A MODERN TAKE ON
VISUAL MERCHANDISING FINAL PROJECT BY EMILY WILLIAMS
CONCEPT BOARD
“paint the city gold”
CONCEPT BOARD Explanation
To create my concept board, I took items that I believed would flow with my window display that could easily be added on the store interior. To match the gold mannequins from the window, I would choose to continue to have gold mannequins throughout the store, at least for the big displays like the front entrance of the ground level. To be cost efficient, all other mannequins could remain white and the gold mannequins could be change according to the changes of the window. Since New Look had changed their logo in 2003, I don’t think it’s time for a logo change again. But the Oxford Street store hasn’t adopted the new logo so I’ve chosen to put that in effect. I think that the main railings and fixtures on the ground floor should be gold as well, and they should incorporate painted shelving to add color and life to the clothing. To stick with the window theme, I want a vinyl “paint spill” sticker on the entrance floor to bring customers in. The theme of the window is “paint the town gold” so anything that can be gold should. Floor length gold mirrors should also be placed on each floor as well as in the fitting rooms. New Look is lacking in art work and visuals on the wall which is why I chose the painted painting and the framed heel. They could easily be changed out to match the theme of the store window. The shoe display is something I found eye-catching and I think should be incorporated on the third level on the left and right back walls. I also think that circular couches should be added on this floor so that customers have more space to try on their many pairs of shoes that they offer. The wood blocks that have paint running down them could also be another way to merchandise apparel.
INSPIRATION BOARD
INSPIRATION BOARD Explanation To create my inspiration board, I started a Pinterest Visual Merchandising board: http://www.pinterest.com/emthegemmm/visual-merchinspiration/ I noticed a theme in the things I liked: repetition, paint and working with different geometric shapes and 3D objects. I used the repetition of the dress shirt display as inspiration for my repetitive shoe backdrop. I found the paint spills to be very intriguing and an easy way to draw the eye to a target. From there I sketched where I wanted the paint to flow on my window display. I also loved the layering of the spilled paint can with the sailboats floating in it so I decided to replicate the spill, building it up in height as a platform to showcase a pair of heels. I had originally planned on using wood as my base for the floor and the walls, but after finding many color palates with gold and realizing that gold would be more attractive than the wood, I decided to change colors. I had also originally planned on recreating the shoe chandelier but after deciding on using the shoes as the backdrop, I chose a simple gold chandelier instead that wouldn’t draw any attention away from the shoes or the mannequins.
Ground Floor: WOMEN’S, BAGS & ACCESSORIES RIGHT WINDOW
LEFT WINDOW STREET ENTRANCE
NEW ITEMS (ITEMS ON LEFT MANNEQUINS)
NEW ITEMS (ITEMS ON RIGHT MANNEQUINS) MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
ESCALATORS JEWELRY DISPLAY
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
NEW ITEMS (ITEMS ON RIGHT MANNEQUI NS)
JEWELRY
JEWELRY/OTHER ACCESSORIES BAG WALL DISPLAY & BAGS CASH WRAP
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
Level ONE: WOMEN’S & PLUS SIZE MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
WOMEN’S LABEL LOUNGE
WOMEN’S
CASH WRAP
DENIM
IMPULSE ITEMS
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
JACKETS
ESCALATORS
FITTING ROOM
PLUS SIZE
PLUS SIZE
PLUS SIZE PLUS SIZE MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
LEVEL TWO: MENS, TEEN, LINGERIE & MATERNITY MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
GENERATION 915 SHOES
RESTROOM
GENERATION 915 (TEEN GIRLS)
GENERATION 915 (TEEN BOYS)
FITTING ROOM
MEN’S
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
CASH WRAP
MATERNITY
LINGERIE
MEN’S MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
ESCALATORS
MEN’S
LEVEL THREE: SHOES WALL DISPLAY: NIGHTTIME SHOES
RESTROOM
SHOE DISPLAY CIRCLE COUCH
NIGHTTIME SHOES HEELS
SOCKS
SHOE DISPLAY CIRCLE COUCH
DAYTIME SHOES ATHLETIC
CIRCLE COUCH
DAYTIME SHOES FLATS/BOOTS
SHOE DISPLAY CIRCLE COUCH
WALL DISPLAY: DAYTIME SHOES
ESCALATOR
CASH WRAP
MANNEQUIN DISPLAY
SHOE DISPLAY
NIGHTTIME SHOES BOOTS
FLOOR PLAN EXPLANATION Ground Floor: Women’s, Bags and Accessories As the customer enters the store, they have an area of space around them until they see the large mannequin display directly in front of them that will reflect the design of the outside window. The products that are on these mannequins can be easily accessed on both the left and right hand sides and it will also be paired with other new items and “hot sellers”. As the customer heads to the back of the store, they will see another mannequin display off to the right that will draw their attention to the other new items next to the mannequins as well as the main jewelry display and some of the jewelry next to that. The first cash wrap will be located on the back wall as well as a full wall display showing their wide array of bags. To the left of the cash wrap in the back will be another small mannequin display as well as the other jewelry and accessories. I kept the accessories in the back of the store so that these smaller items aren’t as easy to run with out of the front door, but I moved the cash wrap to the very back so that the customer has to continue past the escalators all the way to the back and therefore view more items. First Floor: Women’s and Plus Size This level of New Look was previously all women’s without the plus size and plus size was crammed in on the second floor. I decided that there should be a larger, less crowded section dedicated to the plus size customer as well as it’s own mannequin display. After coming off of the escalator, the customer can turn right (proper signage would be posted to differentiate areas), and find a hot item: jackets. There is also another large mannequin display in front of the second cash wrap and the other women’s wear is to the right of that which includes a section for the label lounge items (more expensive New Look items). The denim is kept in its own department but placed in the back corner with its own denim mannequin display. I placed the first fitting room on this floor so that the customer would at least have to come upstairs to view the rest of the women’s clothing before deciding to try on their items. I also allocated a small space for some impulse items next to the cash wrap. Second Floor: Menswear, Generation 915, Lingerie and Maternity To try to breakdown this floor and make it slightly more minimal, the plus size department was removed and placed in the level below. As lingerie is most likely the department most appealing to the average female shopper, I placed that closest to the escalator so they wouldn’t get frustrated finding it in-between the teen (Generation 915), men’s and maternity clothing. The menswear is placed in the back on either side of the men’s mannequin display. I placed the maternity clothing behind the lingerie with a mannequin display dedicated to those sections. The teen clothing also has their own mannequin display and area dedicated to the
teen shoes since the collection is much smaller. I divided Generation 915 into girls and boys for ease of shopping. Starbucks is already located in this location and I kept the restroom in the same location as well. The cash wrap and fitting rooms are toward the back so that customers still have to walk through the department and so that they mirror the floor below for ease of finding it. of New Look Oxford Street contains only shoes so I decided to stick with this since it seems to be one of their main selling points and the top floor is the best location since customers would have to travel up all four floors to get here. To improve the shoe department, I divided it into two sections: daytime shoes and nighttime shoes. In the middle of the floor would be a large display highlighting the shoes. On the left and right back walls, an attractive shoe display would be placed to show one of each shoe (which they currently don’t have). The shoes are currently very cluttered and unorganized so this would help the shopper find what they are looking for. I also added a few more couches so that the customer can easily grab the shoes, walk a short distance and sit down to comfortably try them on. Each couch will have a raised center highlighting a hot new shoe showcased in a visual display. I placed socks near the cash wrap as an impulse item as well.
WINDOW SCHEME
(Photo prior to 2013, logo has been updated)
WINDOW SCHEME REPORT Details and Materials The window of New Look, Oxford Street is divided up into a total of four sections. The section I focused on is the bottom right, which would easily be translated into the other three windows in different ways. The scheme has a simple gold and crème chevron stripe wallpaper on the two sidewalls, back wall and ground. The walls are then painted with a cobalt blue and fuchsia pink paint to show the “drip” effect from the ceiling. Using foam that could easily be created out of thicker foam or plastic the fuchsia paint “puddle” would be formed. This is used to showcase a single pair of shoes. The shoe display on the back wall uses twenty pairs of shoes, alternating each type as they go down the line. There are three gold mannequins that are repetitive and slightly off to the right to balance with the pair of shoes on the floor. The chandelier is placed slightly off to the right as well to align with the center mannequin. I would choose to put black tops on the two mannequins on the left and right to stick with one simple color. Plastic, shoes could be used on the back wall as a more budget-friendly option for New Look. Shop Floor To carry out the window design on the shop floor, a vinyl decal would be placed at the door entrance with the paint drips leading the customer into the store. The gold mannequins will also be used in the main entrance display and gold mirrors, rails and shelving will be used throughout the ground floor as well. Why It Was Chosen I chose my theme, “paint the town gold”, as a nightlife themed window. Since New Look Oxford Street puts a huge emphasis on their shoes (which take up the entire top level of the store), I wanted to create a window that mostly focused on just the shoes alone. I thought that the cobalt and fuchsia add a fun pop of youthful color and spontaneity that their young customer has while the gold and simplicity of the display caters to their more mature, classic customer. I wanted the paint to represent a new, clean face for New Look as they are still trying to transform themselves into a better brand with the logo change that took place this year. How It Will Improve New Look’s Image The window display that I chose will change the image of New Look by giving customers a window that will open their eyes and get them to come into the store. The current image of the storefront was too cluttered and somewhat dull. The windows weren’t eye catching and in a place like Oxford Street, the flagship store should have fantastic window displays. By removing much of the product in the window and focusing on what New Look is best at: shoes, the customer will be more willing to enter the store and see what other changes have taken place in the store.!
FINAL RESEARCH REPORT New Look History A brief history by year according to the New Look website (www.newlookgroup.com/who-we-are/our-history): • 1969 – New Look opens its first store in Taunton, England • 1994 – The 200th store is opened • 1996 – Generation 915, their range of teenage clothing is debuted • 2000 – The inspire range is added, New Look’s plus size clothing • 2003 – The 500th store is opened • 2004 – The maternity range is launched • 2006 – The lingerie line is launched • 2007 – New Look becomes the number one seller of footwear in the United Kingdom by volume • 2009 – The 1000th store is opened • 2010 – The four story flagship store on Oxford Street is opened • 2011 – The mobile store, mobile app and “click and collect” features are launched • 2011 – The first concept store is opened • 2012 – The Marble Arch store is remodeled and reopened for business creating a hybrid between an online and offline shopping experience • 2013 – More concept stores are launched as well as the new logo OLD LOGO
NEW LOGO
The New Look website states that they are “a leading fast fashion retailer, offering excitement and accessible fashion across the globe, [we are] always there to help the customer look and feel great” (Newlook.com, 2013). Their mission statement is also a condensed version of their company description. New Look’s Economic Status and Technology According to an article written by The Guardian, New Look revamped their online shopping experience in the summer of 2013, which helped their online sales skyrocket (2013). The article also explains that online sales increased 79%, online sales accounted for 10% of all New Look sales and as a whole, total sales went up 1% compared to the previous year (The Guardian, 2013). After New Look’s sales had been declining,
it has been proven that their new outlook on the company and the efforts made so far to improve sales are actually working. Anders Kristiansen, the chief executive of New Look explained, “We are confident that the improvement to our ranges, the refurbishment of our stores and our growing online strength will underpin further progress” (The Guardian, 2013). According to another article from The Guardian, New Look has reported profits to the end of September 2013 at 13.8 million pounds, which is a huge change from the 13.6 million pound loss they were at only a year ago (2013). This is also due to “more fashionable products, reduced discounting and tempting shoppers to buy more expensive items” as well as their driving items such as furlined parkas, oversized boyfriend coats and boots (The Guardian, 2013). New Look currently has over 1,100 stores in 32 countries and is looking to expand as their profits continue to increase. In 2012, the Marble Arch New Look location was remodeled as a concept store and reopened for business. An article by Company Magazine explains what changes took place to create a different shopping experience from the other New Look stores. “Along with creating a more premium and boutique feel, the relaunch also focuses on cutting edge technology throughout…using new technology, pointof-sale tablets have been designed to help customers track down and purchase product they have viewed online. Additionally there will be mannequins with iPad faces designed to engage and surprise customers” (Company Magazine, 2012). There are also locations around the Marble Arch concept store that one or two garments are hung and displayed; yet they are not available for purchase in the store, only online. New Look believes that this promotes the .com shopping experience in stores as well. Customers seem more willing to shop at budget friendly retailers, like New Look, if the shopping experience is not compromised. This explains the key to the proposed improvements to the New Look headquarters location. Proposed Improvements - New Look Headquarters at Oxford Street Improvements: 1. Move Starbucks logo 2. Modernize window scheme 3. Bring window scheme inside with “paint the city gold” theme 4. Reorganize accessories on ground floor 5. Move cash wrap on ground floor 6. Add and expand area for plus size section on level one 7. Move fitting room and denim on level one 8. Switch Generation 915 and the lingerie/maternity clothing on level two
9. Continue with shoe theme on level three but improve with more seating and organization 10. Increase technology throughout store 11. Improve the look of fitting rooms/flooring throughout store The store that was chosen to improve was the New Look headquarters location on Oxford Street that has been open since 2010. At first glace from the outside, the Starbucks logo distracted me. I would move the logo next to the New Look sign or move the smaller Starbucks logo (in the second picture) and place it under the sign on the right hand side so that the customer can focus on the window display instead. The front also features four windows and the only entrance to the store. This is what it looks like:
Current photo
Photo prior to 2013, logo is changed to the new version
My window scheme was created for the bottom right window but could easily be transferred over in the bottom left window. The “paint spills” and shoe pattern could also be replicated above to give a bright, dramatic affect. I believe that New Look uses too much text on their window displays, which cheapens the brand and makes the windows look tacky. By removing the text, the customer can then focus on the two most important things: the brand and the garments. Since the upper right window is so large and wouldn’t be easily seen up close anyway, this window should be kept as an area for text and large graphics but it should be something that flows with the theme of the other three windows and can be seen from afar. I found their windows to always be lacking color and luster, which is why I added both of those things to my scheme. I also didn’t like the fact that the lighting rails are so noticeable. Upon walking into the store, they placed too many mannequins (five) in an unorganized way and they didn’t flow with the theme of the exterior. I would reduce the amount of mannequins to three, use the same gold mannequins as I did on the outside and create a platform for them to stand on similar to the paint platform that is made of the layered foam board. I would also create a “paint spill” with a vinyl decal on the floor that heads in the direction of this display. As I continued to the back of the store, I first noticed the sale accessories on my left hand side, followed by the cash wrap on my write. Then as I approached to the very back, I found handbags displayed in an unattractive fashion and more, non-sale, accessory items. I would move the cash wrap directly to the back wall to get the customer to see the entire ground floor. I would also improve the handbag display with better organization and place the full priced accessory items before the sale items (these should be placed closer to the register. When going up the escalator to the first floor, I immediately saw a few women’s garments to the left and a large denim display in front of me. Having the denim section is a great idea but it is usually something the customer will go to if they are specifically looking for denim so I decided it would be better to remove this display and place in on the opposite side of the store. The display could be improved again, by adding some color to liven it up. New Look should replace the wood boxes with gold cubes that have bright colored paint dripping down the sides. I also moved the
plus size section and designated an area for a mannequin display so that this customer feels like they have their own special section of the store. I also moved the fitting room to the back left so that the customer heads over to the denim and label lounge before trying on items. After heading up the escalator to the second floor, I found there to be too many different departments, which is why I moved, the plus size department to the first floor. I decided that lingerie would appeal more to the average customer than maternity wear so I placed it closer to the escalators in my store layout. I kept Generation 915 (New Look’s teenage line) in the same area but gave space in my layout for a teen mannequin display. Starbucks is also located on this floor but seems very separated from the shopping experience. If there were a way to tie in the two so that shoppers felt more comfortable going to get coffee and shopping at the same time, it would improve the shopping experience. Perhaps using the vinyl paint graphic leading out of Starbucks back onto the sales floor and using the same music in both departments would lure the customer back out onto the sales floor. Seeing as the third level focuses only on shoes (and after doing research and discovering that New Look was the number one retailer in the UK for shoes), I wanted this floor to remain all about this item. When I had originally entered this area, I found that seating was somewhat limited and the amount of shoes and lack of organization were slightly overwhelming. Displays were so large and they were all square so often times I could not see over them or behind them to get a full view of each shoe. I decided to separate the shoes by day and night and add more seating to the area as well as a smaller shoe display on each quarter of this department. Aside from the floor and window changes, I found it important that despite being a budget retailer, New Look should upgrade their overall store image so that they don’t appear as if they are a budget retailer (like Primark). Since their next-door competitors are Next (on the left) and River Island (on the right), improving their overall interior would be a great start to increasing profits. Two of the biggest improvements I would propose are changing the flooring and upgrading the dressing rooms. The flooring on all but the third floor (which is black) is a simple white cheap looking tile that screams budget-retailer. A little more
money spent on the floor could give the store a massive facelift. Another aspect I disapproved of was the fitting room. It was unwelcoming, white and gave a cold feel. Fitting rooms are somewhere that you want to feel comfortable going in and for a company who’s motto is to make the customer look and feel good, this fitting room did the opposite. Some colored paint and a few wall decorations and mirrors could easily improve the fitting room experience. As for technology, I love that New Look is trying to get more customers to shop online (after all, it is raising their profits), but the overuse of technology in the Marble Arch concept store is unnecessary. Having one item in store and limiting it as an “online purchase only” item will aggravate the dedicated brick-and-mortar customer that likes their clothing instantly. I think that the Oxford Street store can definitely incorporate the technology to be able to scan barcodes and easily find items online from the store, but New Look should not limit a customers shopping experience to only online shopping because retailers have to cater to the customers that will never shop online. End Results Overall, I think that these few minor changes can give this budget retailer the makeover it needs and continue New Look’s current increase in sales. With minor movement on the sales floor, simplified windows, better visual merchandising, improved boutique-style fitting rooms and more aesthetically pleasing floor tiles, New Look will have the power to bring back their brand as a stronger competitor with budget retailers such as H&M and Forever 21.
TOPSHOP + House of Fraser Report TOPSHOP Visit The TOPSHOP visit, led by Tim Whitmore was one of the most valuable experiences I have had at the London College of Fashion so far. I really appreciated the information Tim shared and the enthusiasm he had about TOPSHOP as a company. Here were some of the most interesting facts that Tim provided us with: • TOPSHOP has over 300 UK stores and stores in 31 countries total (this will be increasing) • The flagship store at Oxford is 90,000 square feet, has 160 million people visit per year, nearly 500,000 visit the store per week, there are 1,500 employees and 100 managers • Interestingly, the store never closes: there are constantly employees and the visual team working through the night • The visual team includes 25 creative people and 15 visual merchandisers • The store receives 5 deliveries today, nearly none of which go in the stockroom • There are 300 mannequins and they are changed almost every 3 weeks • Customer statistics o 88% use Facebook, 44% Twitter and 24% Tumblr o 77% of customers are age 16-34 o 30% spend between 25-50 pounds per visit o 25% of customers visit once per week, 20% visit once every two weeks and some even visit twice per day! o Most customers check the .com site, shop the competition and then return to TOPSHOP to buy the key item for the look • TOPSHOP visuals at Oxford run on 5 seasons: spring, summer, two autumns and Christmas • Each season there are approximately 2,000 changes of artwork • Store layout o The main promotional items are down the main elevator on level -1, these are unique to TOPSHOP and are meant to wow the customer o To the left are the more grown up, evening pieces o To the right is currently “This is England”, they are more casual pieces and also include the denim shop o There is the edited space off of Regent Street that is for age 30+ shoppers, this allowed them to shop key trends without the craziness of the entire store; they profit 40,000 pounds per week o Shoes are placed on level -2 to draw customers to the bottom of the store
o Level -2 also includes the concessions which caters to the individual shopper that doesn’t like to buy the mainstream items o Level -2 also includes EAT and the beauty bar (tattoos, piercings, nails, dye bar, etc.) TOPSHOP appears to be an extremely strong company not only because of their profits but also because of the creativity and innovation of their creative team. I would be highly interested in interning with TOPSHOP in London or at one of their main stores back in the United States. TOPSHOP Oxford is really a unique store that knows what they are doing and I wouldn’t be surprised if other retailers start following in their footsteps. In a time when .com could’ve drawn customers out of the brick-and-mortar stores, TOPSHOP Oxford knew how to get them back in the store with a completely new retail experience. House of Fraser Visit Although House of Fraser is very visually appealing from the outside with its new, modern look, the floor plan of the store could seriously be holding them back from profits. They have great product but overall there is just too much of it and it seems to be poorly merchandised. To improve their layouts, first they need to start near the escalators. They place merchandise in the middle of the walkway, which obstructs prime merchandising space for the entryways. This merchandise needs to be moved or greatly downsized. I understand that the area around the escalator can look little empty and unwelcoming, but to fix this perhaps they could use a shorter pillar and display something small like one handbag or one pair of shoes. Each department in the store needs to be redesigned as well. Because they carry brands like Oasis, they try to replicate the store inside of that department but it doesn’t work. After working at Nordstrom department store back in the States I studied some of their visual merchandising which was very successful. House of Fraser needs to clearly define departments by using different floor tiles in each department or rugs. If the walkway was all white tile, and each department was slate grey with a few accent rugs, this would give the customer ease to walk through and clearly define which department they want to go to. Departments could also be downsized and combined and they could change the lighting fixtures to emphasize the fact that they are a different department then the one next to them. The BIBA department and Mary department were very unique and looked much better than the others and this is most likely due to the separation from the other departments. They were much more visually appealing to enter.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Butler, S. 2013. New Look seeks expansion in Europe and China after returning to profit. [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/ nov/12/new-looks-profit-seeks-expansion-europe-china [Accessed: 19 Nov 2013]. Company. 2013. New Look Gets a New Look!. [online] Available at: http:// www.company.co.uk/fashion/news/new-look-concept-store [Accessed: 19 Nov 2013]. Newlookgroup.com. 2013. Our History | New Look. [online] Available at: http://www.newlookgroup.com/who-we-are/our-history [Accessed: 19 Nov 2013]. Newlookgroup.com. 2013. Who we are | New Look. [online] Available at: http://www.newlookgroup.com/who-we-are?page=1002 [Accessed: 19 Nov 2013]. Rankin, J. 2013. New Look scores online sales surge. [online] Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/aug/13/new-look-online-salessurge [Accessed: 19 Nov 2013].