Is it Time to Makeover Your Sales Floor?

Retail Online Training


How’s your store looking these days?
Tired and in need of makeover? We’ve all heard the statement, “there’s nothing like a fresh coat of paint
to change things.”
It’s true; a fresh coat of paint on your store’s walls
can have a big impact on your business and your customers. But a fresh coat of
paint is not enough. When your sales floor is stale or outdated, it can cost
you in sales. Markets change quickly and competition is tough. The local coffee
house competes with Starbucks, the apparel shop down the street competes with
the national chains, and when your main competitor remodels the store, we can
guarantee that your customers will stop in to check it out.
Retail makeovers – store planning and
design – have consistently been at the top of our list of things retailers need
to do well in order to have a successful store. 
Merchandise will sell itself when a store’s design is good, but when
it’s not, even the best product can sit on your shelves gathering dust. The
purpose of your sales floor is not merely to look pretty, its purpose is to
create an environment that attracts customers, entices them to spend time in
the store and encourage them to purchase impulsively while they are there. It’s
a tall order, but it’s easier than you might think. Here is a checklist of
things you can easily do to keep your sales floor current:
q   Store Decor
Shoppers make value judgments about your store within the first 10
seconds of contact. They don’t even realize they’re doing it, but they are
mentally cataloging whether or not it’s a good place to shop.
One of the first things shoppers notice inside your store is your décor
package;  we say package because all of
the design elements – walls, flooring, fixturing, signing, etc., must work
together to tell a single story.
There are two kinds of colors used in store décor: Primary Colors (neutrals) and Secondary Colors (bold accent
colors).  Primary colors are used in 80
percent of the store’s décor to create a relaxed atmosphere for customers to
shop.  Accent Colors are used in 20
percent of the store’s décor to make it pop.
You’ve shopped in many stores in your lifetime, but we bet you
haven’t spent too much time pondering the interior décor colors. If you felt at
home in the store, chances are someone thought long and hard about the color of
those walls.
Once you decide it’s time to make a change you have a few
choices: You can call a design expert for help, or you can do it yourself. Doing
it yourself is a whole lot easier than you might think because paint companies
have already done most of the work for you. Stop by your local paint store and
talk with one of the color experts on staff. These trained professionals can be
a big help and their expertise is free. So are the paint charts.
q  Your store
signing plays a key role in your store décor.
  Signs need to be professionally made and
displayed in sign holders.  Unless you
have killer handwriting and specific rules as to how your signs should look,
handwritten signs are a big no-no. So are cutesy signs, like “Unattended children will be given an
espresso and a free puppy.”
  Even if
kids are driving you crazy, don’t do it. These signs just irritate customers
and make your store look bad.
q  Store Layout
Your sales floor is affected by your store’s footprint: the
shape and size of the sales floor. Grocery stores typically use a Grid Layout,
where the fixtures run parallel to the walls. A Loop Layout, frequently found in big box stores, offers a clearly
defined main aisle that circles through the store like a race track.
In most
cases, a Free Flow Layout is the
best choice for quilt stores. This layout is typically used by specialty retailers
because it allows for the most flexibility and creativity.  In a Free Flow Layout,
there are no set aisles or straight lines: fixtures are placed to at angles
that encourage shoppers to easily move throughout the store.
Keep in
mind that The Americans with Disabilities Act requires a minimum of 3’.6” in-between
fixtures. 3’.6’” just makes sense; anything smaller and shoppers will be
uncomfortable. Can customers easily walk through your store? Can shoppers with wheel
chairs, strollers, or motorized scooters do the same?  If customers can’t shop with ease, they can’t
buy. Visit the ADA website  for more information.
q  Store
Fixtures
Store
fixtures play a critically important role in how your sales floor is perceived
by shoppers. The true purpose of a fixture is to house merchandise: you aren’t supposed to see them. That
being said, it’s easy to get carried away. You see a beautiful fixture showcasing
fabric at a tradeshow, and think how great it will look in your store. Maybe it
will. Or perhaps it will work for awhile, but since you paid good money for it,
it becomes a fixture housing merchandise it wasn’t meant to house. Sound
familiar? We know retailers who spent so much on fixturing that there wasn’t enough
money left over to properly stock the store. And we’ve been in stores with
beautiful product housed on whatever was handy. You’ll want to choose fixtures
that showcase product while blending into the background.
q  The
Decompression Zone
Every,
single store has what’s called a Decompression Zone (DZ) – its important space
that’s located just inside your front door. (If your store is comprised of
several individual rooms, then each room has its own DZ.)
The
size of your Decompression Zone depends on the size of your sales floor, but
it’s generally the first 5’ to 15’ inside the front door. Its purpose is to
give shoppers a chance to transition from the parking lot (or sidewalk or mall)
to your store. Understand that shoppers will miss anything you place in the DZ
– it needs to be an open, uncluttered space. Place signs, baskets, class
schedules, etc. just outside your DZ where shoppers are more likely to see
them.
Lake Front Property. Some
areas of your sales floor are more important an others, we call these areas Lake
Front Property (LFP). Pay close attention to your LFP because a big percentage
of your sales come from this space. Displays in this area should house new, hot
and high margin product. And just like in a grocery store, the basics – think bread
and milk – should be housed in the back of your store. Since 90% of customers
will enter your store and look or turn to the right, this piece of LFP needs to
be particularly merchandised with care. Our V & Vista Exercise will help you find your store’s unique Lake Front
Property:
1.  Stand inside your front door just beyond the
Decompression Zone and spread your arms out at shoulder height with your index
fingers extended.  What’s inside the V your arms make is called is the Vista – the
area that builds a shopper’s first impression of your store.
The V will help you find your store’s Power Walls.  Follow your nose down your right arm to the
tip of your right index finger – the wall you are looking at is your front
right Power Wall; the most important selling wall in your store. Use this wall
(and the sales floor at the front right) to feature not-to-be-missed
merchandise.
A big
mistake some retailers make is placing the cash wrap at the right front of the
store, smack dab in the middle of the Lake Front Property.  You may argue that it’s nice to have someone
right up front to say hello to shoppers as they enter the store, but that
problem can be solved by an alert store associate. Your cash wrap should be located
at a natural stopping point in the shopping experience:  the left side of the store, close to the
front is good choice.
2.  Now, follow your nose down your left arm to
the tip of your left index finger. This left front Power Wall is also important
– display it with as much thought and care as your right front Power Wall.
(Note:  If your store’s footprint makes it impossible
for shoppers to enter your store and turn right, then everything is reversed:
the front left becomes your Lake Front Property.)
q  Next
come Speed Bumps, product displays
you place just past the Decompression Zone, in the front center of the Vista. Speed Bumps, like their cousins in the parking
lot, slow customers down and get them shopping. Choose small fixtures or
stacking tables that hold an assortment of product, and are low enough to allow
customers to see through the store. Use them to feature new and seasonal items,
and to tell product stories. Your Speed
Bump displays need to be changed at least once a week.
This keeps your
store’s first impression fresh and it keeps your store associates on their
toes. Don’t be surprised if you hear, “When did we get that merchandise?” more
than once.
Your store
has other key display areas that will become apparent when you do the V and the
Vista exercise.  Walking
your sales floor, with your customers’ eyes on
will help, too. 
Take along pen and paper when you walk your floor and write down
everything that needs to be changed, moved, updated, closed out, tossed or
given away.  Make a list of things to do;
noting what needs to be changed ASAP and what can be fixed over time.  If you do this exercise and only find two or
three things to do, you are not being objective.  Open your eyes and do it again.
You may
also want to take photos. A camera
has no personal investment in what it sees – it only sees what is in front of
it.  That’s why you sometimes look at
photos of your store and think, “It doesn’t look that bad!” Yes, it does – the camera doesn’t lie.  Digital cameras are great because you can
instantly compare your perception with what is actually there.  Keep a reference book of before and after
photos, it will come in handy year after year when you need display ideas.
To keep
your store fresh you need to follow these guidelines: Change your Speed Bump displays
at least once a week; fully remerchandise your Lake front Property once every quarter;
and every three to five years, your store needs a complete makeover.
In the meantime, remember that whether
you’re gearing up for a new store, a mini-makeover or a complete sales floor upgrade,
you are not alone. If you’re not
sure
what to do first, give us a call, or email photos, and we’ll share ideas to
help get you started.
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