What is the role of retail space planning? The answer involves a diverse combination of skill sets involving experienced commercial development, professional architectural layout, creative interior design and the science of retail space planning. The successful end goal will address the biggest problems that exist in retail:
- efficiently stocking and selling products to the customer
- alleviate the heavy demands of limited retail space
- promote a hassle-free customer shopping experience
- interior spaces specifically tailored to the product brand
- attracting shoppers into the inner store space
- enhancing the productivity of retail staff
- appropriately incorporating structural features like columns, stairs, ceilings
- allowances for store flexibility and future expansion
Our approach combines the considerable knowledge of a comprehensive staff of engineers, architects ,designers, and retail planners to work intimately with owners and developers to effectively serve a broad range of retail clients. Using the latest technology in architectural design and space planning software platforms, we offer flexible services to suit your retail requirements.
From macro floor planning for space optimization to micro planogram development for visual product assortment rationalization; from consulting services for retail expansion to retail location feasibility studies; from fixture selection to atmospheric design schemes, our store planning experts supply a one-stop solution to accelerate your business’ return on investment.
The increasingly sophisticated customer demands a retail design that is innovative, bold, and creative. To entice shoppers that are turning to e-commerce in increasing numbers, retail planners are incorporating clever color choices, sufficient space to allow customers to think and freely move around, and offering a customer immersion experience.
The customer immersion theory of retail space planning views the store layout from the mentality of the customer journey and allows the retailer to connect with and engage in mutual and positive customer behavior. It is becoming more evident that proper and strategic space planning has a significant impact on customer satisfaction of brick-and-mortar locations.
Great retail space planning starts at the entrance to immediately impact the patrons’ perception of your product and business professionalism. An inviting entrance will embrace a unique storefront, recognizable store name, powerful visual elements and a tone that is consistent with your product and brand.
The exterior architecture, such as facade materials and signage, should project the right image from the customer’s vantage point. The store entrance can be compared to a ‘call to action’ statement. When well executed, the storefront and entrance can be a powerful visual hook to divert the customer’s attention.
Macro Space Planning to Impact the Customer Journey
At the heart of retail space planning is analyzing and selecting the proper circulation system to enhance the shopper’s experience. The structure of aisles, shelving, racks, fixtures, and ceiling heights, all act to constrain spaces and prioritize travel. Our space planners determine the best store layout and circulation patterns based on six proven scenarios:
- Straight plan diverts customers to the center of the store by using walls to display merchandise and to transition between product clusters, as in apparel shops.
- Pathway plan provides for an unobstructed path all the way to the back of the store and is best for large, single level stores.
- Curved plan uses circular floor fixtures and curved walls to create an intimate environment which is especially suitable for boutiques and small stores.
- Diagonal plan sets up angular traffic flows and locates the point of purchase at the center of the retail (used in self-service retail)
- Geometric plan establishes geometric circulation and product cluster patterns using floor racks and other fixtures to sectionalize spaces.
- Varied plan places merchandise along the walls and also creates special focus areas perfect for jewelry and gift stores.
Proper floor plan development is not only essential to optimize shop space and improve the customer journey, it has also been proven to increase revenue and customer loyalty. Space utilization is a key performance indicator metric (KPI). This specific business metric considers the following factors to evaluate the potential for success in retail spaces:
- retail product range – the assortment of goods offered and how closely they target the ideal customer
- retail space vs. sales – retail space productivity on the basis of income generated by allocated shelf space footage
- planogram vs. sales – location and placement of products for visual display and associated sales performance
- profitability per sq. ft. – a cluster by cluster analysis of profitability
While there are many more performance metrics used to determine and benchmark retail performance, the four mentioned above clearly show the importance of floor space utilization and product placement. These metrics and others have been measured in retail stores around the world. The correlation between sales and space planning reflected in these studies give significant insight into best traffic flow patterns, conversion rates, and sales performance.
Micro Space Planning to Optimize Every Square Foot of Space
The best way to intercept the customer journey is with tested and proven product placements. Our services offer the ability to create planograms (POGs) linked to CAD drawings to provide for optimum visual merchandising layouts. Using a planogram (or graphical representation of store products) to dictate store design enhances the shopping experience and offers the optimum return on space.
Our retail planners consider current and past sales patterns to determine where retail products will receive the best customer engagement. The resulting analysis will help determine the following:
- how low or high on a shelf a product should be placed
- the number of product facings in a display
- required depth and height of product displays
- surrounding product placement
- which aisles to locate items
The work of planograms is to provide awareness of visual merchandising strategies that result in the best point-of-sale displays. Correctly merchandising products puts selling potential in every square foot of space and provides a visual appeal to customers. Micro planning is an SKU level function and the results can be provided in CAD block or schematic output forms.
Micro planning also supports inventory management for the retailer. When retailers know how deep and how long shelving or racks are for specific products, it reduces the occurrence of out-of-stock products and assists in staff product replenishment tasks. How much space to allocate to products on the store shelf or in stock can be managed with micro retail space planning.
Retail Space Design that Embraces Brand Personality
The crucial atmospheric qualities of interior design and light staging creates a physical presence and ambiance that should reflect the personality of the product and the brand. While there are many different approaches to interior design layout, the focus should be on synchronizing the following areas:
- Threshold area or ‘decompression zone’ – consists of the first 5-15 feet of floor space. As customers transition from the outside world, they should immediately begin to experience what your store has to offer.
- Right turn factor – since 90% of customers will turn to the right upon entering a retail store, there should be a high impact display to arouse the customer’s attention.
- Create natural paths – to direct a natural traffic flow with maximum exposure to merchandise. The subtle use of different textures or flooring can also guide patrons to product clusters.
- Slow down the customer – with “speed bumps”, or breaks in the visual spectrum with merchandise posts at strategic locations, such as the ends of aisles.
Globally, retailers are acknowledging the importance of proper customer circulation patterns and visual merchandising placement. This distinct service of retail space planning is outsourced to experts with the depth of trained personnel and the specialized software needed to accomplish creative and analytical space allocation and merchandise placement.