By Anna Svitkovich
Benefits of Window Display
A window display can help increase traffic, raise brand awareness, highlight products and promotions, and differentiate from the competition. A window display influences a person’s decision to enter the store and thus increases traffic.
Types of Window Display
There are different types of window display that you can use in your store:
Open Window Display
In this type of display, there is nothing separating the window from the rest of the store. This type is suitable for displaying clothing on mannequins and human forms and showcasing the store’s interior design. However, an open window display reveals tools and wires, making them difficult to hide.
Closed Window Display
A closed window display has a wall or background separating it from the store floor. This type of display highlights the products displayed by eliminating distractions from inside the store. However, this type of display prevents natural light from entering the store, so this must be compensated with adequate lighting on the floor.
Semi-Closed Window Display
A semi-closed window display is a type that combines open and closed displays. It has a wall or background separating it from the store floor, but it does not completely close off the window. This type of display allows for good product visibility and makes it easier to hide tools and wires.
How to Create a Window Display in 8 Steps
To set up your first window display, you’ll need to do some planning and preparation. Here are the steps you can follow:
1. Prepare Window Display Tools
Before you start thinking of elaborate ideas for your first window display, let’s make sure you have the tools necessary for success. Here are some essential components you’ll need:
- Measuring tape
- Scissors
- Stapler
- Double-sided tape
- Hammer and nails
- Utility knife
- Glue gun and hot glue sticks
- Screwdriver and screws
- Pens, pencils, markers, and notebook
- Accessories (any non-merchandising items)
2. Start with a Theme-Based Story
When it comes to visualizing your window display, it’s best to start with a pen and paper. Before you start sketching ideas for your window display, begin with a story based on a theme. Yes, the design of the window display should tell at least one core story. After all, storytelling has proven to be a strategic tool for business.
3. Create a Focal Point for the Window Display
Once you have a rough sketch, including a theme-based story, take a moment to step outside and take a good look at your window.
This will help you determine where the focal point is. The focal point is where you want potential customers to look first and focus their attention. Your centerpiece should be large enough to grab the attention of shoppers, even from across the street.
4. Be Bold in Everything
Let’s be honest: community attention shrinks to less than a second, and your customers are no exception. You can count on most people passing by your store being busy engaging in conversations with their friends, texting, or walking their dogs. Therefore, you’ll need to do your utmost to ensure that you capture their attention. At the very least, you can create a window display that they’ll want to take pictures of with their smartphones and share with the world.
5. Keep the Window Display Simple
With so many window display ideas available to use as inspiration, it’s easy to go overboard and create an overly complex display. However, having too much clutter is likely to provoke disgust and confusion among passersby rather than attract their attention. Don’t try to do too much, or you’ll end up with a cluttered and unfocused display.
6.
Balance is Important
When creating a display, you’ll have to use small and large items, light and dark colors, lights and shadows, and so on. It is essential to maintain a balance among the different elements you will use to create a pleasing aesthetic.
Typically, larger and darker elements are placed near the bottom, while lighter and more colorful elements are placed at the top. This arrangement will prevent your display from appearing too heavy at the top. Similarly, if you place all the larger items on one side and all the smaller items on the other, you will end up with an unbalanced window display.
7. Pay Attention to Lighting
When it comes to creating an effective window display, lighting is often considered a secondary factor, or something to think about if you have the budget for “extra costs.” However, lighting can be a crucial element in attracting people to stop and notice your display.
Lighting can create a mood, highlight certain products more than others, and set a dramatic scene for your window display. A good lighting strategy can yield high returns by helping you achieve the right point of focus and directing viewers’ eyes to where you want them.
8. Take a Final Look at Your Window Display
Once you have placed all the pieces in the right position, make sure to take a look at your window display from every possible angle. Rarely does someone notice a display only when standing directly in front of it. Approach it from different directions and check the focal point, how clear your signage or calls to action are, and whether everything is balanced.
If you are satisfied with the results, congratulations, your window display is ready to go!
Tips for Window Display
Now that you’ve laid the foundation for your display, here are some tips to take it to the next level:
Identify Your Target Audience
Your target audience will influence the products you choose to showcase, the colors you use, and the stories you tell in your displays. Keep your ideal customer in mind when designing your windows.
Consider Lines of Sight and Viewing Points
It is known that grocery stores display breakfast cereals for children on lower shelves and those for adults on higher shelves. Why? Because these are the areas that customers’ eyes are drawn to, and thus they are areas that will catch their attention.
When designing your window display, you should consider the lines of sight for passersby. For example, if you have a children’s clothing store, you might want to display products targeting children, like toys, at a height that children can see them, and showcase more practical items at the eye level of parents.
Keep Your Window Display Fresh
Regularly change your displays to notify customers who pass by frequently that it’s time for them to stop again. “We try to change the windows every two to three weeks to keep it fresh for the daily travelers,” according to Nicole Hdad, owner and designer of the sustainable fashion label Lobo Mau.
Leverage Technology
According to McKinsey, technology will help boost retail profitability. Interactive technologies like augmented reality, touch screens, and QR codes help give a new meaning to the term “window shopping.” Leverage it to attract the attention of passersby and influence purchase decisions.
12 Inspiring Window Display Ideas and Examples
Need some inspiration before you start creating your window display? Here are some inspiring examples to help spark your creativity:
1. Gucci
Gucci used augmented reality technology to enhance the shopping experience and extend its brand reach. They installed classic artworks alongside designer clothing in their windows. The display was unconventional as most of the mannequins faced away from the window as if visiting an art exhibit. The window featured a QR code that could be scanned to download the Gucci app and view an animated version of the artwork.
2.
Leaves of Trees
Leaves of Trees showcased windows featuring massive tubes of upside-down skincare products, with a flow of dried flowers and grapefruit and lavender. The display is notable not only for the size of the tools but also for its explicit highlight of the natural ingredients used by the brand in its products.
3. Saks Fifth Avenue x Vetements
Saks collaborated with Vetements to display vintage clothing in its window, reflecting the growing interest in sustainable trade and the emergence of fast fashion. Donated clothing, old stock, and empty racks were piled in the window, gradually increasing the heap to represent excess and consumption in the fashion world.
4. Alice + Olivia
Alice + Olivia showcased a mannequin in front of a giant backdrop of breakfast cereals and savory snacks. The goal of this display was not to attract a new audience for the brand, but to tap into the nostalgia of young buyers who grew up eating sugary and savory cereals.
5. Bergdorf Goodman
Bergdorf Goodman spends amounts reaching six figures on its window displays during the holiday season. One of its most stunning concepts involved a million Swarovski crystals and took nine months to build. There was a real crystal ball and a mannequin wearing unique luxury pieces that were sold at auction.
6. Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. has been famous for its window displays since the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Its windows are simple yet distinctive. The latest display featured only seven porcelain mice and a mouse holding a canary yellow diamond. The display focuses on just one piece.
7. Barneys New York
Barneys showcased a live display of real people instead of mannequins. Artists from Okamato Studio in Japan sculpted ice blocks inspired by the holidays while wearing designed outfits. The live display was filmed and uploaded to Snapchat and Facebook Live.
8. Fendi
Fendi placed expensive leather bags inside custom vending machines at its New York store. This idea made the luxury brand seem more accessible to passersby and attracted shoppers to the store.
9. TYPE Books
TYPE has become famous in Toronto for its enchanting and colorful window displays. The ideas used in the displays include marine themes, printing, and showcasing a single book in its entirety. The unique displays of TYPE Books draw a lot of foot traffic.
10. Hermès
In one of its windows, Hermès wrapped silk scarves around a giant juice cup with a giant straw. The central artwork of this window made the experience engaging as the product was almost an afterthought to the art.
11. Lobo Mau
The sustainable fashion brand Lobo Mau placed QR codes in its windows allowing customers to view and purchase products directly from its website. Its prime location and perfect angle make it an ideal spot for store window displays.
12. UrbanGlass
UrbanGlass uses its windows to educate the public about the art on display and to boost sales in the store. The QR code directs to their digital holiday gift guide.
By being creative in your displays and enhancing them with technology, you will turn passersby into customers.
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