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Visual Merchandising




                    Notes          Self Assessment

                                   Fill in the blanks:
                                   1.  ........................... ultimately decide the future and overall profitability of the organisation.
                                   2.  A good location may not always success, but undoubtedly it is a .........................................
                                       for smooth flow of goods and day-to-day operations, such as loading and unloading of
                                       goods.
                                   3.  Traditionally, the retail community placed great importance on owning the place since
                                       this was considered ........................ in the business community.
                                   4.  There are many ........................ retail markets in India, which operate on particular days of
                                       the week.
                                   5.  The retailers operating in various periodic markets keep ........................ from place to place
                                       and do not own  any property; instead they pay a  small rental for their  set-up in each
                                       market.
                                   6.  With  the emergence  of new  forms of  retail formats  such as  franchising, malls,  and
                                       department stores the dependence on rent or lease is ........................

                                   3.2 Store Design and Layout

                                   In addition to the store location decision, another decision vital decision that is important for a
                                   retailer is that of store design. If you look around today, the pace of change is certain to scare you
                                   at times. Rapid progress  is being  made in  the way things are  bought, made  and sold. The
                                   consumer today is clearly the King. The choices he has before him today are unimaginable. For
                                   a simple toothbrush, he has about 100 choices. From colours to shapes to  bristle length’s  to
                                   bristle types.
                                   The places he buys from too are continuously being upgraded. Consumers want touch, feel
                                   and experience the product  before they actually buy it. The choices that  a consumer  faces
                                   today extend right to the point  of purchase.  The consumer evaluates the  outlets where  he
                                   purchases and will not buy a product or service unless the retail outlet provides value to the
                                   customer.
                                   Good  store design creates the vital difference in today’s competitive marketplace. Successful
                                   companies use design as a powerful tool in their marketing strategy by making better products
                                   and building a strong retail identity. Design creates a better environment at the workplace and
                                   projects the organisational image. Good design offers many benefits – a vastly improved quality;
                                   a defined statement of identity; an optimising of resources.
                                   A well-planned retail store layout allows a retailer to maximise the sales for each square foot of
                                   the allocated selling space within the store.
                                   Store layouts generally show the size and location of each department, any permanent structures,
                                   fixture locations and customer traffic patterns.
                                   Each floor plan and store layout will depend on the type of products sold, the building location
                                   and how much the business can afford to put into the overall store design.

                                   There are a number of different types of layouts commonly found in retail stores. The layout
                                   used will be dependent on the width and depth of the product range, the nature of the product
                                   categories sold, the type of fixturing used and the constraints of the outlet in terms of size and
                                   shape. The  objective of  a store  layout is  to maximise  the interface  between customers  and
                                   merchandise.



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