How to create a great shop window display?

Retail is incredibly competitive, and with the festive season upon us, it is crucial to stand out against competitors. A strong window display can bring in those crucial customers, but how do you make your window display grab attention? Our guide will take you through planning, creating and executing your next wonderful window display.

What is your window’s objective?

The first consideration you should take into account is what is the aim of your window display. This may sound obvious, but your objective could be to simply showcase your newest, shiniest, most wonderful products, or it could be an exercise in excellent store branding and identity. Or you could combine the two options. Furniture, gift and clothing stores tend to focus on the branding side to create a snapshot of what your life could look like if you bought from the shop. Bakers, jewellers and electronic stores tend to focus primarily on their stock as the window’s key objective. Once you have your objective, you need to draw a rough sketch of what you want to create.

Have a theme

The next thing to think about is the theme of your window. If you’re going seasonal, go strong because customers will be seeing beautiful winter windows everywhere. Differentiate yourself, for example don’t just think Christmas, think of a story entwined into the festive season, such as The Nutcracker. If you’re looking to display new in store products, then go for a modern, minimalist new look. It’s really up to you to decide what feeling you want your store to have, but make sure what you want customers to feel is reflected in your window.

The kit required

It does sound mundane, but there is nothing worse than being sat in the window working on a display to find you’ve forgotten your tape measure. Items to remember for creating a perfect window display are:

• Tape measure
• Scissors
• Glue, glue gun and tape
• Stapler
• Hammer and nails
• Screwdriver and nails
• Utility knife
• Stationery – pens, pencils, paints etc.
• Extension cords and batteries for lighting
• Vacuum cleaner to sort out the mess you make
• Extra props to finish your display
• Window cleaner fluid and cloth for a spruce up

A focal point

The best thing to do here is take your rough sketch, step outside to look at your window and decide where the customer’s eye will go. This will be your focal point. Mark this area on your sketch as this is going to be where you put your main selling point or centre of your branding. Using this focal point, consider the shapes, lines and arrangements the rest of the window will need to make to show off your work to its fullest.

Heights and lights

These two components are crucial for all retailers wanting their window display to reap in the sales. You need your most important stock in the focal point, and at the right height for customers to take it in properly. Supermarkets tend to keep their bestsellers and promotional items in the middle of shelves, with lower priced and less popular produce right at the bottom or top so there’s more effort involved in retrieving items. Window displays need to show the products easily so passers-by can see what you’re selling without craning their necks.

Lighting can be crucial in getting people to stop and look at your window. The ways you can use lighting are endless, but we recommend using the lighting to draw the eye to focal points and products. Lighting installed from the side as opposed to directly above stops dark shadows being cast, and will bring out the angles of your products better. You can even make the lights a focus point. For example, if you’re a florist you can decorate chandeliers and standing lamps with ivy and flowers.

Stock levels

If you’re planning on promoting certain items of stock and popping them in your window, then it’s best before to check that you have good levels of the items before promoting them. Naturally, advertised stock will sell faster and bring people into store, and you don’t want them disappointed.

Space and simplicity

Make sure you get the balance right in your window. There needs to be space between products, especially if they are expensive as they need to stand out themselves. If you have a big window, then you can afford the space to have a more detailed display, but the smaller you are the simpler it needs to be. Otherwise, potential customers won’t be able to focus on a cluttered window and will simply ignore and walk by.

Print

This is where we can help. Self-adhesive vinyls are stickers that can be removed and repositioned on your windows and in-store. If you have a promotion or sale, or just want a great image on your window, a good retail wall decoration will certainly turn heads. Strut cards on tables and shelves can display your message as a real point of sale, and banner stands can be used as backgrounds to transform your space.

Online lessons

While this advice is for physical stores, online merchandisers can take a few pointers here too. Having white space on your site to separate products and pages is just like spacing your window out evenly. Your home page sliders/ images need to be strong and still have that key focal point, and even though you’re online, you may want to print out brochures and business cards for your networking events.

Good luck with your next window display. Remember to comment with your extra ideas, and send in your pictures of our printed products and your window displays to us on Facebook or Twitter.

Need a little more inspiration? Read about creating standout sales here or learn about all the ways you can get creative with stickers!