Top Tips to Display Home Décor Items

Asked for their top tips on displaying home décor items, gift store owners and staff members offered a variety of replies.

At PopCycle in Tucson, Ariz., Store Manager Libby Tobey related that the shop keeps a lot of like-items together and also does color theme displays, both of which are very attention-getting for the shop. “We often keep the individual artist or artisan’s work together as much as possible, and we focus on making the pieces look the most appealing,” she said, from spacing to lighting.

Heading north to Once in a Blue Moose, in Anchorage, Alaska, company President Vernon Cates said, “We believe location is the most important thing when it comes to display. If an item is visible from a good spot in the store, then people are going to be drawn to it. We hang a lot of things on the walls in this home décor category.

In Fairbanks, Alaska, Angelika Krinner-Croteau, owner of the Arctic Travelers Gift Shop, said her tip is to cross merchandise most décor items. “Others, however, we have to keep in a display case under lock and key, because they are quite valuable. Things such as locally carved ivory are in that category.”

At The Old Flamingo in Salt Lake City, Utah, Vendor Sharleigh Conti said “We arrange things, group things, within one little area for photos. When items are displayed in that way it’s probably the way that customers who come into the store, as well as viewing items online, can best see them. Since we are made up of different vendors, we are probably not as cohesive as a regular store with one owner, so that is the technique that works best.”

Jason Shelby, owner and buyer for Now or Never in Phoenix, Ariz., described his well-organized display style. “We have our store set up into three areas, fashion with clothing, shoes, and accessories; furniture; and our marketplace which has a 20-foot wall of shelves and large marble cubes for display. Each shelf or cube has a different brand on each. There’s a combination of items within those areas, some are divided by theme or brands, with the biggest selling brands getting their own display and section.” ❖

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