Archive for January, 2012

Merchandising stories, showroom displays and a surprise inspiration to share

Sunday, January 29th, 2012

Visual merchandisers tell stories using merchandise, color, lighting and props, not words. Well, maybe a few words now and then.

The New Year’s window in Lancaster, PA, clearly states a resolution for 2012. My Aunt Debbie is an enchanting boutique featuring handcrafted fashion and accessories by independent, mostly-local designers. Inside you will find a collection of curious clothing and innovative accessories, with an emphasis on creative re-use. In other words— a story.

Sometimes the display story is a vignette compiled by gathering merchandise with a single theme and using props to fill the page.  At trade shows and showrooms, vendors group their products into collections. This Mud Pie display in the OneCoast showroom at Dallas Market Center, has a sealife theme with neutral colored merchandise. The visual team chose a lovely ocean blue for the anchor wall and added some seashells for effect.

More showroom displays:

Pallets started to show up at the summer shows last year, following an interior decor trend. At the NYIGF this week, several booths used pallets in their merchandising and this one stands out due to the juxtaposition of the handmade porcelain and stoneware from dbO Home against the rough wood of the pallets.

We love the Tokyo Bay area inside The Portico Collection showroom at the Dallas show earlier this month. View more Portico displays, click here. Several of their lines have amazing displays right now!

Back in New York, Sarah Oliver Handbags has a lovely booth at the New York International Gift Fair. By choosing a single accent color and some superb graphics, the temporary booth allows the merchandise to tell the story without shouting. The subtly color-blocked back wall anchors the space and the hinged side walls add dimension to the booth.

Bonus Inspiration Shots: Stay display inspired!

Megan Geckler uses flagging tape to create huge one-of-a-kind installations by hand. Thanks to Design Milk for turning us on to her. I’ll let her pictures speak for themselves and if they inspire a store window, we sure hope you will share a picture with the Retail Details blog. We’ll be happy to share it with our little world (a mere 4 million visitors last year).

Display. Sell. Repeat.

Retail Details blog, Becky Tyre, Swirl Marketing~Becky

The Retail Details blog is accepting a few new sponsors and advertisers in the sidebar of the blog for 2012. Please contact us for rates, email swirlmarketing (at)comcast.net

You can also submit photos of store displays for blog consideration at that email address.

Becky Tyre is a visual merchandising consultant and the owner of the Retail Details blog, also on facebook. Becky is the Trends Editor at GIFT SHOP Magazine.

Store display ideas, inspirations and influences

Sunday, January 15th, 2012

Visual merchandising: fun or frustrating?  With store displays, is it the idea or the execution that retailers find most challenging? We are here to help. Stay display inspired with the Retail Details blog, as we continue sharing fun display ideas in our blog posts throughout 2012!

Display. Sell. Repeat.

jewelry display, Shoppes on main, retail details, store displays, visual merchandising ideas, retail blogThese earrings are made from guitar strings and we LOVE this literal display at The Shoppes on Main in Franklin, TN.

Tricky products to display: PILLOWS

Pillows display, Company c, retail details, store displays, visual merchandising ideas, retail blogWe have several requests for pillow display ideas. How about shelves? This display is from Company C.

clay & cotton, visual merchandising, pillows display, retail details, store display ideasPillows in a hutch display at Clay & Cotton at their store in Louisville, KY.

clay & cotton, visual merchandising, pillows display, retail details, store display ideas Clay & Cotton utilized benches and tables for this pillow display in the Saint Louis store.

Props and display staging:

jewelry display, love tokens, retail details, store display ideas, visual merchandising, retail blogStunning western props for this jewelry display from Love Tokens Jewelry.

Showroom Displays – a great resource:

window display, showroom, curly girl, visual merchandising, store display ideas, retail details blogRetailers are smart to take note of visual merchandising ideas when visiting wholesale markets. This map dress display is from the showroom window at the Curly Girl showroom in Atlanta.

Signage idea: These are obviously house numbers, but wouldn’t they make a cute sign for a WINE area in a shop?

Retail Details on the road:

angela neel, visual merchandising, store display ideas, retail details blogWe visit showrooms and stores for paid consultations, but we also shop wherever we go! New Years Eve found us in Winter Park, FL, where we found a lovely shop, Angela Neel Interiors. This clawfoot tub was filled with apothecary jars in varying heights and sizes. An elegant, fun display for specialty soaps.

Stay display inspired!

Retail Details blog, Becky Tyre, Swirl Marketing~Becky

The Retail Details blog is accepting a few new sponsors and advertisers in the sidebar of the blog for 2012. Please contact us for rates, email swirlmarketing (at)comcast.net

Becky Tyre is a visual merchandising consultant and the owner of the Retail Details blog, also on facebook. Becky is the Trends Editor at GIFT SHOP Magazine.