Improving Retail Displays

Sometimes a display looks nice, but for some reason it just isn’t effective. If you are dissatisfied with your retail displays, or if you’re just curious about how to make them better, then ask yourself what needs do your displays fulfill. Customers have quite a few things in mind when they shop. Some are subconscious and others are not. It is your job as the store owner, merchandiser or manager to make sure that you are making the customer feel at ease by hitting these major areas of concern.

Customers essentially have to trust a retailer before they will buy something. You are making promises to them before they even walk into the store. This is why your store should be set up to target certain shoppers and turn others away. You’re promising that if these things appeal to you, then you will find things inside that you will like.

For example, if you have a dark store front with big heavy doors, then customers can assume that you have high priced inventory inside. If you have lots of lights and huge signs, they can expect to find good deals and low prices. Mannequins can certainly help you here. Use them in your store window, not only to show customers what clothing you offer, but to help set the mood.

Mannequins are great assets when it comes to communicating to customers. If set up effectively, they can show customers how certain clothes can make them feel. They help customers to immediately imagine themselves in the clothes and how that would make them feel. This kind of prepares their minds for shopping, having them subconsciously consider things that they wouldn’t have before.

You can also use mannequins to handle the social aspect of buying clothing. If you have more than one mannequin interacting or showing some sort of emotion to each other, then customers will instantly imagine how their friends or peers will view them if they are wearing the same thing.

Once inside the store, you can continue to impact how a customer thinks. This can be difficult if you simply have garment racks filling the whole store. A more effective method of retail display is to use slatwall or gridwall to display your items.

Slatwall can be used to make all of your merchandise not only fit into a small area, but face outward so that each item gets your customers’ full attention. It also raises things up to eye level or higher so that merchandise can be easily seen from anywhere inside the store. You can use mannequin forms or mannequin torsos to display how items look when worn directly on your slatwall. Finally, slatwall panels help you to create displays in interesting areas of the store where you normally wouldn’t have room for a clothing rack.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, slatwall and slatwall panels. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Display and Promotion Ideas for Boutiques

Boutiques are in an exclusive position to really get creative with their displays and promotions. What might seem out of place or over the top in a traditional retail store can make a boutique interesting and unique. Use this fact to your advantage when you are creating your displays. You might just find that certain merchandising tools, such as mannequins, can help you to brand your image, sell your clothing and accessories, and help you to make a lasting impression on your customers. Actually, an interesting window display can bring in a lot of new customers on its own.

To create an exceptional display utilizing mannequins, you need to first consider your store image. If you want your boutique to be recognized for its individual style and unique décor or standards, then you need to make sure that your displays communicate this message. Having an ordinary display can make your boutique appear dull and boring. This is the last thing that you want when you own a boutique.

Shoppers are interested in boutiques for many different reasons. They love the charm, the interesting decorations, the personal service, and the unique products and brands that boutiques usually offer. You can use your window display to quickly communicate to passer bys that you, in fact, offer just the things they’re looking for.

For example, you can display signs or window clings provided by the companies whose brands you carry. This tiny form of advertisement will attract people looking for those hard to find brands that you carry. You can then attract people looking for personal service by advertising your services. A small sign should be sufficient. Have it communicate the unique services that you offer, such as free alterations, personal styling, custom fittings, whatever the service may be.

Nothing in your window display is as important as the mannequin display. Mannequins communicate to customers the atmosphere and attitude of your boutique. People connect with mannequins on different levels as soon as they lay eyes on one. This marketing phenomenon has mad mannequins the number one selling tool in retail for decades.

Customers rely on their first impressions to determine if they trust the business. They need to trust you in order to decide to buy. They need to see what you’re offering, imagine themselves owning, using and wearing your products, and be able to determine how that would make them feel. If a customer does not go through this process within the first few seconds of looking at your display, then they are not likely to enter the store or buy anything.

Use this knowledge to your advantage. Set ups female mannequin displays to attract women. Use mannequins that are specifically designed for your products, for example, use a dress mannequin for dresses. Be sure to select clothing and accessories that communicate the style of boutique that you run. If you use mannequin displays and window displays to accomplish that positive first impression, your sales could really increase and your customers will stay interested and loyal.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Storage Solutions

If you own or manage a small retail store or boutique, you have probably struggled with not having enough storage space for your inventory and merchandising tools. This is so common, especially during the holiday season. You want to have enough inventory so that your supply keeps up with the demand, but you have probably had problems finding the space to run the business like you want to. Use these storage and display ideas to get the most out of the space that you have and create space where you didn’t know that you had it before.

Come up with a system for keeping the store room organized. Have garment racks handy for steaming clothing that is coming out of the box. Try installing a ceiling rack for boxes and other lightweight items that you need to keep out of your way. Roll out wrinkle free clothing on your garment racks as soon as possible to keep the store room from getting too cluttered.

You can make extra room on the sales floor so that you don’t have to store so much. Too many garment racks can clutter up the space that you have. Additionally, cramming your inventory onto the racks can turn customers away. No one wants to dig through packed racks back to back with other customers. Installing gridwall or slatwall could be the answer.

Gridwall and slatwall systems help you to utilize vertical space. You can display your clothing and other items facing forward so that customers have an easy time seeing what you have to offer. You can help to eliminate the need for extra storage by hanging your inventory on the gridwall or slatwall bars. When you need to put out more inventory than normal, like when you’re having a sale or promotion, simply swap out your normal bars for longer ones.

Grid wall panels and slat wall panels can hold a lot of weight, so you can really use them to display and store at the same time. They are extremely versatile and easy to rearrange. As certain items run out, you can simply move the bars around to fill in the space.

You can maximize the impact of your gridwall and slatwall displays by using mannequin forms. Hanging mannequin forms are lightweight and easy to use. Simply hang them on the ends of your display bars and customers can see what the items look like when they’re being worn. This eliminates the need for many customers to try on clothing. Your store stays nice and neat, and customers aren’t constantly rearranging or digging through your displays. Employees can concentrate on helping customers and take down the sizes that they need only when they need them.

When you stock your store with gridwall or slatwall, you open up your business to many new opportunities. You’ll even attract new customers as they pass your store and easily see what you have to offer.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, slatwall and gridwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Christmas Displays

Christmas is the perfect time to bring in new customers and entice your old ones to revisit. Your displays can say a lot about you. They should be the focal point of the store’s entrance and should be continually updated throughout the store and throughout the season.

Christmas displays can be a lot of fun and draw a lot of attention. Your use of lighting and decoration can be anywhere from simple to extravagant and help you to communicate a message. Customers draw their first impression within three seconds of seeing your store, so keep that in mind as you design and implement your holiday display plans.

It is important to get it right the first time. You don’t want to stray from your store’s image, but you do want to draw attention. Start with your store’s theme, feeling, and target audience. Are you going for a more sophisticated feel, a modern look, or trying to attract bargain shoppers? Make sure that your display doesn’t take away too much from your merchandise. If you have a bold display, then the merchandise should be at least as bold so that it doesn’t get drowned out.

Mannequins are perfect for window displays and for making bold statements that don’t take attention away from the merchandise. In fact, mannequin displays have proven to be the most effective merchandising tool available to retailers. They show how clothes look when they are worn, which beats out hanging on the rack any day. But, they actually do a lot more than that, which allows you to use them when trying to influence your customers’ behavior.

Mannequins have the unique ability to make customers subconsciously make a connection with the clothing. People can walk by garment racks all day and never image wearing the clothes that are hanging there. They might notice a design that they like or an interesting fabric. But, if they don’t consider how the clothing will make them feel and what other people will think of the clothing, then they are not likely to ever make a purchase. Putting a female mannequin or a dress mannequin in the window will make people passing by instantly imagine themselves wearing the clothes. That’s half the battle. Add some accessories, lighting, scenes and scenarios, and you’ve got them also imagining what it would be like to wear the clothes and what other people would think of it.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

A Professional’s Guide to Consumer Behavior

Understanding consumer behavior is essential when you are preparing your store for the new year. Marketing and merchandising are centered around how you will make consumers feel, think, and act. The main goal of marketing is to influence the way that consumers think. Motivating them to decide to buy what you want them to buy is what must be accomplished to ensure a profitable selling season.

Customers are as influenced by experience as they are by product positioning and presentation. Training your employees to offer customer service above and beyond what the customer expected can go a long way in influencing consumer behavior. When an escalated situation is handled professionally, nicely, and effectively, an aggravated customer is likely to make a purchase and return in the future. One reason is that they now have a connection with your store and your staff.

In real life, going through an ordeal that ends with a favorable outcome draws people closer together and strengthens their relationship. The same applies for customers who have a problem. Try not to dread dealing with irate customers. Look at difficult situations as ways to bond and turn problems into favorable relationships than you could not have originally obtained.

Make sure that customers feel as if you understand and acknowledge their problem. Listen more than you speak. Solve their problem in a way that exceeds their expectation and you’ve struck gold. Not only does the customer have a stronger bond with you, but they have an incident to talk about with their friends. If they walk away feeling like you handled the situation in a professional and personal manner, then they are going to spread the word.

Product positioning is also important when your intention is to influence consumer behavior. First you must understand what type of customer you are trying to influence. Are your customers looking for deals? Are they looking for quality? Are they shopping for others? Determine which sets of customers you would like each display to appeal to and go from there. For example, a table set up with sweaters that would make great gifts may be tied with ribbon to resemble a present. You could place a sign here that informs customers about your free gift wrap services.

Position your displays in areas where customers are likely to decide to make purchases. Your big attractors should be in the front of the store to draw customers in. However, you do not want all of your best finds to be right in the door, or customers will get more disappointed as they move through and leave with a bad impression. Use mannequins and signage to draw customers back further and further into the store. Impulse buys along the aisles that receive the most traffic will help to lure the customers in. Using a mannequin, like a female mannequin or male mannequin, can help you to position your product where it can be easily seen. For example, someone standing twenty feet away may notice your dress mannequin wearing a coat that they really like and move back to that area. If the coat was simply hanging, the customer would have never gone back there.

Use mannequins, spread out your merchandise, and always treat your customers with respect. You will keep the sales going through busy and slow seasons year round.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Merchandising Tips for Retailers

There are endless ways to merchandise your inventory. If you are looking for some fresh ideas, you’ve come to the right place. It is always good to keep things changing when it comes to retail. Customers will get bored if they see the same displays twice and stop considering shopping in your store.

The goal of any display is to grab attention. The purpose of window displays is to get customers interested in coming inside the store. Promotional displays are generally at the entrance of the store, or in a high-traffic area, like a walkway. Mannequins can be used to bring customers to certain parts of the store. Signage is a great way to communicate to your customers as well. Lighting, fully stocked garment racks, and helpful employees are also necessary. But there is still something else to consider.

Retail stores can benefit greatly from utilizing retail gridwall and retail slatwall fixtures. These commercial strength displays do something that regular clothing racks cannot. They get all of your merchandise right up in the customer’s line of sight.

Slatwall and gridwall both have detachable hooks, bars, clamps, and shelves that can easily be moved and rearranged to give you the most aesthetically pleasing display possible. Employees can simply move the fixtures left or right, up or down, to get the spacing right between merchandise.

As a retail store owner, you know the importance of keeping your racks fully stocked. Customers ignore garment racks that have only a couple of things hanging on them. People are actually turned off by a clothing rack that is near empty. They get the impression that something is wrong with the garments hanging there. They wonder why you are not restocking. Maybe these clothes have gone out of style, are being clearanced, or they think that the chances of their size being there is really slim. This is where gridwall or slatwall can save you again.

On a grid wall or a slat wall, you can easily combine like items on to one peg, bar or shelf. Combining items that you can’t restock helps to keep the racks looking full. If you don’t have anything else to fill in the hole, then simply move around some racks on the grid wall or slat wall to space them out more evenly. The next time you get new merchandise, simply move everything closer together again, making space for the new merchandise.

This technique keeps your retail store always looking full. Gridwall and slatwall keep everything directly in sight of the customers. They also clear out floor space making the store easy to navigate for customers, reducing the places for shoplifters to hide, and making room for any extra holiday or promotional items that you may have coming in.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, slatwall and gridwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Dress Up Your Boutique

The holidays are a perfect time to get your boutique looking out of this world. You’re going to have a lot more traffic than normal and you need to make a good impression. These steps will help you to keep things fresh, impress your customers, makes sells, and showcase your merchandise.

1) Make sure that your clothing racks and displays are kept nice and neat. People’s first impressions are important. You don’t want them to feel like you don’t care about the way your boutique looks. Make an effort to constantly straighten racks and stacks of clothing so that it looks presentable. This also helps to keep the clothes wrinkle free. Use nice hangers, like wooden hangers, to keep clothing separated on the garment rack. Little touches like this will keep your store looking fabulous.

2) Keep your clothing displays stocked. People think that you are about to put something on clearance if the rack is looking lean. Studies show that people bypass racks that are not stocked because they either think that something is wrong with the clothes and you are no longer going to carry them, or they think that their size is likely not there, so they don’t want to waste their time. During the holiday season, especially, you need to keep the inventory coming. If you notice something selling quickly, make sure that you have plenty of stock on hand to keep that display full.

3) Keep it fresh. People will often visit a store more than once during the holiday season. Keep it interesting by rearranging your displays daily. An easy way to do this is to use mannequins. Your mannequins are an easy way to keep things changing while helping to make sales. They are bar none the number one most effective merchandising tool on the market. They show people, at a glance, what items look like when worn. This serves many purposes. Customers don’t have to try on something to see that they like it. It draws attention to feature displays. It personalizes outfits, making it easy for customers to imagine themselves in the outfit.

Using a dress mannequin or female mannequin designed for dresses makes a huge difference in the way that dresses are viewed. Test out the theory by putting a different dress on your dress mannequin every day and see how the one on the mannequin outsells the rest every time. Women especially imagine themselves in clothing. They want to know how it will make them feel, not just how it looks, so mannequins posed correctly help to drive that feeling right into their consideration, boosting sales and the impression of your store.

Keeping things organized and using your mannequin displays to help sell certain items is a great thing to focus on this holiday season. Stay on top of it and your boutique may have its most successful season yet!

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Green Your Boutique

Want to make a good impression on your customers and feel better about your boutique’s impact on the environment? Use these tips to get your boutique or retail store headed in the right direction.

1. Recycle and use recycled products. Let people know that you care about recycling by providing recycle bins as well as normal trash receptacles in your store.

2. Offer online offers instead of mailers. Turn your business into a paperless environment if possible. Urge customers to let you e-mail a receipt to them instead of using paper. If you can, use recycled printer paper and receipt paper.

3. Use bamboo and organic fabrics whenever possible. People are actually looking to buy more organic cotton and renewable bamboo fabrics. Not only are these fabrics safer for our skin, but they are safer for the environment as well. Pesticides and toxic fertilizers used in cotton fields contaminate our water supply and farmland. People are becoming more and more aware of the dangers of conventional farming and they don’t want to support it. Using organic fabrics when you can will get the attention of these environmentally conscious consumers.

4. Post signs about charities that you donate money to. Give customers the option to donate to organizations that help the environment by cleaning up waste, recycling or planting trees. You can put brochures or signs near your checkout letting customers know that a portion of your proceeds will go to charities that help save the Earth and our precious natural resources.

5. Make it obvious that you are helping the environment by using bamboo instead of wood all over your store. Floors, tables, hangers, desks and doors can all be made of bamboo. You can use bamboo hangers to make sure that the message is loud and clear that you care about the environment, without sacrificing the look and feel of your store’s image.

6. Utilize as much natural light as possible to save on electricity. Sky lights are cheap to install and can even be used as spot lights. Use sheer curtains so that light can always come in. Use fans instead of central cooling whenever possible.

7. Advertise to your customers the ways that you are helping the environment and be open to suggestions. You can use a male or female mannequin to help. You can come up with creative ways to use your mannequins and displays to spread the message of saving the earth. It can be something as simple as using a dress mannequin to display your organic cotton or bamboo wear. Their shirts could have positive messages about recycling and using Earth friendly products. You can even post little signs next to their mouths with messages to your customers. Using a mannequin to spread the message is an effective way to spread the word that your boutique is an environmentally friendly one.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

How Mannequins Influence Consumer’s Decisions to Buy

If you don’t have mannequins in your store or boutique, then you could be making a big mistake. There are so many benefits to having mannequins in the store that you probably haven’t even begun to imagine how they could help you.

Most retailers invest a little in mannequins simply to fill out their window displays. Well, they soon discover that there are so many other benefits! Mannequins can not only help you to make money, but can actually save you money, influence your customers to buy, reduce your losses, and save your employees’ time. Here we’ve listed just a few ways that mannequins can help you. Once you start getting into them you’re bound to discover new and exciting ways to use them.

Almost all sales are unplanned. This is why it is so important to influence the people that pass by your store. Consumers have a deep seeded desire to fit into a group or vision that they have of themselves. When looking to buy clothing, they go through a process of imagining themselves wearing the clothes, what they might be doing while they are wearing them, and how that might make them feel. If all areas of their decision making process are satisfied, they are likely to make a purchase.

Using a mannequin not only gives them the subconscious approval of other human beings, but also forces the image of the clothes being worn into the mind. The consumer instantly starts going through the process in their mind whether they planned to or not. Even if they would have never looked twice at the clothes on the rack, seeing them on the mannequin almost forces them to consider it. This is a powerful marketing tactic that helps boost sales.

Mannequins throughout the store can help your customers to locate items that they may be interested in. If they pass the front of the store and nothing really grabs them, they are likely to stop wasting time and leave. But mannequins offer a big visual clue as to what is in store if they keep travelling deeper in. They may see dress mannequins in the back that catch their eye. Big hats or brightly colored clothing are helpful here, too. This gives you the opportunity to have customers check out your other promotions along the way.

Mannequin displays can also help you to reduce losses. Put them in areas where shoplifters might think that they will find some cover. Mannequins, especially tall or elevated ones, give people the feeling that they are being watched. This is often enough to deter a thief. It is especially effective if you spotlight the mannequin or arrange things in a way that give the shoplifter little cover. Don’t put circular racks in a back corner, it is too easy to hide from the cameras, mirrors, employees, etc. Open bottom tables are better displays for these areas, or simply leave the floor clear and rely on spaced out gridwall or slatwall displays.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Mannequin Displays for the Holidays

The holiday season is the perfect time for retail stores to get back into the black. Make sure that you take advantage of the extra traffic that you’ll have passing your store. Your window displays are a perfect place to grab attention, showcase your best apparel, and draw in new business. Use this guide to make sure that you’ve considered every angle in your visual merchandising plan.

1. Create a meaningful display. When customers can identify with a scene in a window, you tap into the reason that they are shopping. People make emotional connections with visual displays that they can relate to. Mannequins are perfect for this reason. If you can create a scene that pulls at their heart-strings, then you have really accomplished establishing that connection.

2. Shoppers are generally in a hurry to get their shopping done. They want good deals and they don’t want to shop for longer than necessary. They are often stressed, so a calming display can help to soothe their nerves and not want to turn the other way when they see the commotion inside your store. Christmas lights, fluffy snow, soft music, and touching scenes will do the trick.

3. Mannequins also help to slow customers down. If they see a scene, they will take just a moment to figure out what is going on. Give your mannequins a personality and have them interact with other mannequins. This accomplishes a lot of goals. One, the customer can quickly see what you have to offer, outfits, accessories, etc. Two, they can immediately see what those items look like when they are worn, automatically saving them some time. Then, before they know it, they have slowed down, their interest has been peaked, and they can see that the items in your store will fit their needs.

4. Utilize your window and mannequin displays to save shoppers time, but also to save your employees from constantly having to manage the fitting rooms and straighten your displays. When you use a lot of mannequins or hangable mannequin forms, not only will you be showing off merchandise that is normally hidden on a rack, but you are also showing them what it will look like on. Often times this will keep customers from unfolding things and trying them on, saving your employees precious time during the busy season.

5. Use the mannequins for their intention. There are so many on the market that you can really get detailed in your display. For example, dress mannequins are designed to make tailored dresses look their best. The expression on the female mannequin face, fitting hairstyles, and posability are all things to look for when you buy a mannequin. Imagine what feeling you want to get across and then shop for the mannequin that best suits your needs.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Marketing with Mannequins

Mannequins can be your greatest asset when marketing your apparel. Mannequins have unsurpassed effectiveness in visual merchandising schemes. They get a lot of attention from customers and help to boost sales.

Mannequins show customers and even just people passing by what clothing will look like on. Mannequins are great for showing just how certain garments can be worn. A lot of clothing hangs limp on the hanger. This is especially true of light or flowing fabrics.

Dress mannequins are extremely effective in selling dresses. This is because almost no dress looks good simply hanging. Dresses need to fit the body in a certain way. A lot of simple dresses would just look like a long t-shirt hanging on the clothing rack, but may look stunning on a dress mannequin.

Accessory sales can skyrocket if you use your mannequins to promote them. Assemble the display with accessories that fit the style of the outfit. Hats, gloves, scarves, earrings, necklaces, purses, shoes, tights, and backpacks can all be included in your display. Don’t overload your mannequin with too much stuff or it can take attention away from the outfit that you really want to sell. But, using accessories will entice people to purchase more than they planned.

People like to see a mannequin showcase in stores because it gives them fashion ideas. A lot of times, the display will feature a new style that someone hasn’t thought of. For example, wearing combat boots with a sun dress, or a scarf with a short-sleeved blouse may not have occurred to them before they saw it in your display.

Putting outfits together keeps people from having to dig through racks and come up with the ideas on their own. Layering is an effective marketing tool because shoppers may not have purchased any of the items alone, but love the look of them layered together. So, instead of buying one shirt or nothing, they actually purchased a camisole, a sheer long-sleeved shirt, and a pullover sweater.

Displaying clothes on a mannequin won’t automatically make sales for you. You have to be creative enough to give your mannequin displays feeling. People can envision themselves in outfits worn by mannequins that they can relate to. Develop a scene that gives the display personality, or that creates a mood or feeling. These kind of displays help people to feel a certain way. Think about what feelings your customers have when they decide to purchase something. Do they feel sentimental, athletic, or beautiful? Help customers to get that feeling that they need to decide to go through with a purchase and your displays can be incredibly effective.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Holiday Child and Teenage Mannequin Displays

Are you looking for ideas for bringing your mannequins to life this holiday season? Good for you! So many retail stores simply throw a Santa hat on their mannequin and say that they’re done. Getting your displays ready for the holidays should be a fun and creatively satisfying experience. Your efforts are more beneficial if you actually create scenes that evoke holiday feelings of wanting to give in your customers.

Here are a few ideas that you can use in your retail window displays. Use them as a guide or simply as inspiration when designing your showcase display.

A lot of parents will buy clothing for their children during the holiday season. Parents will want to see their children in a certain light. If you create a display that makes children look precious, loving, excited or happy this holiday season, you are sure to pull at the heartstrings of the parents.

Use child mannequins to create Christmas morning scenes. Lighting is important here because harsh lighting and fluorescent lights can detract from the feeling you are trying to communicate. You can even have your window display box dimly lit with lamps, electric candles, or Christmas lights. This is the time of year when you can really increase your sales, so go all out on your displays. You can build a staircase coming down with the children peeking through the bars. They could spot Santa playing with the puppy that he is leaving for them. Another idea is to communicate a child’s excitement when they are opening a gift. Or, you can show a child sleeping peacefully by the fire.

Here are some ideas for older children. Teenagers are really like young adults and often buy presents for each other. So, you really don’t have to target parents to have an effective teenage window display, but you do want to keep parents in mind. Teenagers are really into accessorizing, so use a lot of your accessories like purses, hats, and jewelry when you set up your mannequins.

An idea involving teenagers could be something like a female mannequin opening her locker to discover a small wrapped gift from a secret admirer. You can have a group of male mannequins hanging around, seemingly uninterested, but one boy is secretly looking at her. You can also set up a “best friends” scene. You can use a dress mannequin or two to show two girl friends giggling and whispering. Behind them, you can place a shy looking female mannequin and a male mannequin passing her a gift.

Whenever you come up with an idea, ask yourself if it purposely communicates a feeling. Is this a feeling that your target audience is looking to find when they shop in your store? If so, then your mannequins can make a big difference in your sales this holiday season.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Holiday Displays

Retail stores are stocking up for the holiday season. If you’re looking for ways to ensure that all of your merchandise moves, consider your mannequin displays. They can have more of an impact on customers than you might imagine.

Mannequins have always been effective merchandising tools because of the way that they make people feel. There are a lot of emotional decisions that are made in a customer’s mind before they decide to purchase. Customers rely a lot on their first impressions and also their gut instinct. There are a few things to consider when attempting to satisfy all that a customer might be looking for.

People shopping for gifts want to feel like they have found something special, something unique, and something that makes them feel a certain way. If they don’t get that feeling, then they are unlikely to purchase anything. They don’t want to settle on something unless they will evoke the same emotional tie to the item that they felt when they were shopping for it.

Understanding the psychology of gift giving can help you to arrange your mannequin displays in a way that will make people imagine the heartfelt emotions that come with giving a really thoughtful gift. Don’t dress lifeless mannequins in your most expensive holiday wear, stick them in the window and be done with it. People will stroll by and pay little attention. Sure, they might notice the purse that you put out, but they won’t feel anything.

People develop complex emotional attachments to family and friends that are strengthened by the act of giving something that is emotionally significant. The giver generally receives much more satisfaction than the receiver when it comes to giving. Giving helps people feel closer to the ones that they are giving to. Think about what scenarios might evoke a giver to feel like your store will offer them the type of emotional satisfaction that they are searching for while holiday shopping.

Simply displaying products may make weary shoppers focus on the materialistic side of giving gifts for the holidays. People aren’t interested in spending money and getting nothing in return. What they are looking for is that emotional connection. Show them that the merchandise in your store will help them to achieve that goal.

The trick is to do it quickly and make it obvious. Human beings make snap decisions about people and places within five seconds of seeing them. Use your window displays to make your first impression an emotionally significant one. Mannequins can be positioned to show a child discovering a treasured teddy bear. You can elaborate on the scene by including the parents, touched by the child’s happiness, looking on from the stairs. Include a male and female mannequin whenever possible so that men and women can relate to the display.

The possibilities are really endless. A mannequin helps a person to instantly relate to the scene. Dress mannequins in a way that not only displays your product, but also adds feeling to the scenario. For example, touching scenes need soft, fluffy, natural fiber clothing. The display, if done with thought and detail, can evoke those feelings that will reel them into your store with the mindset that they will find something meaningful here.

Remember that you are selling more than clothes and accessories. You are selling relationship building gifts that bring people closer together and make them feel emotionally attached to each other. Treat your displays with that in mind and your showcase holiday mannequin displays will be your best ever.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Gridwall for Retail

Gridwall is a versatile, sturdy, cost efficient choice for many types of retail stores. Gridwall is comprised of metal grids that can be attached to the wall or each other to create unique store displays. They can be configured into display areas that fit almost anywhere. You can be creative in the way that you use your gridwall, changing up your displays to match the space that you have, the season, or the amount of inventory that you are displaying.

Versatility is the number one reason that retail stores choose gridwall. Sturdy tabs connect the metal grids together. You can create shelving, tables, wall displays and more with different sized sections of gridwall. When it is installed on the wall, you can use accessories, such as hanging bars, hooks, shelves, racks and more to display your products in ways where they will be easily seen by your customers or people passing by.

Space utilization is another reason that gridwall is so popular. You can display, carry, stock and sell more items on gridwall than you can on garment racks. You can have clothing facing outward where it is easily seen. Customers won’t have to sift through racks to see what you offer. You can utilize the vertical space that your store has to offer, instead of just the floor.

Gridwall is also a cost effective choice in retail display. It is inexpensive compared to other forms of displays and is incredibly strong. Gridwall can hold a lot of weight, which makes it popular for displaying heavier items, like power tools. Simply zip-tie the products directly to the gridwall, or use one of the many gridwall accessories that there are on the market. You can also showcase your items by displaying them on mannequins or mannequin forms that hang from the gridwall. Or, if you’ve saved floor space, you will have more room for interesting mannequin displays that can help you to sell smaller items as well as your main attractions.

Longevity is an important thing to consider when you’re purchasing retail displays. Gridwall has sturdy construction and can last for many, many years. The accessories are often solid metal without small parts that can break off or require maintenance. Grid wall pieces are standard sizes that you can add to or take away from for years. You don’t have to worry about needing new accessories and then finding out that nothing fits your gridwall anymore.

If you rent, consider the space that you will save by using gridwall. You can rent out a smaller space for your store, saving you money every month on rent and utilities. You may also save money by protecting your merchandise from theft.

Stores with racks placed closely together give thieves easy access to your items. By spreading out your floor displays and hanging items, you increase visibility. You may even choose to display more expensive items up higher so that customers need help from an associate to handle the merchandise. People are a lot less likely to steal if the employees know that they have the item in their hand.

If you love all of the advantages of gridwall but would like something else to showcase your store, check out slatwall slatwall. Slat wall sections look like painted wall when installed and covered in merchandise. No matter which way you decide to showcase your store, you will still enjoy all of the benefits of using vertical wall space.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Impressions with Mannequins

Designing a retail merchandising display takes a lot of thought and preparation. Use this guide to gain an understanding of the presentation process and how mannequins can make a difference in your sales. Here we will discuss mannequins as they relate to product presentation, showcase and customer impression. Mannequins, in particular, are effective, time-tested mediums for delivery of several marketing messages.

The first step is to analyze the marketing data as it relates to your target market. Meticulous planning will help you to zero in on the buying rationale of specific customers. You may even decide to survey your current customers to gain insight into their buying patterns, reasons for buying, their overall impression of your store, and more. Learning what turned a customer from considering a purchase to making one can be very valuable. Furthermore, you want to find out what draws them to your store in the first place.

Take a look at your competitors, particularly ones that are more successful than you. The store displays, store layout, showcases, and merchandising displays are probably crucial to getting customers and keeping them. You need to lure specific customers inside, and then deliver on the promise that you made them.

Making the first impression is, in general, telling the customer what they can expect when they enter. Gaining the customer’s trust is how you gain loyalty and business. Make sure that you keep the trust building at all times. For example, if they see fluorescent lights, big signs, and garment racks outside of the door, then they are being promised some good deals.

Once they enter, the “big sale” theme should continue and your prices should meet their expectations. They will probably be expecting mediocre customer service, low inventory, and very little personal attention as well as low prices. If you are having a big sale and are advertising it with big signs and bright lights, then this is your chance to exceed the customer’s expectations by treating them really well while they are in your store.

If you have really nice window displays with mannequins dressed in exciting new fashions, then that better not be all that you offer. Make sure that you continue to show the customer that you are on top of things once they enter. Mannequin displays and showcases should be throughout your store. They communicate more than you could tell a customer with words. Their position, expression, location and situation can say as much as the outfit that they are wearing.

If a customer is going to buy, they will need to somehow identify themselves with your store. This is why mannequins are so effective. People can identify with the human form, recognizing its attitude and place in society with a single glance. The more your customers identify with you, the more they will trust you and bring you business. When you position a dress mannequin, make sure that you are considering the attitude and social scene that your target market identifies with.

Using your mannequins to convey a message to your customers is a good way to gain their trust. Not only will you be luring people into the store, but you’ll be continually bombarding them with three dimensional impressions of how they wish they looked and felt. This technique of building customer trust can make a world of difference in your retail sales.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Boutique Mannequins Used for Networking

Boutiques have a lot of creative freedom when it comes to creating a showcase in their store. Mannequins make wonderful additions to a unique boutique’s displays and can be used to encourage customers to participate in networking for your business. You can use them in so many ways that the possibilities are truly endless. Here are a few creative ideas for you to make the most of the showcase mannequins in your boutique while encouraging customers to network with you and other people on social web sites.

A showcase display that uses mannequins is more of an attention-grabbing focal point than just a way to show how clothing looks when it is worn. To showcase something, you need to consider location, lighting and other creative elements. Many stores and boutiques create this kind of display in their entrance or in their window displays. But, you can use them all over your store to grab attention and keep it. This can be useful for drawing customers into areas of the boutique that get less traffic.

One idea is to have mannequins lounging around the store wearing your merchandise. If you have the space, you can place couches, chairs, tables or other furniture in different areas. Position mannequins on the couches, as if they’re just hanging out there. You can have female mannequins on the phone or powdering their noses, sitting on the couch. People will stop and look in surprise because they will initially think that they are real people. This kind of positioning will get more attention than a mannequin simply standing in front of a garment rack!

Another couch idea is to have the mannequin sitting and smiling with one arm on the back of the couch. When you see customers laughing at the cheesy grin on the mannequin’s face, you can ask them if they would like for you to take their picture posing with the mannequin. You can get the e-mail addresses of the customers and send them the funny pictures with your logo on the photo. The customer will then, most likely, post the photos to social networking sites and give you good exposure and free advertising.

Another idea is to use your mannequins as decorations. Dress forms (or dress mannequins) are sometimes produced in a vintage style. These are a lot like human shaped cages. You can use them to display clothing, but you can also use them in more creative ways. You can stuff the hollow inside with flowers, colored paper, packing peanuts, whatever you think is interesting. We saw an idea at blisstree.com for using a dress mannequin as a place card holder at a dinner party. You could do something similar, encouraging your customers to place their business cards on the dress mannequin for a chance to win something.

Coming up with interesting ways to create a showcase or to network with your customers will keep them interested in coming back to your store. People want to be inspired when they shop in boutiques, so make sure that you do not disappoint!

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Visual Displays Needed to Start a Retail Store

Starting up a retail store can leave your head spinning! The “to do” lists can be overwhelming. Part of the start-up requires that you devise a plan for acquiring visual store displays. This list will hopefully help you to narrow down some of your research and get the show on the road.

First you will need to decide on wall displays. Choosing the right type of slatwall or gridwall system can save you a lot of space and money. These types of wall display systems are versatile and help you to accomplish your most basic display goal; to keep the customer interested. In order to keep your store aesthetically pleasing, you need to create an array of merchandising options that can change with your inventory, promotions and the seasons. Keep photos of your display arrangements for future reference. Make notes as to whether or not certain arrangements attracted more customers or more sales.

Floor displays need to function not only as clothing racks, but also as merchandising displays. Choose garment racks, tables and shelves that give you a variety of options when it comes to displaying clothing. Long racks of clothing all facing the same way make it difficult for customers or people passing through to see what you have to offer. Keeping the displays more interesting can result in a better brand image and higher sales. Try to choose display racks that face clothing outward. It’s also a good idea to have racks that can accommodate folded and hung clothing. Reserve less interesting display racks for clearance items.

The next step is to order your showcases. A showcase is a special display that features a certain item, brand or category of items. Showcases are often lighted glass cases that are well suited for illuminating certain areas of the store, drawing attention to high priced items, and keeping small valuables safe from shoplifters. Showcases are regularly used as countertops in the register area of the store.

The last piece of your visual display puzzle is to incorporate mannequins into your design. Mannequins can last for many years and are a great item to invest in. They have been responsible for more sales than any other display in history. They help to set the tone and environment in your retail store. They communicate your image to customers while visually enticing them to feel emotionally connected with your product.

Once you have your gridwall or slatwall system, your garment racks, showcases and mannequins, you’ll be ready to tackle some of the other details on your list. Good luck in your endeavor!

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Rules of Window Display

A good window display should distract customers from whatever they are doing and grab their attention. It only takes a second to make a first impression. Dress up your window displays with these rules in mind and you could be attracting new customers and encouraging return visits before you know it.

1) Make a good first impression.

Your window display is your best chance at making a good first impression. Our instinct is to rely heavily on first impressions. When meeting people, it is hard not to judge a book by its cover. But, we shouldn’t because the person may be having a bad day or something of the sort. For shopping purposes, we do judge the book by the cover, and we should. If a retailer wants our business, they need to convey to us what they have to offer and why we should be interested.

2) Communicate your purpose.

Use your window displays to show the customers why they should enter your store. Make sure that you target your audience, not only to get the shoppers that will spend money into your store, but also to show potential customers what style of clothing you sell and for what price.

3) Allude to pricing in your window display.

Giving cues to your audience about price is very important. If your clothing is very expensive or high end, then your window display should communicate that. This helps people to determine if they should go in or not. Attracting the wrong customers will have them coming in, turning their noses up, rummaging through everything, and then spreading the word to their friends that you are overpriced. Specifically targeting those that are looking for items in your pricing range will help build a quality customer base that only spreads good word-of-mouth advertising for you.

4) Give a good sampling of what your store offers.

Don’t just show your latest and greatest. Showing off what’s new is a great idea, but make sure that you don’t limit yourself to just that. Accessories can account for a huge percentage of your profits. Plus, many shoppers are not looking to spend a lot, but they might want to check out your purses, jewelry, hats or sunglasses. Use these items to draw in more customers.

5) Make people see how they want to feel.

People buy clothing and accessories not only to clothe themselves, but also to send out a message or feel a certain way. Pay attention to how your customers feel when they purchase your clothing. Do they feel elegant, hip, relaxed, friendly, edgy or sexy? Portray the feeling that people are after in your window display. The best way to have people associate feelings with purchasing your clothing is to utilize mannequins. Be creative and make sure that people are seeing something that makes them want to feel the same as the mannequin in your showcase.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Bringing Life to Retail Mannequins

Mannequins can be one of your greatest selling tools or they can sit and collect dust. Make sure that you are utilizing your mannequins and letting them bring life to your window displays.

The trick is to really give them some movement. You can dress them in your latest fashions, but if they rarely change positions then they won’t attract any attention. Mannequins have long been recognized as the number one selling tool when it comes to store displays. There are a few reasons for this.

The first reason is rather obvious, they help customers to quickly see what garments look like when worn. For flowing, delicate fabrics, using a mannequin is a must. On a hanger, some clothes just look very limp and uninteresting. But, on a mannequin or even a torso form, the clothing is suddenly given shape, depth and texture. So, instantly you’ve improved the appearance of the garment simply by displaying it differently.

Giving your mannequins movement will help to draw the eye. What we mean by movement, is to make the mannequins seem like they are in motion, or engaged in some sort of scenario. This may not be totally necessary for every mannequin in your store, but for your window displays or feature displays, it really does make a difference.

For example, if you are promoting back to school wear, then the mannequins should be doing more than just wearing a back pack. Think about what customers are looking for in back to school clothes. Parents may be looking for nicer clothing at a reasonable price, while students want to feel like they fit in. Try to anticipate all of the needs that the buyers will be looking to fulfill. Children’s mannequins in this case, may be wearing well-made clothing, but participating in a social scene, like hanging out around the lockers. Customers are subconsciously influenced by the types of feelings they get when looking at a display.

Another example is formal wear. Girls looking for prom dresses could be influenced by mannequins that are engaged in a romantic dance. Or, they may be looking to have a good time with their girlfriends, and could be more influenced by other girl mannequins admiring their dress. Come up with a theme that will help your shoppers envision what it would be like to actually wear that dress and experience what the mannequin is experiencing.

There is power in giving personality and movement to your mannequins. Most shoppers know within two seconds of looking at a garment if they are interested or not. Mannequin displays help to hold that interest and tease the thought processes that customers go through when deciding whether or not to make a purchase.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

How to Increase Retail Sales

The economy is in a slump and retail businesses are the first to suffer. People are afraid to spend their money. But, they will need to buy school clothes and work clothes, so use these tips to ensure that you snag some of these precious sales dollars.

Customer service is your number one concern. If someone has a bad experience in your store, the news will spread. Train your sales team on how to provide good customer service. They should avoid commonly overused phrases and start to see them as sales or branding opportunities. Additionally, negative phrases should have a positive spin. For example, instead of saying, “Hold on for a minute while I look for that” a prepared customer service person would say, “We do keep that in stock, I will be right back with it for you.” There is only a slight difference in what was said, but think about the customer’s impression. In the first statement, the customer is asked to “wait” while the employee “looks”. If it were me, I would think that it could take forever and I would probably leave once the sales person was out of sight.

Merchandise your store in a way that will lure in the right customers. You don’t necessarily want everyone and their dog to come inside. You mainly want the people that may actually spend money to enter. Arrange your displays to target the demographic that you want to enter. If you want higher paying customers, don’t put fluorescent lights and giant sale signs at the door. If you want to clear out old merchandise for cheap, bring your garment racks out onto the sidewalk. People will respond to the mood that you set.

Reduce theft to protect your investment. Lighting, mirrors, strategically placed sales representatives and theft deterrent signs can be very inexpensive and save you loads of money due to losses. Loss prevention should become even more of a priority when the economy is down and people are more willing to take a risk shoplifting.

You may have heard that when sales are down you should be spending more on advertising. This is true, but how much and in what area should it be being spent? If you only have a small advertising budget, you might use it to get information about your competition. Doing some research yourself or paying for a competitive analysis can help you to define your edge and publicize it. You may be able to identify a target market that has gone untapped, problems with your competitions customer service or holes in what the competition offers and what their customers are looking for.

Finally, realize that you can use what you’ve got without spending a dime. If there aren’t many customers in the store, use that time to train employees on high level customer service. Rearrange your store displays and work on new and exciting merchandising. Your store can rotate new inventory towards the front of the store every day if necessary until you figure out what is drawing customers in. Utilize mannequins in your front window to keep the scene changing. Not only will you spark interest, but you will help customers see what all you have to offer.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Mannequin Window Displays: Why They Are Important

Fashion merchandising can have a big impact on your sales, but nothing is as important as your window display. Use the psychological factors for creating a first impression to lure the right customers to your store using your window display as your biggest advertisement.


When a customer approaches a retail store, the first thing they notice is the window display. Your window displays should give the customer a lot of information. Of course, they should showcase your best fashions and intrigue people to come inside. They should also have a lot of subtle cues to buy as well. You can benefit greatly by being purposeful in your window display design.


Our brains are geared to make snap decisions and create first impressions. This gives us the ability to quickly judge levels of danger, distinguish likes and dislikes, as well as be subjective about something’s significance or insignificance to us. Using this information in a retail setting is very beneficial. Your window display is a prime example of where this psychological structure can be put to good use.


Remember that you are not only trying to attract people, but that you are really trying to attract people that will buy something from you. Sometimes this means deterring the people that you do not want wasting your time, rummaging through your merchandise, or making negative comments about your store in front of customers that might have been considering a purchase.


Your window display is really like a giant advertisement. So, it makes sense to use the rules of advertising, only applied to a three dimensional display. According to marketing research, the first and most effective part of an advertisement is impression. They should be able to figure out, at a glance, if you sell the type of clothing that they are looking for at the price that they are able to afford.


The second part of your plan should include usage. When a person looks at your display, they should be able to see how they would use the product. This is where mannequins really take the merchandising cake, so to speak. Mannequins allow you to create a scene, showing how the clothing can be used. For example, while playing tennis, getting married, or while at the beach. Mannequins have proven to be the most effective merchandising tool in the business for decades. This brings us to part three.


The third part of your design plan should exhibit self-fulfillment. Your customer will first look and see that your store is targeted at them, then notice that the items can be used for what they would be using them for, and then they should feel like buying these items would fulfill their needs in some way. Practical, emotional or social needs should come to mind when they look at the window display.


This window display plan, combined with the use of mannequins, will help customers visualize what it would be like to wear the clothing that you are selling. If all of their areas of interest and fulfillment are met before they even enter the store, then your job of selling the merchandise should be a lot easier.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Buying Retail Store Displays and Fixtures Online

As a retailer, you are lucky to have a wide variety of store displays and store fixtures at your fingertips, online. Make sure that you choose a supplier that is also the manufacturer to ensure the best prices. It is also a good idea to go through a company that provides all of the items you will need to stock your retail store. This way, reorders, returns and customer service will all be consistently how you expect them to be and go as smoothly as you need them to.

You will need all sorts of store displays to design your store. You will sometimes need items on short notice, so consider who keeps a large inventory of in-stock items before you choose a supplier. You will be ordering retail packaging, tags and labels, signs and banners, clothing racks, hangers, security devices, mannequins and more, so be sure that you choose someone who can accommodate all of these needs.

Keeping with one company will simplify your books and help you keep everything organized. Don’t be fooled by price alone. Compare quality and customer reviews of companies that you are considering before you decide. After you determine which suppliers are top notch, another thing to look at is special deals or discounts. Many offer shipping deals, or percentages off of your order around holidays. Look for promotions and be sure to ask about special offers when you call to talk to them.

This brings up the next point, customer service. Can you call the company that you chose and speak to a real person? Is the person on the other end of the line friendly, eager to please and knowledgeable? The last thing you need is a problem order and an untrained person on the other end that does not know how to fix it. Or even worse, you have to wait days and days for an e-mail reply to your question that may or may not contain the answer you were looking for.

You need someone with a wide range of retail store fixtures and displays, a large inventory of in-stock items, helpful and knowledgeable customer service employees, occasional special deals and discounts, a proven track record of quality items in a variety of store items, and someone who is willing to stand behind their products.

Once you find that dream manufacturer that is also the supplier, you will not only get the most bang for your buck, but you will have a partner in running your store. Buying high quality store displays and fixtures can sometimes be a trial and error procedure. But, with these few steps that get you through the research, you are sure to find a supplier of retail store displays and display cases that will be an asset to your business.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Mannequins Attract Customers

The use of mannequins in a retail setting has long been recognized as a merchandising gold mine. Mannequins are notorious for boosting sales and drawing in customers. But why? Here we analyze what a mannequin really does for clothing and for retailers.

We know that people are unpredictable. We never know when and why they might decide to purchase an item. There are a lot of elements that go into determining what a person will buy and how much they are willing to pay. Of course, a lot of these things are out of our control. But, the things that we can control, we should.

People shop at malls looking for inspiration. They want to see the latest styles. They need to find clothing that helps them to establish who they are and what image they want to portray. Their choices can be influenced by lighting, music, signage, or promotions. You may be wondering what is going on inside of those heads as they pass your store and merely peer inside. You need to grab their attention. Not only that, but you need to make them feel something. They need to connect with you in a way that lures them inside. Give them the inspiration that they desire.

Mannequins are the most effective way to help passers-by quickly and effectively connect with you. They see what they want to look like. The freshest styles, combined with the hottest accessories, all beautifully displayed on a body that looks how they wish to look. Mannequins can make clothing look like it was meant to look when it was designed. This is much preferred to limply hanging on a rack.

Use your mannequins to get your customers to feel a connection. To do this, you need to position them in a way that conveys something that your target audience can identify with. If you are targeting teenagers, you will need to create beach or pool scenes in summer, school or sports scenes in fall, and boyfriend/girlfriend scenes at Christmas. Give them a scene that will allow them to envision themselves there, where they long to be, looking how they want to look, with the people that they want to be with.

Creating this ideal can have a swift and definite influence on your shoppers. Possibly without even knowing why, they will venture into your store with an open attitude and a curiosity about how they can achieve the social ideal that has been presented by your mannequins.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Mannequin Display Ideas

Customers that enter your store are sure to notice your mannequin displays. Mannequins help to promote your merchandise and keep things fresh and changing in your store. Mannequins can help customers see what outfits look like off of the hanger and can even attract new customers. Learn how to stock your retail store with the right mannequins for your needs.

Your front window display is probably the most important place to use mannequins. People passing by can quickly get a first impression of your store. Use your window display to market your best items or ones that accurately give an example of the quality and style of clothing that you offer. Use them to promote exciting new things, like swim suit season or back to school time.

You can use interesting scenarios here and help draw in the crowd. Moving mannequin displays are very exciting. Ones that evoke feelings of friendship, popularity or family are also very effective. You can simply use matching mannequins to line up a display of merchandise. Uniformity or creativity will catch the eye. Use spotlights, fans, special effects or even music to draw the eye to your mannequin display.

Some items need mannequins or body forms to help show their true shape. You can purchase inexpensive hanging forms to place on the end of your garment racks throughout your store. You can get black, metallic, clear or glossy white mannequin torso forms that hang on the end of the rack. This helps to show how clothes look on. Sometimes they may hang limp on a hanger or simply not show the detail or quality that you want them to. Putting them on a mannequin form will help customers visualize what they really would look like if they were being worn.

You can get mannequin forms to help display and promote your merchandise throughout the store. There are head forms for wigs, hats, sunglasses and other accessories. Infant and child forms and mannequins are useful for displaying children’s ensembles. There are foot forms, leg forms, underwear forms, dress forms, pants forms and more. Most are freestanding and some have hangers for garment rack displays.

Mannequin forms are probably most well known for encouraging customers to purchase more than they planned on. Not only do you make your outfits look better by displaying what they look like on, but you can also show that you have other items that go well with it. You can add shoes, belts, hats, sunglasses, purses and watches to the outfit to boost sales of the accessories in your store.

Keep things changing in your store. It is so easy with mannequins to move them around and freshen up your displays. They are one of the most effective marketing tools you can buy and they can be a lot less expensive than you think. Save money and ensure quality by buying directly from a manufacturer that is also the supplier. You will cut out the middle man and keep more of your money in your own pocket.

Investing in mannequins could be one of the smartest moves you have made in marketing your retail store.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Showing Off Your Window Display

The art of creating a window display that stands out and grabs peoples attention is an important and valuable skill as a way to increase sales. Your window display is often your best chance to make a good first impression or even a bad one. Your window display also gives walk-by traffic a chance to see what you sell and how you sell it. It conveys something about your store, your identity and the emotion or idea you want to get across to your potential customer.

What is a good window display? It is one that intrigues, seduces, entertains, and invites potential customers. For this reason, you want to try something unique, something that stands out from the rest of the other window displays customers are passing by. In this, don’t be afraid to take risks. Yet don’t confuse your customer. For example, if you are featuring fall clothing, don’t put the bikinis in with the sweaters. In this way, there is a balance of simplicity and creativity that must be achieved. You don’t want to try and do too much or sell too many different products. That’s not to say you can’t cross merchandise, which is a good idea, but, again, keep your window display uncluttered.

When thinking through your display, don’t scrimp on cost and always be consistent. Consider your window display as your silent salesman.

You will also want to change your window display regularly. Keep your displays fresh and new. Depending on foot traffic, changing your display once a month is a good rule of thumb.

Make sure your display is lit well. Good lighting is key. Track lighting gives you the flexibility needed to illuminate the ever-changing environment. You can use the lighting to create a mood and spotlight individual products.

Keep your window display clean, that is make sure it isn’t full of dead flies and dust.

As for the design within the window itself, the simple rules of product display apply. Stack or pyramid products – that is vary height and depth of what you are showing off. If necessary, use a low table. Keep everything stacked neatly. Walk outside the store frequently and look at your display often as you are installing it. Try looking at it with fresh eyes, as your customer’s would look at it. If you are displaying clothing, choose the appropriate mannequins for the types of clothing you are selling. Follow this with how your display your mannequins – how will they be standing, what will they be doing besides showing off your product?

If you find that you just don’t have that decorating and design touch, don’t despair. There are professionals who put together window displays for a living.

If you are a store that doesn’t have a window display and are just considering it, remember to maximize the space available for the largest windows you can install. Once windows are installed, back your display with walls so people focus on what’s in the window and not what’s behind it.

Last, when putting together your window display, if possible, carry the theme or look of your window display into your store with your interior displays.

Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail store displays including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Wax Mannequins and Wax Sculpting History

We are often amazed at how lifelike one can make a wax figurine. Some recall the number of wax museums you could visit when growing up. So what is the history of wax figurines and is wax still being used to create lifelike people?

Beeswax has historically always been an excellent medium for preparing figures and models, either through carving or by casting in molds. At ordinary temperatures, wax can easily be cut and shaped; it melts at a low temperature; it mixes with any coloring matter, and takes surface tints well. Its texture and consistency may be modified by the addition of earthy matters and oils or fats and when molten, it is highly responsive to impressions from a mold. With wax, once it sets and hardens its form is relatively resilient against ordinary temperature variations, even when it is cast in thin laminae. This is possibly why we have seen wax used for modeling since the Middle Ages.

During the Italian Renaissance, modeling in wax took a position of high importance, and it was practiced by some of the greatest of the early masters. The bronze medallions of Pisanello and of the other famous medalists owe their value to the properties of wax: all early bronzes and metalwork were cast from wax models first. The famous wax bust attributed to Leonardo da Vinci acquired in 1909 by the Museum of Berlin is the work of an English forger who worked about 1840. The wax model of a head, at the Wicar Museum at Lille, belongs probably to the school of Canova, which robs it of none of its exquisite grace.

There are a number of very high quality wax figures from the 16th and 17th centuries, mostly portrait figures and religious or mythological scenes, often with many figures. Antonio Abondio (1538-91) pioneered the colored wax portrait miniature in relief, working mainly for the Habsburg and other courts of Northern Europe, and his son Alessandro continued in his footsteps.

Towards the close of the eighteenth century, modeling of medallion portraits and of relief groups, the latter frequently polychromatic, was in considerable vogue throughout Europe. Many of the artists were women. John Flaxman executed in wax many portraits and other relief figures which Josiah Wedgwood translated into pottery for his Jasperware. The National Portrait Gallery has forty wax portraits, mostly from this period.

Meanwhile, as storefronts were becoming popular as was the rise of the mannequin, the idea of using wax seemed the most apparent solution. With wax, models could be created in the most flattering way to the store’s clothing line. One of these great wax model designers was Pierre Imans a mannequin manufacturer from Paris. Imans was known for bringing a beautiful sense of human element to mannequins by capturing body expressions in wax. He created interactive compositions of figures, as though they were in the process of living and unaware that they were also being observed. Heads and torsos were sculpted as one. With a slight turn of the head, a hint of movement was achieved. Hands were more delicately posed to create storytelling attitudes.

Miss Modesty, a wax mannequin of 1899 is a prime example of the development of storytelling attitudes. She stood in a store window, with hands and arms covering her face, stating reservation and shyness because she was wearing and selling corsets and undergarments.

At the turn of the century, the women's suffrage movement was gaining momentum, a definite influence on the female mannequin. In fact, a particular Siegel mannequin that was set upon a turning base (she was without legs) translated into a determined, assertive female of that era. With one arm held back and a hand slightly clenched, her head was high with vision focused straight forward. The other hand was more relaxed, showing a touch of softness. True to the accepted body language of her day, she portrayed the mature woman, with hips thrown back and heavy bosom thrust upwards.

After World War I, countries were plunged into the chaotic realm of picking up the pieces and getting back to the business of normal living. Concurrently, there was a major transition in the type of material used to sculpt mannequins, and there was a move from wax to plaster.

Plaster figures didn't melt in the show windows. They were much lighter in weight, and easier to handle. But at the same time, with plaster, it was more difficult to achieve the detailed features and anatomy that were possible with wax.

Wax figurines are still made today, but not wax mannequins. Today’s mannequin is typically made of fiberglass yet retains the very lifelike features of history’s wax mannequins. Despite the lack of need for mannequins made of wax, the medium of wax is still in high use and may always be due to its numerous qualities.

Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail store displays including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com/

The History of the Mannequin

We have seen mannequins and heard the word, but do we know who invented them or how long they have been used?

The word mannequin came from the Dutch word "maneken" which means little men. There are two accepted spelling for mannequin - "mannequin" and "manikin" which is nearer the original Dutch word. The meaning of the term today is either ‘a model of human figure for display of garments, hats or furs or a dressmaker’s assistant who wears new costumes to display them for sale in dressmaking houses.’

No one actually knows who created the first full figure mannequin. It is thought that the creation of a clothing form dates back thousands of years. Later, an item called a ‘fashion doll’ began circulating around France. These dolls ranged from 12 inches to life size and where always stylishly dressed. The dolls were exchanged among the royals and merchant class.

It was later on during the Industrial Revolution and the invention of plate-glass window displays that such ‘dolls’ became useful in showing off a store’s clothing. Various types of mannequins were designed initially made of everything from cloth and straw with lead feet to wax.

Wax mannequins were said to cost $15 apiece, a tidy sum during that time. Even during that time, the mannequins were mostly females and already reflect the "ideal beauty" of the time - having "full bosoms." The problem with the wax mannequins was the heat coming in the large glass windows caused the mannequins to melt. As for the heavy-duty mannequins with lead feet, these only posed a problem when moving or dressing as they could weight up to 300 pounds.

If you look at mannequins from different time periods, you will see that each era has its own characteristics - from facial expression, to body language (pose) and of course, the measurements. Modern mannequins look like life-sized Barbie dolls - tall and slim, with great body tone, looks bored and usually a size 4. Compare them with mannequins fifty years ago, and you will find that mannequins manufactured after World War II were shorter, and had a happy facial expression. Early mannequins were also only manufactured in three basic poses - left foot forward, right foot forward, or both feet together.


The depression and the Second World War brought about shortages and shop windows became rather somber with the mannequins of the day looking slightly melancholy and concerned. However this all changed when the war was over and by the late 1940s mannequins looked happy and prosperous, some of them even wore a radiant smile. Male mannequins in particular looked relaxed and some even had holes drilled between their lips for inserting pipes! Mannequins reflected the "ideal beauty" of the time it was designed and manufactured.

In the 1950s new materials became available and by the late 1960s the true mass production of fiberglass and then plastic mannequins became a reality.

Advances in technology have continued so that mannequin artists can now manufacture any conceivable design and are bounded only by the limits of their creativity.

Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail store displays including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com