Store Design

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

Learning Outcomes

• To explore the shopper’s patronage decisions

• To define how store design creates a controlled

environment for the shopper

• To define the design, social and ambient

dimensions of the store environment

Perceived Store Shopping Experience

(PSSE)

Can have greatest influence on store

selection

Retailer must pay close attention to all

factors influencing PSSE

But store itself has major role to play

Store design therefore plays vital role

Importance of Store Design

Creates controlled environment

SOR model (stimulus-organism-response) shows that shopper’s behaviour is influenced by all stimuli sensed by shopper

Baker’s framework for store design (1986)Ambient dimension

Social dimension

Design dimension

Mehrabian-Russell Model (1974)

Developed SOR in an environmental

psychology context

Shopper’s perception and behaviour result

of is affected by immediate environment

Three elements

Environmental stimuli

Emotional states

Behaviour

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Mehrabian-Russell Model (1974)

First level response

Store image stimuli

Perceived and processed in unique way

Development of emotional state or modification

of existing one

State is described by two variables

Pleasure (feeling good)

Arousal (excited or stimulated)

Second level response

Based on shopper’s emotional state

Approach behaviour

Willingness to move towards the environment

Participate more extensively

Increased propensity to buy

Avoidance behaviour

Intent to move away from environment

Not likely to buy

Use of MR model

Design of store environment

Retailer needs to understand shoppers

react to certain design elements

Layout

Display

Atmospherics

Not an exact science but useful for

predicting shopper’s emotional reaction

The Design Element

Concerns control of tangible (foreground) elements

Intended to create appropriate shopping environment for given body of target shoppers

Appropriate for both shoppers and retailers

Known as “design fit”

Hasty and Reardon (1997) “the satisfaction of shopper needs via interior and

exterior design elements that produces an operationally efficient store, the desired store image, and a central location that effectively displays merchandise”

Elements for consideration

StyleDriven by overall store concept

Theme to which all other elements must conform

ArchitectureExterior and size normally first elements to be

considered

First things seen by shopper

Outward appearance can influence a shopper’s judgement

Size of store is of paramount importance, dictatesSelling space available

Judgment by shopper of range and assortment

LayoutDefines how total selling space will be divided into

specific selling areas

Master plan on which other elements are based

Atmospherics

Display

Four basic layoutsGrid

Free-flow

Boutique

Racetrack

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Grid Pattern Layout

Grid pattern

Associated with supermarkets

Design developed in 1916 by Clarence Saunders

Comprises a number of long fixtures

Movement through store predictable

Advantages High space utilisation

Low effective cost

High traffic control

High capacity

High assortment exposure

Disadvantages Shopping experience limited

Hard to deliver customer service

Limited opportunity for personal selling

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Free-Flow Layout

Free-Flow layout

Typical high street shop design (especially clothing)

Combinations of different fixtures

Space for shoppers to move around in unstructured way

Access to all parts of the store easy through a number of routes

Advantages Enhanced shopping experience

Ability to provide customer service and personal selling

Disadvantages Low traffic control

Poor space utilisation

Low levels of assortment exposure

High effective cost

Limited traffic capacity

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Boutique Layout

Boutique layout

Amalgam between grid and free flow

Store divided into specific product selling areas

“Shop within a Shop”

Reasonably efficient use of space

Display fixtures appropriate to product category

Compromise between store efficiency and

experience

Moderate levels of space utilisation, traffic

control and traffic capacity

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Racetrack Layout

Racetrack layout

Modern development of boutique layout

Shoppers follow a set path around store

Large number of stop-off points with no

obvious shortcuts

Traffic control and traffic capacity

increased but not at expense of store

experience

Increases assortment exposure

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Features of Three Generic

Store Layouts

Display

For consideration once layout determined

Primary purpose is to maximise sales

Open display

Free and easy access to products

Seeks to gain shopper attention and

involvement

Clothing retailers use extensively

Themed display

Attempts to build connection between an event,

activity, season or other feature and the

shopper

Style and characteristics dictated by theme

itself

Sales achieved by shoppers seeing display,

making the connection and buying products that

might not have been on the list

Lifestyle display

Present products that fit with shoppers’ lives

Plummer (1974) “shoppers’ activities, interests

or opinions”

Fashion retailers group given assortment or

category that’s appropriate to shopper segment

Pictures, videos may form part of display as

lifestyle communicator

Co-ordinated or project display

Brings all products together if they are to be used

together

Provides finished solution rather than constituent parts

Shoppers tend to be more satisfied with finished solution

and may buy additional items

Classification dominance display

Designed to present shopper large amount of choice in

a given product area

Communicates quality and range of price levels

Display locations

Three general locations

Window

As part of promotion

On-shelf

As part of normal display logistics

Off-shelf

Meet peaks in sales demand

Controllable and non-controllable events

Utilise temporary displays

The Social Element

Relates to people, store personnel and other shoppers

Retailer can only control own staff

Relates to provision of customer service

Contact with store personnel can influence shopper’s perception of the store as a whole

Two main benefitsSocial benefits relate to friendship

Functional benefits relate to time, effort and specialist advice

Levels of contact

Low contactLargely self-service

Contact limited to transaction processing

Moderate contactDegree of service expected by shopper as part of

shopping process

Contact limited to simple functional activities

High contactHigh level of service

Shopping process highly participative

Extensive contact and an integral part of buying process

Atmospherics

“the effort to design buying environments to produce specific emotional effects in the buyer that enhance purchase probability” (Kotler 1973)

Peripheral stimuli that can be sensed by the individual

Aim is to produce correct combination of pleasure and arousal to encourage approach orientated behaviour

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The five atmospheric dimensions

Use with Retail Marketing ISBN 1-86152-602-4

Published by Thomson Learning © Thomson Learning

The Inverted ‘U’ Curve/sensory

overload

Conclusions

How retailers sell is as important as to

what they sell

This results from shopper’s perceived

store shopping experience (PSSE) and

subsequent patronage

PSSE can be maximised by design, social

and ambient dimensions