Jane and I went to get some inspiration on Thursday for the new ladies shop and for the windows at the business design centre. We were mainly looking for display ideas, props and different ways of making brands stand out.
Upon arrival we were greeted with champagne! I felt like I was at another wedding fair I was at home straight away. We thought we would start by introducing ourselves to Joe Linch at Tenn who was supplying our slide system of display equipment. Straight away we loved the clean and modern look it was going to have, which should make the product stand out and group together much better than what it is. We cannot wait to see this in the new shop.
Another exciting company I spoke to was Stylo who on approach we was not quite sure wha they were about. Turns out they are an innovative print company and they have a magic product that does away with vinyl. It is a film that is static that is printed out and just grips to the wall and also an aluminium version almost like a magnet which has a stronger grip. This will make my windows 10 times as quick! I have been opened up to a whole new world. I spoke to a company called Harlequin who had an amazing display of pencils and wooden boxes transformed into little seats intermittently. Turns out from speaking to one of the team they design all the Clarks windows so it was interesting to get a few ideas from what they are doing. Andy Thornton had a wonderful vintage display that stood out too. They focus on quirky lighting and props for retailers to name but a few: Barbour and flannels. Their stand had a real feel for an All Saints shop with singer sewing machines.
There were a few other stands doing some interesting displays and some digital work. We also found a few great ways of displaying shoes on metal stands and wooden blocks. Turns out most places no longer use plastic display stands and have moved on from this as other ways look more elegant and modern.
Here are a few highlights of the show that we felt stood out.
To finish we felt a trip to Oxford Street would be a good idea to see some windows and shoes in real life again. We ventured down Jermyn Street and then popped into Selfridges who are doing some really inspiring things. I love their shoe department; there is so much to look at. What was clear was their brands gave a clear message on their displays as theirs are done by brand it is easy to visualize but as ours are done by end of use it is about getting that brand message clear to the customer. What was clear from the show and Selfridges is that this is very important, making the brand and message clear to the customer. I am excited to start translating this message across the store along with Jane who is excited to get merchandising in the new ladies shop.
Watch this space!!!
