European Art Gallery // Les Ateliers

 

 

 

The Art and Science of Visual Merchandising:

In the market where buyers are now controlling the demand-supply chain, it has become an exercise for sellers to entice the audience via the art and science of Visual Merchandising and retail designing.

It is the science and psychology of the retail and fashion world. VM involves the techniques to draw shoppers into a store and keep them there. It includes understanding buying habits and affects what you see – and how you see it.

The main issue is to make the merchandise extremely attractive, exciting and enticing, stimulating the buyer’s appetite and finally resulting in the decision to buy.  Effective visual merchandising can directly affect the bottom line of any retailer by: 

1. Maximizing walk-ins
2. Increasing sale conversion
3. Increasing average customer billing amount
4. Insuring higher recall value in the mind of the consumer and hence creating a loyal and ever expanding base of customers

Display merchandise as a piece of art.

Innovative headdresses for mannequins is a form of visual merchandising that is unique, directly off the runway, and artistic.

Reuse the same material in serveral ways - relate objects to your "Who".

In this series books are used in a variety of ways.

The Private Label Manifesto

Private Label is so much more than a name, it's a mindset.

We are strong advocates for the idea that any creative person must be open to receiving inspiration from all forms of art or visual craft; because of this, it should be no surprise that our brand concepts are rooted in many forms of design.

In it's simplest definition, private label is a custom brand designed to target a specified demographic. When we create a private label for our clients, we are doing just that. We constantly find ourselves saying "it's all about you" and we can't help but mean it down to our very core. Each project we focus on is approached in a completely different way. It's not about us, our "style" or our specific needs, it's about you, our client, our target demographic. No 2 projects are alike, they are all truly custom. They are strategically branded interiors.

A more known term in the design industry is "boutique" in regards to a hotel, restaurant, or store, to name a few. A boutique space is one that incorporates lifestyle, indigenous elements, specialty services, and is considered a unique "experience", not just a space. Especially in regards to hotels, there has a been a large shift from the corporate hotel to a more meaningful travel experience. From Design Hotels Yearbook 2008, "Mankind with be more sensible and sensitive about its surroundings in the next 15 years. Respect, tolerance, and solidarity will influence the way objects, spaces and technology are designed." Largely due to this type of mentality, corporate hotels want to be in line with this mindset. Ian Schrager specifically said in an article with Men's Vogue that he was partnering with Marriott to create a "private label" hotel brand for their very corporate rooted name. Putting boutique on a large platform isn't changing it's ideals, its only adding to the quantity of opportunities to create unique spaces. This was one thing Schrager found so enticing about the pairing with Marriott.

Another example, and one we found even more refreshing (atypical) is McDonald's launch of their "Less is More" design strategy. They partnered with French designer Philippe Avanzi (in collaboration with Studio Archange) to give their spaces a more contemporary look. The designers supplied McDonald's with 8 different design schemes for franchisees to choose from. The purpose of having several different schemes we feel is the future of franchising, locations that are consistent in service and recognition but do not "all look the same." They are using architecture as a business plan. The goal was not to just create a more contemporary look, but more upscale, and less "fast food." They wanted to appeal to an audience that would typically not eat fast food while also continuing to cater to an ever evolving current loyal fan base. The roll out started in Europe and is intended to make it's way to the US, although some franchise owners have already followed suit in other locations.

 

The notion of Private Label is the way we approach all projects no matter the scope of the contract.  We feel strongly that it is our fiduciary duty to our clients that all design solutions follow our Private Label core design values.   

Our 3 core Private Label values are:

1) Stay true to the values of the brand - Not only our brand, but our client's brand. We support and respect the importance of a brand and the necessity to be crystal clear in the execution and overall perception.

2) Always consider and be driven by what is meaningful to the consumer - Many of our colleagues focus on their client, but not always the end user. We find it is so necessary to focus on both. Our clients' are motivated by their clients' and so are we. 

3) Constantly create differentiation from the competition - how are we different? how can we in turn make our clients different? We constantly analyze the marketplace to see how it's evolving and making sure we're at least one step ahead. One main thing that allows us to do this with depth and efficiency is our large network of creative professionals. 

We have summarized our business strategy as the term the "studio effect." The definition includes our core values and core motivation. It is the act of going back to ones roots of creativity and innovation without the physical or emotional constraints of traditional business practices; fueling a new way of thinking by utilizing all forms of creative inspiration.

The result: A project that enriches our client’s bottom line, raises brand visibility, grows market share and maintains high visibility in the marketplace.

Heidi Boutique Second Location Opeing 9/17/09

Heidi O'Brien was born in to the clothing industry, eventually running her family's third-generation sportswear manufacturing business, Cascade West Sportswear, for 10 years in Seattle, Washington.  After moving to Troon North area in North Scottsdale in 2004, she began to conceptualize a boutique that would bring the best in Los Angels fashion to her own neighborhood.  I had the great pleasure working with Heidi and the Martz Agency, a marketing and PR firm in Scottsdale, to visualize her brand and develop a prototype store design that opened it's doors in 2005.  

Located in the rolling foothills of Pinnacle Peak, Heidi finds her clientele flocking to the store for its unique blend of cosmopolitan, sleep and run fashions.  With great success with the Troon store, we are proud to announce the opeing of Heidi Boutique's second location in The Mix near the Scottsdale Waterfront on September 17, 2009 with plans to grow futher into the Northwest region and the San Diego area.

The Martz Agency's tag line of, From the Runway to Your Closet. The store design concept for Heidi Boutique was intricately designed to resemble a dream closet. With beautiful travertine stone and cork floors, customized illuminated modular custom designed cabinets and elegant fixtures, the shop has a classic ambiance.  Heidi Boutique carries the latest in women's clothing, lingerie and accessories. The store features exclusive designer lines, such as Theory, Susana Monaco, Trina Turk and William Rast.  

Following are some of the prototype designs for Heidi Boutique.

 

 Finish Material Selections:

Detail photos from Troon location:

 

Custom nesting tables and interior illuminated wall fixtures and glass mosaic fronted cash wrap with edge lit and infill painted glass impact graphic.

Visit Heidi on the web at: www.heidiboutique.com

The Gelato Spot: Dessert Lounge of Italy

Congratulations to Don and Mai Plato, owners of popular Arizona based gelateria, The Gelato Spot, for their recent success in obtaining franchise standing. Don has recently reported receiving 3 or more franchise inquiries a week.

In 2003, I had the pleasure of working with Don and Mai on their Gelato prototype. From our first meeting their plan was to develop a prototype for roll-out. First to open a handful of company owned stores and ultimately to franchise. Our scope of work included: Naming, Logo Design (pictured to above), Interior Branding, Design Development and Construction Documents. Let's take a look back at where this Living Brand started; the drawing board. Following are some of the prototype sketches and interior finishes for The Gelato Spot.

Interior Color Rendering

Interior Finish Material Board

Facade of a company store on Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Company Website: www.gelatospot.com

KidZaam: Environmental Branding at it's Best

KidZaam is a Pediatric dentistry, a specialty of dentistry that focuses on the oral health and unique needs of children from infancy through the teenage years. They are schooled in child psychology, growth, and development, giving them the knowledge to provide the most thorough treatment for a whole variety of children's dental needs.

At KidZaam Pediatric Dentistry, it is their goal to deliver a seamless experience for their patients and their parents by providing the highest quality of care in a fun environment? They want kids to feel at ease while waiting to be seen and parents to know their children will be well taken care of. After the development of their first free standing building concept I was fortunate enough to be asked to work with the Kidzaam team in analyzing this dynamically spectacular prototype in Prescott, AZ. The objective was to create a roll-out concept that had a "good, better, best" financial investment platform for franchisees, a very common step in developing a roll-out concept. We produced a design criteria manual that demonstrated the “good, better, and best” design options.

When bring to market a new concept it is important to test and prefect it. Improving efficiencies within the business, design, construction phases will ultimately make your franchisee more inviting for a franchisee. Enjoy the pictures of this amazing concept for Kids.

Interior Lobby & Waiting Room

Recovering Room

Admin & Checkout