The design of your retail store can have a lot of bearing on your sales. Building a loyal customer base is so important in today’s world on cyber shopping and big department stores. Boutiques have a certain charm when they’re designed well and this can give your customers a reason to make a special trip to your store. The goal, of course is to make more money. To do that, you need to carefully plan the “path” of your boutique so that customers have the experience that you plan for them.
- Think about what you want customers to immediately feel when they approach your store. You’re in luck if you have front windows in which to display your favorite merchandise. Using mannequins has been long since proven to encourage people to buy. This is not only because you can show them what clothes look like when worn, or because you can showcase many garments and accessories at once. It’s because you can actually answer a lot of the questions that need to be answered in a person’s mind before they buy at a single glance.
- Think about what someone might be asking themselves as they consider shopping in your store and answer those questions either in your window displays or as soon as they come in. One, if someone is interested in a boutique, they probably want to find unique items or brands. Make sure that they immediately see that within the first second or two of laying eyes on your store. Sidewalk or outside displays are a great way to do this.
- The next question on their mind may be price. Does your store front and displays match your prices? You don’t want someone to get excited about something they see only to be immediately disappointed by the price. Try to communicate the price through the décor and arrangement of your boutique.
- Now, the next question on a person’s mind will be something like, “how will this garment make me feel?” Communicate as much feeling as possible, either with your mannequins’ poses or the décor surrounding your items. A snowy scene with a campfire communicates coziness, a city scene may communicate cutting edge fashion, and so on.
- The next thing people want to feel when they shop in a boutique is that it will be interesting to shop around. People avoid department stores and visit boutiques to have a pleasurable and enlightening shopping experience. Make sure that you have unique items scattered around the store. Have things arranged in a “path” that leads the person from one interesting item to the next. Avoid crowding your clothing racks close together so that people stay comfortable, even if the store has a lot of shoppers. A clothing rack should not be overfilled, either, so that people can easily see what you have to offer without having to work to dig through too many items.
About the Author: John Garvey is on the staff of Only Garment Racks, a leading online source of clothing racks including garment racks. Find a high quality clothing rack or garment rack at http://www.onlygarmentracks.com.