Page 196 - DMGT552_VISUAL_MERCHANDISING

Unit 10: Dominance Factor in Merchandise Presentation

In this unit, we will learn about dominance factor in a merchandise presentation. We will also Notes
focus on cross merchandising.

10.1 Dominance Factor

When preparing a visual merchandising layout, it is desirable that the visual merchandiser give
emphasis to some special aspect of the product. It can be the colour, the coordinates, the brand
name, the size, the price, and end use. This emphasis is known as the “dominance factor”.

Did u know? In most displays, the dominant element is the merchandise.
While judging the visual merchandising plan of a product category, a visual merchandising
needs to decide those aspects that need to be emphasised. In merchandise presentation, the
dominance can be due to either of the following factors:
1. Dominance by Colour: Colour dominance is the simplest, the most direct, and usually the
most effective way to visually present products. Effective visual merchandising means
first and foremost the folding, stacking, and hanging products by colour. Colour takes
precedence over style and size.

Notes Colour and Light
Colour means little unless it is considered in relation to the type of light in which the
colour is seen. It is light that makes things visible. All colours depend on light. There is
natural daylight and artificial light, which can be incandescent, fluorescent, or
High-Intensity Discharge (HID) lighting. It is not quite that simple, however. These three
broad classifications of artificial light are further subdivided. There are many different
types of fluorescent lamp tubes available, ranging from a warm white deluxe that attempts
to create an “incandescent” effect, to the cool, bluish “daylight” quality usually associated
with fluorescent lighting. HID lamps are being improved daily and now even approach
the warm end of the coloured light scale. Incandescent lamps (i.e., bulbs) are warm and
glowing, but placing filters or gel sleeves over them can change the colour and quality of
the light.

Let us, therefore, consider the colour of light, the effect of light on pigment colour, and
how light can affect the merchandise and the area that surrounds the merchandise. Visible
light is actually composed of the whole spectrum of colours, from violet to red. Imagine
a beam of light passing through a glass prism or reflecting in a pool of water or oil, and
you will see that spectrum broken up into a rainbow of colours—from violet, through the
blues and greens, to the yellows and oranges, and finally, red. All light is caused by waves
of radiant energy that vary in length. The shortest wavelength of the visible spectrum is
violet light; then comes blue light, green light, and so on; and at the other end of the
spectrum, with the longest wavelength, is red light. All these wavelengths—the entire
spectrum—combine to form visible, or white, light, which is the light we see. Ultraviolet
light, X-rays, and gamma rays have shorter wavelengths than we can see. Infrared and
radio waves are too long for us to perceive. For the purpose of understanding light and
colour in display and store planning, this discussion will be limited to the colours that
appear in the visible spectrum. We will find that some light sources reflect the shorter
Contd...

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