| By - Steve Davenport, Commercial Director, Bartuf Systems.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
As its importance has become more widely recognised retail display has become a specialised discipline of its own. Technological advancements in production and design techniques and improvements in the quality of materials have resulted in a range of sophisticated retail display solutions reaching the market. Busy retailers are now feeling the benefits of time saving 'one fill' display solutions such as dump bins, freestanding counter front units for seasonal promotions, side gondola units for promotions and multi purchases and a range of point of purchase display solutions to help maximise spend in store. These advancements are to the advantage of all retailers, both large and small, in terms of increasing consumer spending, despite them being employed in different ways by different types of retailer.
While large multiple retailers tend to have a large display budget and systematically change their instore promotions to keep in line with new products and events, for smaller retailers display tends to be a longer term investment. Nonetheless, retail display plays a vital role in achieving customer sales for large and small retailers alike, and despite a restricted budget for merchandising, small retailers are still able to employ retail design as a way to increase business.
One of the benefits of retail display for small retailers is that it enables them to constantly update their store in order to exploit new consumer trends and increased interest in particular products. Small retailers have the advantage of being able to change their displays around instantaneously and regularly to develop sales in a specific product, or to promote a product that has captured recent public interest due to news stories or events involving it, thus creating consumer excitement. Both fixed and mobile display units can help in this; free standing units such as dump bins can be moved if necessary to accommodate new lines, while permanent fixtures such as inset counter units can be regularly refilled with new products without the inconvenience of having to move the unit itself. In contrast, large multiple retailers are often restricted to a prescribed cycle of display change, and are unable to change their displays spontaneously due to the logistics of doing so. While multiple retailers have a uniform standard to adhere to, small retailers are able to adopt an individual, tailored approach, focussed on the customer's needs, making it a more hassle free shopping experience.
Related to this is the fact that small retailers are able to be innovative with their displays and are not restricted to a set pattern of merchandising. Small retailers are able to experiment with different combinations of display units in order to achieve a specific effect. For example, the small retailer may wish to use merchandising techniques in order to draw attention to a certain corner of the store which has henceforth not being utilised fully. In this way, retailers are able to use retail display to maximise the total space that they have available in the store.
Space and the range of displayed products are key factors for the small retailer in terms of increasing sales, and merchandising and effective display are paramount to maximising both of these. Clever usage of a combination of display units can help to give the illusion of space, thus making the shopping environment more attractive to the customer. Wall bays, counter top displays, inset counter units and dump bins are all effective tools in maximising the range of products able to be displayed. Such merchandising techniques will also enhance consumer multi-buying and increase spending; if products are displayed effectively, particularly at the point of sale, customers are more likely to succumb to impulse purchasing.
For the small retailer display can also be used to increase sales specifically by encouraging more people in to the store, increasing the size of each customer's transaction and by creating repeat business. A combination of free standing dump bins, crisp bins and side gondola units cleverly combined with promotional pockets for in store "hot spots" help to create in store excitement, enhance customer traffic and increase the impulse purchases that are a key source of income for the small retailer. For the small retailer the opportunity to be creative with their display is more accessible than to the merchandiser of a multiple. The independent is not required to create a uniform look over multiple stores and can re-arrange displays in accordance with their own specific customer base leaving them free to experiment at will.
Another advantage of retail display for the small retailer is that it can create a refreshing antidote to the bland, homogenous supermarket and multiple retailer interior. Although undeniably more sophisticated display has contributed to the increased profitability of the multiple retailer it has also simultaneously alienated a number of shoppers. Over-use of bulky displays which decrease freedom of movement within store and constant changes to store layouts have made many regular customers of multiple retail outlets irritated and has sent them in search of something different. The small retailer is able to tailor their store to the precise needs of the customer, taking in issues such as accessibility, convenience and consistency.
Established in 1995, The Bartuf Group incorporates Bartuf Systems; Bartuf Display; Bartuf Europe and Bartrux. Based in Holbeck, Leeds, the company now has a substantial national presence, a multimillion pound turnover and is recognised as a leader in the field of high quality display solutions.
Bartuf Systems is a small to medium sized business and boasts extensive experience in the design and manufacture of display solutions for both the UK and international markets.
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