Managing Small Retail Spaces

Retail spaces can get cramped for a number of reasons. You may have decided to expand and offer more products. Maybe you are offering an entire new department. You could just be running out of storage space. Or, you might have chosen a small space to have an affordable retail space in a good location. Whatever your reasons, you need a way to deal with the small space without sacrificing sales or image.

Not having much room means that you need to get creative. Creative displays are what make boutiques so popular today. Displays need to be effective and satisfy needs for the customers. For example, when a customer enters a store and approaches a display, they have many questions going through their heads. They are wondering if they like the product. They then consider what other people will think. They imagine how the garments would make them feel. Then they check out quality, price, and the availability of their size.

Setting up your displays with these customer questions in mind will help you to overcome some of the hurdles that retailers face. You can’t necessarily only put out a few sizes of each item, or customers will assume that you probably don’t have their size and they won’t go through the process. You don’t want everything to look like clearance. If there are fully stocked displays, then customers feel like they are getting something new and popular. If the inventory is low, they might assume that you are not restocking this item for some reason. It could be quality, popularity, or some other unknown that turns them off when they look at the display.

So, this leaves you with a predicament. You need to save space. You want to offer more and more products. But, you don’t want to put out skimpy amounts of each thing. Even more important, you don’t want your store to get crowded and look like a bargain bin. The solution is to utilize retail displays designed to conquer this particular problem.

The most popular and cost effective solution is to use slatwall panels. You can install slatwall in a store and take full advantage of vertical space. You can hang and display hundreds of items on the walls of your store or boutique, even in a small amount of square footage. This can leave the floor open to creating more attractive and elaborate displays.

Using slatwall not only saves space, but it makes your store easy to shop in. All of your items can face outward toward the customer. Customers can shop without touching anything. They can see what each item looks like and also see that your inventory is stocked. If something’s running low, you can simply switch out the bar for a shorter one to make your store look continuously stocked.

Using slatwall and slatwall panels in your store will make you and your customers happier.

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.

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.

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.

Dynamic Retail Displays

As a retail store owner, you know that your displays can certainly help make sales. They also help to brand your image, lure in customers and advertise new merchandise or promotions. Follow these simple rules to ensure that your retail displays are as effective and dynamic as they should be.

1) Make sure that your display has the proper lighting.

Marketing research has proven that spotlighting is most effective at getting customer’s to notice a display. Spotlighting does not necessarily mean harsh lighting, so be subtle. A strobe light might attract a lot of attention, but it will instantly turn away most customers.

2) Rearrange your displays often.

A lot of your potential customers will pass your store often. What got them to stop one day might be different that what got them to stop another day. Changing it up often will hold their interest and showcase more merchandise so that they can see that you really do have something to offer them.

3) Keep your store in line with the theme of the display.

Your store should reflect what you are advertising in your display. For example, if you have a mannequin in a bikini hanging out with mannequins in scuba gear, I would expect that you sold both in your store. If you don’t sell scuba gear, then don’t put it in the window.

4) Make sure that your window displays attract the right customers.

If you only want high-end customers, don’t use big “sale” signage in your window. You’ll only attract the bargain hunters that aren’t likely to spend money in your store. In turn, you’ll push away the bigger spenders that don’t want to push through a bunch of rummaging customers to buy high end clothes.

5) The display speed should be matched by the customer’s speed.

If your customers pass your window display in a car, it needs to be simple enough that they can decipher your message quickly. Simple mannequins wearing your clothing may be enough. But, if you are in an outdoor mall where customers leisurely stroll by, you could put in more detail to entice them to stop and take a look.

6) The display should be relevant to the buyer, right now.

This seems obvious, but many retailers make the mistake of advertising Christmas too soon; or bringing out the winter clothing in July. Most people do not buy their clothing so far in advance. Advertise “back to school” clothes when most people are buying them. You’ll make a lot more sales and customers won’t view you as ridiculously desperate to get the good sales season started.

7) Display your clothing on a mannequin.

Use mannequins to your advantage by displaying your clothes as they look when they are worn. Customers don’t have to rummage through crowded racks or make multiple trips to the dressing room to determine if they will like how something looks when it is worn.

Follow these simple rules with your displays and you will certainly draw some of the right kind of attention to your retail store.

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 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.