Retail fixtures take shape in many forms, from furniture and lighting to mannequins and display shelves. In retail design, fixtures are important as these installations can make or break the visual appearance, practical functionality and customer experience of the store.What are retail fixtures?Its most basic function is to serve as storage or display space for merchandise, but no one is inspired by an unimaginative store interior. This is why designers can have so much fun when it comes to designing and installing retail fixtures. Effective retail fixtures can enhance the customer journey and turn browsers into buyers. Here’s how.Understand the different types of fixtures and displaysThere are countless ways of displaying products and encouraging shoppers to interact with their surroundings. Take a look at the creative displays in your favourite fashion shop compared to the shelving techniques and wayfinding tools in your go-to grocery store. How do the fixtures in these two examples differ? In each store, what attracts you to enter and, once inside, what inspires you to make a purchase?Naturally, window displays are the first thing a potential customer will notice from outside. Your window displays should be enticing and reflect your brand’s identity and offering. Next, consider what you want customers to see when they first walk through the doors: open sightlines throughout the space, or segmented areas? Keep the eye low through table displays and mannequins or create dimension with wall-mounts and ceiling-connected fixtures?In a clothing store, for example, garment racks and grid walls featuring wire panels will do great to maximise spatial efficiency, while a pharmacy or beauty store will gain more benefit from two-sided display racks with adjustable shelves. Once you understand the objective of the different types of fixtures and displays in retail environments, you’ll be able to make informed decisions about what will function best in your store.Design with modularity and flexibility in mindModularity is a keyword in retail design. Designers are increasingly realising and capitalising on the potential of flexible designs, as we can see in temporary retail formats like pop-ups and store-in-stores. Modular design is not only intelligent, future-proof and cost-efficient, but it also aids brands in maintaining consistency across different platforms and store locations.This is especially valuable for fixtures in window displays and seasonal installations. Designing and manufacturing new signage and promotional material for every campaign throughout the year is wasteful and expensive. In 2020, the goal for designers is to create in-store fixtures and product displays that can be used year-round with little adjustments needed to draw shoppers’ attention to new products or special promotions.Think outside the boxThere is no cookie-cutter solution for creative design. Create a point of differentiation for your brand by testing the limits of what has been done by competitors.The sustainable challenge posed to brands and retailers this year will further motivate designers to come up with ideas that promote sustainability and minimise waste. Buying second-hand furniture, revamping existing fixtures or using recycled materials to build new structures all leave plenty of room to get creative with interior features and product displays without compromising brand identity.Anthropologie, for example, is known for their out-of-the-box approach to store design. No two Anthropologie locations have the same interior, yet the brand succeeds in maintaining aesthetic consistency across their store network. The brand’s team of designers create anything from paper-mâchéd decorations and hand-painted walls to window displays made from recycled newspaper, achieving bespoke, localised designs that still adhere to Anthropologie’s broader visual guidelines.Trends in fixtures and displays for 2022Drawing inspiration from natureCreatively using recycled/reclaimed materialsEnergy-efficient lightingHarnessing technology in signageEmploying AI and AR in product displaysInteractive product displaysDesigns that engage all sensesModular and flexible designDisplays that educate shoppersLocally-inspired designsGreater Group is a multi-disciplinary global retail design agency. We have been creating award-winning retail spaces, customer experiences and workplaces since 1989, utilising our combined expertise to deliver high-impact, high-return design, fit-out and manufacturing solutions and provide clients with one point of contact throughout. Learn more about our commercial fit outs, shopfitting design and retail design today!Share :
Retail fixtures take shape in many forms, from furniture and lighting to mannequins and display shelves. In retail design, fixtures are important as these installations can make or break the visual appearance, practical functionality and customer experience of the store.What are retail fixtures?Its most basic function is to serve as storage or display space for merchandise, but no one is inspired by an unimaginative store interior. This is why designers can have so much fun when it comes to designing and installing retail fixtures. Effective retail fixtures can enhance the customer journey and turn browsers into buyers. Here’s how.Understand the different types of fixtures and displaysThere are countless ways of displaying products and encouraging shoppers to interact with their surroundings. Take a look at the creative displays in your favourite fashion shop compared to the shelving techniques and wayfinding tools in your go-to grocery store. How do the fixtures in these two examples differ? In each store, what attracts you to enter and, once inside, what inspires you to make a purchase?Naturally, window displays are the first thing a potential customer will notice from outside. Your window displays should be enticing and reflect your brand’s identity and offering. Next, consider what you want customers to see when they first walk through the doors: open sightlines throughout the space, or segmented areas? Keep the eye low through table displays and mannequins or create dimension with wall-mounts and ceiling-connected fixtures?In a clothing store, for example, garment racks and grid walls featuring wire panels will do great to maximise spatial efficiency, while a pharmacy or beauty store will gain more benefit from two-sided display racks with adjustable shelves. Once you understand the objective of the different types of fixtures and displays in retail environments, you’ll be able to make informed decisions about what will function best in your store.Design with modularity and flexibility in mindModularity is a keyword in retail design. Designers are increasingly realising and capitalising on the potential of flexible designs, as we can see in temporary retail formats like pop-ups and store-in-stores. Modular design is not only intelligent, future-proof and cost-efficient, but it also aids brands in maintaining consistency across different platforms and store locations.This is especially valuable for fixtures in window displays and seasonal installations. Designing and manufacturing new signage and promotional material for every campaign throughout the year is wasteful and expensive. In 2020, the goal for designers is to create in-store fixtures and product displays that can be used year-round with little adjustments needed to draw shoppers’ attention to new products or special promotions.Think outside the boxThere is no cookie-cutter solution for creative design. Create a point of differentiation for your brand by testing the limits of what has been done by competitors.The sustainable challenge posed to brands and retailers this year will further motivate designers to come up with ideas that promote sustainability and minimise waste. Buying second-hand furniture, revamping existing fixtures or using recycled materials to build new structures all leave plenty of room to get creative with interior features and product displays without compromising brand identity.Anthropologie, for example, is known for their out-of-the-box approach to store design. No two Anthropologie locations have the same interior, yet the brand succeeds in maintaining aesthetic consistency across their store network. The brand’s team of designers create anything from paper-mâchéd decorations and hand-painted walls to window displays made from recycled newspaper, achieving bespoke, localised designs that still adhere to Anthropologie’s broader visual guidelines.Trends in fixtures and displays for 2022Drawing inspiration from natureCreatively using recycled/reclaimed materialsEnergy-efficient lightingHarnessing technology in signageEmploying AI and AR in product displaysInteractive product displaysDesigns that engage all sensesModular and flexible designDisplays that educate shoppersLocally-inspired designsGreater Group is a multi-disciplinary global retail design agency. We have been creating award-winning retail spaces, customer experiences and workplaces since 1989, utilising our combined expertise to deliver high-impact, high-return design, fit-out and manufacturing solutions and provide clients with one point of contact throughout. Learn more about our commercial fit outs, shopfitting design and retail design today!Share :