailers stock them; it depends on their target audiences.

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Underwear/ Lingerie- In many clothing retails there is often a section of the shop floor and even within window displays whereby underwear and lingerie are displayed, especially around Valentine’s Day.

Examples of Product Placement; 

Window – Placing displays of the kind of products sold within the shop at the shop windows is what gives customers and potential customers their first impression of the shop, there are often mannequins within window displays in order to give a visual as to what some of the products inside the shop, look like on, along with this and choices of colours such as the brands colour (Orange displays for B&Q) this draws customers attention and make the shops and displays memorable. Like mentioned before, if they are unappealing and do not catch their attention they may be less likely to want to go inside the shop.

Primark’s everyday window displays appear relatively simple and straight forward however this basic display method is done for a reason. To appeal to their target audience. Primark’s primary customers choose to shop there due to their low prices; they feel when they enter the store that they will find a ‘bargain’ and so a simple display reflects that idea, there is no hassle and each product in store is a great value for money. For the majority of their window displays Primark often opts for a more subtle colour scheme, however this changes depending on season. During events such as New Year, they display clothing with sequins and livelier colour choices, whereas Valentine’s day they display Lingerie and eveningwear to almost persuade customers to make a new purchase from them for the new season. Asda, on the other hand, very rarely uses window displays for their clothing range ‘George’ due to their primary product being their food. However if they did invest in creating window displays for their clothing range then it may increase their sales. The main time that you Page | 5

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising would see an Asda window display about clothing it would be regarding ‘Back to School’ clothes, this may be because the majority of their target audience are parents on mid to low incomes that would look for cheap school clothes. 

Front end – Front end displays are at the end of each aisle, where more likely than not promotions and discounts would be displayed as so to highlight them and draw the attention of customers to that aisle and those products.

Primark does not particularly have Aisles and so Front End displays do not necessarily apply to them but they do have display areas such as sale sections that draw the attention of customers, this means customers will purchase more, therefore increasing sales as well as profits. Asda on the other hand, does display clothing/ accessories and food produce in Aisles. Due to them being a supermarket this is the standard layout of stores and so their clothing range mimics this set up as it is what customers are used to and expect. It is affective as it allows for customers to clearly view most to all of Asda’s clothing products. As for their sales displays they are often shown at the front of the clothing section so that it is the first thing customers see and it draws their attention, again customers will purchase more and as a result increase sales and profits. 

Aisle ends (end caps) – A the end of each isle there can be a small display that draws the attention of the customer, by drawing the customers attention is makes them more willing to see what is down that aisle. It is supposed to give some brands and products a competitive advantage. It is often available for lease to a manufacturer in a retail environment. Repetition is often used on Aisle Ends; it is the process of repeating small displays on various shelves using the same colours, schemes and brands.

Primark again does not have aisles and so this does not particularly apply to them, instead they use techniques such as Gondolas and Freestanding displays so Primark can manipulate displays in line with theme or season to encourage sales. Asda, on the other hand, does have Aisle ends on both their food aisles and clothing aisles but they vary slightly. At the end of their food aisles they use the space to display one brand’s products for each aisle, for example Page | 6

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising the snack aisle they would display a brand of crisps, whereas for their clothing aisles the space is used to display the newer products they are offering for example new gym leggings, and they are often displayed with a slight discount in order to spike the interest of customers. 

Near the stairs/ escalators and lifts – Retailers often display products in these areas as they are the last products you see on that floor, as well as the first products you see when coming to the top of the stairs/ escalators and lifts. The products placed her give the first and last impressions as to what is on that floor and so they are used to entice customers by showing the best products first. A good display technique to use here would be complimentary or contrasting colours. The reason being for this is that displays here often highlight products available for special occasions and so using either contrasting or complimentary colours draw in customer’s attention.

Primark uses the areas on both the top and bottom of their stairs and escalators as well as near lifts, in order to display products that give and impression of what is to be expected on the next floor, for example displaying higher end clothing in order to grab customer’s attention and entice them to look on the next floor. This is effective as it keeps a good traffic flow and means that most customers will look at more products then what they originally came in store for, this overall boosts Primark’s sales and overall profits. As for Asda, in some of their buildings they do in fact have multiple floors however in many there is only a single floor and so these kinds of displays aren’t really relevant. However for those Asda supermarkets that do have multiple floors often free standing displays and gondolas are used in order to quickly grab customers attentions before they move onto the next floor. 

At the entrance – shops often place products at the entrance as they are the first things customers see before deciding to come inside the shop. At the front entrance the type of products you are more likely to see is the seasonal merchandise and smaller sized high priced items this is because it is more likely to be seen and bought by customers. Page | 7

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising Primark often places their seasonal products, such as summer clothes or jumpers in the winter, on one side of the front of the store and opposite that usually displayed are gym outfits or other sportswear. The reason they would chose this type of display is to instantly draw in the attention of their customers, it convinces them to go further into the store. These products cater to customers current needs, for example in the winter they would want to buy a jumper not a thin, floral, strappy top. This type of strategy will help to increase profits. Within Asda when first walking in store you can often see the clear divide between their food products, furnishings and their clothing range, George. The reason for this is that customers that shop in Asda know what they are going in store for, and so having a clear division between sections makes it easier for them to decide where to go first. Each Asda store is set out differently depending on its location, Asda Gravesend displays their clothing range near the entrance of the store to the left hand side, whereas Asda Dartford has their clothing range displayed near the back of the store. This may be due to what they feel is more likely to sell depending on the customer that come in and what they normally buy. If customers are likely to buy clothing, these displays may be nearer the entrance as so to display any new products but also to entice customers to purchase more clothing. 

At high traffic aisles – These are aisles where there is the most amount of customer activity due to activities such as promotions. High traffic aisles are often the aisle that customers first go to when they come into the shop.

Similar to aisle ends, Primark does not have aisles but does however have free standing displays and gondolas. Even though they do not have high traffic aisles they do have area of their stores that bring in high traffic, such as sales and new products. These particular areas make customers feel as though they are getting an even greater bargain and therefore they may be more likely to purchase more products. Asda, as mentioned before, contrasts Primark and does display its clothing range in aisles. This kind of display strategy ensures that customers can work their way through each aisle and see most of Asda’s George products. With this layout customers may be more likely/ willing to purchase more and this will therefore boost sales. Page | 8

Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising Examples of further display techniques; 

Mannequins, Busts and Forms- These forms of displaying clothing products in particular are used in order to give a visual as to how the clothing would/ could look in reality. They can be placed within store windows as well as inside on the shop floor. Mannequins are often used as a focal point for displays and draw in customer’s attention.

Primark’s choice of mannequins have recently been slated for showing ‘protruding ribs’ customers felt that this choice of mannequin gave false body images and expectations, especially to young people. With this they immediately chose to remove them to avoid any further complaints as well as any loss of customers. On the other hand, mannequins are used by Primark in order to show off new clothing as well as their seasonal products. Opposite to Primark, Asda uses a few mannequins in store and not within window displays, as again they do not particularly use them either. Asda uses what are classed as ‘basic’ mannequins that cater for the ‘average’ person. However this too could be seen negatively as people come in varied shapes and sizes, therefore basic mannequins may not be that effective for those who are not ‘average’ size. Great examples of positive and diverse mannequins Missguided

are

those

have

in

Missguided.

launched

diverse

mannequins with stretch marks, hijabs and Vitiligo. This is helping change body image attitudes, which is becoming highly important within today’s society. Stick thin mannequins and models are not what people want to see when buying clothes; they want to see what products would look like on diverse body types. This is something that I will take into consideration when designing the shop floor of our retail store as a part of my trainee manager apprenticeship.

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Business: Unit 16 - Visual Merchandising 

Gondolas- These are personalised displays for specific products. These are used in order to draw customers’ attention to these displays. They are often above or at eye level.

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Dump tables, Bins or counters- in these three areas displays are often reduced in price and so are displayed this way in order to show a ‘bargain’.

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Garment rails, slat walls and shelves- in many clothing retailers, products that are on sale are displayed on garment rails, clothing such as t-shirts, shoes and jeans are often shown on shelves and accessories are sometimes displayed on slat walls. This gives structure to the layout of most retail shops.

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Free standing displays- these are one of the most common display methods that are used within clothing retails, they include stacks or islands that are found in the centre of shop floors. If used effectively they can be the centrepiece display.

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Signage/ Branding- Branding are displays that use a variety of products from the same brand. This creates a strong branding message to customers and encourages them to buy matching items. And signage clearly states the products that are available to draw customer’s attention.

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Complimentary Products- these include products that are similar or can be paired to one another, such as a dress display being next to and accessory display. It encourages the buyer to purchase matching items. This also boosts retailer’s sales.

Primark uses many gondolas within store; they often use them to display products such as tshirts, jeans, jumpers and shorts. This is effective as it creates a variation between their higher displays such as slat walls, garment rails and shelves. Therefore customers could feel as though they have more choice then what is just on the walls. Whereas Asda uses a lot of garment rails within each aisle, this may not be as effective as Primark as customers may almost already know what to expect, this style of display may not create excitement for customers and therefore decrease their willingness to buy. Near Primark and Asda’s tills/ Registers Dump tables, Bins and counters are used. This is done to entice customers into making a last minute impulse buy. What can normally be found her...