RETAIL STORE LAYOUT &

VISUAL MERCHANDISING
Ravishankar Sahu
ROADMAP

Introduction
Objectives
Types of Store Layout
Store design and Retail strategy
Signage and its Types
 INTRODUCTION

Store layout is the design of a store’s floor space and the placement of items
within that store.

Store layout generally show the size and the location of each department, any
permanent structure, fixture location and customer traffic pattern.

Each floor plan and store layout will depend on the type of products, the building
location and how much the business can afford to put into the overall store
design.
OBJECTIVES

Implement the retailers strategy.

Influence the customer buying behavior.
Provide flexibility.
Control design and maintenance costs.
Meet legal requirement.
 TYPES OF STORE LAYOUT

Loop floor layout

Free-flow floor layout
Mixed store layout
Grid floor layout
Focused floor layout
FREE-FLOW FLOOR LAYOUT

It provides an intimate and relaxing environment that facilitate

shopping and browsing.

The layout is used in small specialty stores or within departments of

large store.

Easy to create a shopping experience in this layout

 LOOP FLOOR LAYOUT

It provides a major aisle that loop around the store to guide customer
around various depts.

Cash register station are typically located in each departments

bordering the racetracks.

It facilitate the goal of getting customer to see the merchandise

available in multiple departments and facilitate impulse purchase.
 MIXED STORE LAYOUT

The mixed store layout uses design elements from multiple layouts to
create a flexible option for retailers. Department stores use a
compelling mix of straight, diagonal, and angular concepts, among
other design elements, to create a dynamic flow through a range of
departments featuring a variety of merchandise.

The advantages of combining different store layouts seems apparent,

but the space and resource requirements to maintain this design can
pose difficulties to retailers. 
FOCUSED PATH STORE LAYOUT

Focused Path Store Layout- This layout directs the customer on a

predetermined route through the retail store. This maximizes the
exposure of each and every piece of merchandise to the customer.
The downside is that this type of layout is extremely rigid.
Customers who come looking for a specific item or type of item are
forced to follow the labyrinth until they reach their destination. Then
they are forced to continue through until reaching the exit.
Example of the retailer using this type of the layout is IKEA
GRID LAYOUT

The grid layout is the most common store

layout you're going to find in retail. Used in
supermarkets, drug stores, and many big
box retail stores, it's used when stores carry a lot
of products (particularly different kinds of
products), or when a retail location needs to
maximize space.
RETAIL OUTLET
STRATEGIES

Retail Positioning- This involves choice of target market and differential

advantage. Targeting allows retailers to tailor the marketing mix which
includes product assortment, service levels, store locations, prices and
promotion, to the needs of their chosen customer segments.
Differentiation provides a reason to the customer to shop at one store
rather than at another. The customer should have distinct expectations
from the store when he walks into it which should be different from the
expectations that he has when he walks into another store. Retail
positioning comes from novelty in the processes of shopping offered to
the customers and novelty in the product assortment or both.
Location of the Retail Store- For some products like groceries,
consumers do not like to go to a far away store. Therefore, store
location has great influence on sales performance of such products. A
retailer has to decide whether it will be a standalone store in a city, or
will it open stores to cover a designated area like a city, state or
country. A retailer may decide to open one store in each city.
Product Assortment and the Services- A retailer has to
decide on the breadth of its product assortment, and also its
depth. A retailer may have a broad product assortment, but
within each product line, it can stock a shallow product range.
Or it can have a narrow product assortment, but within each
product line, it can stock a deep product range. For example
Petrol stations start out as fuel providers, and expand by adding
provision stores or food outlets to maximize the revenue that
can be obtained from the customer. Some stations on the
highway may also add a Cineplex to make their retail outlet a
one-stop entertainment and utility center for the customer.
Store Atmosphere- Store atmosphere is created by the design, color
and layout of a store. A retailer works on both exterior and interior
designs to create an appropriate store atmosphere. The store
atmosphere should prompt target customers to visit the store and
stimulate them to buy once they are in the store.
Signage is the design or use of signs and symbols to communicate
a message. The term signage is documented to have been popularized
in 1975 to 1980. Signs are any kind of visual graphics created to
display information to a particular audience.
 ROLE & IMPORTANCE OF SIGNAGE

The signboards are an effective medium of

communication between the retailer and the customer.
The signboard gives the store its unique identity and
helps in furthering its brand image.
A signage goes a long way in influencing the customer’s
buying decision.
In-store advertising helps to introduce new products,
increase underperforming product awareness, promote
sales and educate customers on key products and services
offered by the company.
 DIGITAL SIGNAGE

Digital signage is a centrally controlled, content distribution

platform by which to playback digital content to one or many
displays or screens. Digital signage is best explained as a form
of electronic display that shows television programming,
information, advertising, and other messages.
Digital signage is typically developed and produced at
corporate level and distributed to stores.
Digital signage is superior in recall and content.
Digital signage can be customize according to the strategy.
It can be ensures timely output, and decrease promotional cost.
VISUAL MERCHANDISING

Visual merchandising is the practice in the retail industry of

optimizing the presentation of products and services to better
highlight their features and benefits.
The purpose of such visual merchandising is to attract, engage, and
motivate the customer towards making a purchase.
Visual merchandising contributes to a brand’s personality and the
characteristics associated with the brand.
Visual elements play a part in building a retail brand and therefore
they help a brand differentiate itself from its competitors, create
brand loyalty, and allows for a brand to place premium pricing on
their products.
TECHNIQUES USED IN VISUAL MERCHANDISING

Interior displays:
• Store layout
• Mannequins
• Point of purchase display
• Bundling
• Atmospherics
• Light
• Music
• Scent
 Exterior displays:
Window display
•Color
•Graphics, photography and signage
•Lighting
•Seasonal displays
•Fashion trends
ZARA
ZARA