Case Study 1A

Our first case study required us to review 10 store fronts/windows. According to our "Visual Merchandising" book the following are criteria considered for store front sucess: window size and style, themes & schemes, props, display design, lighting, color, and signage & graphics. My travels took me to Four Seasons, Southpoint, and Northlake malls. I also visited Greensboro's beloved Elm street and Friendly Center. While I analyzed and diagrammed 10+ stores through sketching and notation, I chose not to include all of them because of their repetitive nature. Most of the time the only difference between stores was the percentage of view that they devoted to a particular category, as noted above. On to the excitement....

American Eagle, Charlotte Russe, Williams Sonoma, and Forever 21 were the 4 stores chosen for the blog. From my sketches and notes I made a diagram for each showing how much visual area is devoted to certain items. Windows and doors in almost every store were massive, nearly floor to ceiling. Many times the window displays were just as noticeable as the merchandise beyond them. Apparel stores had mannequins decked out in clothes and accessories, raised at a higher level so that they could stare and pass judgment on the passer by...almost like being judged by fake people floating on their imaginary clouds, ha! Other stores had signs as the primary visual element (with people on them) usually representing a sale or new style for the new season. In some cases the signs were so massive that they restricted a high percentage of view from outside to inside the store.

The name of each store is always located above the entrance as this makes for a good wayfinding tool. Entrances varied by size, number, store volume, and position relative to its surroundings. Some had sets of tall massive double doors and others had one giant opening with no door at all. Something that is not mentioned in the book that I thought should be added is "back-store prominence." Charlotte Russe, Victoria's Secret, and New York Company are good examples: looking through the big opening of an entrance, your eyes are not drawn to the merchandise immediately in front of you but to the different elements on the back wall, the ceiling, or both. In these instances it involved mannequins, ceiling level changes, other merchandise, epic signage, and dramatic lighting to cap it off.

Continued on 1B....