Despite the growing prominence of digital shopping, a significant portion of consumers still prefer the in-store experience. In the UK, for example, 74% of shoppers expressed a longing for traditional brick-and-mortar retail during the lockdown period. While digital channels have become increasingly important, physical stores still play a vital role in the customer journey.
This is where retail merchandising can benefit your independent store. In this blog, we’ll delve further into what retail merchandising is and how it can benefit your store.
What is Retail Merchandising?
Retail merchandising can be described as the art and science behind presenting products in a way that tempts customers and boosts sales. It's a strategic approach that involves various elements, from product placement to visual aesthetics, all aimed at maximising consumer interest and driving revenue.
In its simplest form, retail merchandising focuses on optimising the presentation of products throughout your store. This can be anything from the store’s layout to the arrangement of items on shelves, with the primary objective of catching the shopper’s attention.
The Basics of Retail Merchandising
Of course, you can complete this process yourself or you can seek the help of retail merchandising experts such as leading buying group, Associated Independent Stores. But if you’re going to head down the route of completing the task of retail merchandising, you’ll need to go through the steps of planning, developing and executing strategies to present and sell products in a retail environment. This proves can vary, depending on the industry you’re in. For example in fashion retail, factors such as adequate lighting and a positive changing room experience can make all the difference, whereas in furniture retail, there’s no requirement for a changing room.
Visual Merchandising
Visual merchandising involves creating visually appealing displays that attract customers' attention and enhance the shopping experience. This aspect of retail merchandising is particularly effective in the fashion industry as you’re able to create visually appealing shop front window displays using manakins and seasonal products.
Integrating Technology to Retail Merchandising
There are so many tools and platforms available to help you with retail merchandising so it’s important to integrate them into retail merchandising. Collecting data has never been easier which means cross merchandising is an element you implement when retail merchandising. Instead of guessing what products are likely to be sold to complement another product, you can use analytics and data from your store to know for sure.
However, technology integration doesn’t always have to be data-led. Any way you can enhance the customer experience using technology should be considered – this includes drawing customers in. Think about using lights, or interactive shop window experiences, to draw footfall into your store. Chances are they may not be looking to purchase anything but enticing them in with interactive show window display can always change their mind! It’s always worth considering virtual reality (VR). I know the cost will be very high but if this is something you can afford then it’s a must to ensure you’re maximising your customer experience. Using VR technology can be used in most industries, for example, you can allow customers to take a picture of themselves and dress in different combinations of clothing. You can also allow users to put in the dimensions of their room and place furniture from your store in the room they are decorating. The possibilities are endless and you can enhance the customer experience.
Shop Layout and Product Placement
The customer journey is extremely important to your store and it’s important to understand customer behaviour and how they are likely to interact with products places differently throughout your store. In terms of layout, how is the flow of your store? In a furniture store, it’s a good idea to try to control the direction of the foot traffic so they flow from one product or room to another that is closely linked. If a customer is thinking of looking at a new bed and they are presented with complementary bedroom furniture such as bedside tables, they are more likely to buy extra products. Relevant signage can assist in directing footfall around your store.
When looking at product placement, it isn't just about placing products. It's about placing the right products in the right spots. Understanding consumer behaviour and preferences helps in strategically positioning items, enhancing their visibility and encouraging sales. A good example of this would be to position complimentary products around the till area so customers can view them whilst waiting to pay. This can encourage people to add extra items to their basket.
Promotional & Seasonal Offers
Promotional offers are key to retail marketing, I mean who doesn’t love a bargain! Think about trying to sell excess stock that’s no longer in season for a cheaper price to boost your revenue. This will allow you to re-invest the money generated from selling the out-of-season stock into new stock you can sell at a bigger margin. Also think about seasonal offers, such as easter, Christmas and Black Friday sales.
Retail Merchandising with AIS
Retail merchandising may sound easy when you research it online but completing the task and generating data from scratch can be a difficult job on top of everything else you have on your list. Without the data, it can be 12 months before you can see the benefit of retail merchandising. However, do not fear as Associated Independent Stores are not only a leading UK buying group, we’re also the retail merchandising solution for a lot of independent stores. If you’re interested in finding out more about how to become a member of our buying group and how we can support your independent store with retail buying, contact us today by calling 0121 711 2200 or emailing info@aistores.co.uk.
