Page 57 - DMGT552_VISUAL_MERCHANDISING
P. 57
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.
52 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY