The Hindu Business Line : All for ambience

Let's talk shop. Literally! As retail gets into a tailspin, the spotlight is slowly shifting from the product to the space where all the action happens — the store! The shopping ambience has never been so important as now, with retailers looking to designers and retail consultants to give their stores a contemporary and consumer-friendly design.

Says Prathish Nair, Head (Marketing), RAMMS India, a retail solutions company, "Shoppers' expectations are evolving and they are demanding better ambience to shop in. This is where design comes in. Design, not just for the sake of it, but that done in a superior fashion."

It's all about consumer experience as the point of purchase is the `moment of truth' that determines what and how much one buys. Says Janak Dave, Business Head, Arrow, "Shopping has evolved from a transaction to a brand experience. Retail design and visual merchandising play a crucial role in creating this difference. What the customer sees and experiences at the store has a direct impact on a company's fortunes. Retail today has become a point of direct interaction for the brand with the target audience." Thus retail experience is a large part of the brand. Says Janani Subramanian, Business Head, Wrangler, "Brands are creating equity in the minds of the consumer through retail space and therefore, retail design is an integral part of the brand identity."

Better visual merchandising means better sales, say retailers. Says Charath Narasimhan, CEO, Indian Terrain: "We clearly see the value of the better visual merchandising and window displays in attracting consumers to our stores (especially in malls). Also, better display helps sales as consumers get to experience the product in a better environment rather than just as stacks of shirts or trousers."

Shombit Sengupta, Chief Strategist and Founder, Shining Emotional Surplus, says a retail shop represents every business parameter: supply chain, procurement, replenishment, consumer, footfall, conversion, retention and wallet share growth. "The more consumer-centric it becomes, the more efficacious will the retail business be, and the profits generated. I am sure, after some trials, the organised retailer will understand that sophisticated real estate and sophisticated supply chain are not enough to run a sustainably profitable retail business; that consumer sensitivity is the key for business success."

Retail companies are increasingly spending on both the environment and the fixtures and fittings; stylish fittings, emphatic lighting and digital signage are all in - for an international appeal and inviting feel. Cramped shop floors are giving way to large uncluttered spaces. According to industry estimates, an average of Rs 25 lakh is being spent per store - but this is just a conservative figure.

Although retail design is key to a brand, mindless store décor serves very little purpose. Dave lists out a few pointers to keep in mind while designing a store. "Sections have to be designed keeping the various categories in mind. Another important factor is the merchandise plan for the store. It should be able to support and reflect the merchandise plan as it is the starting point for any retail store design for the architect. The layout should be designed in a manner to regulate the flow of traffic within the store. Front elevation is also a crucial factor while designing/ planning the store."

Brand value

The store also has to reflect the brand value and bring out the brand's essential characteristics. Says Dave: "Store designs have to communicate brand values clearly. Arrow's store design has always reflected not only the evolution of the brand but also the evolution of customer tastes and preferences. It has always kept pace with the times, it is always contemporary. The challenge is to reflect a brand's different aspects in the store design, yet appear cohesive from a brand perspective."

Arrow spent about Rs 2 crore on what it claims to be its largest store in the world - at Bangalore (4,000 sq feet).

Luggage retailer Samsonite's store interiors reflect its change in brand identity. Designed by a French design house, these stores have an "international" look that reflect Samsonite's transition from being a "black and grey boring brand" to a more colourful and youthful one. Says Ramesh Tainwala, President, Samsonite West Asia: "We have done away with counters. There are lot of sitting spaces in the middle. There are plenty of colours on the floor. There is a subtle feminine touch to our stores. The stores are not crowded; there is plenty of room - suggesting that it is okay to hang around and browse leisurely. All these will attract lot of consumers, especially the youth and women."

Sheetal Choksy, Customer Care Associate and General Manager - Marketing & Communication, Shoppers' Stop, explains the departmental store's design philosophy: "We are a fashion-forward store and in all our design ideas, be it window display, promotions, store design, we have tried to be different. We have shop-in shops, a space for each brand to give shoppers a better brand experience.

"We have a combination of in-house and outsourced work (we get work done from a leading design house in the UK). This is to maintain the international benchmark."

Wrangler had done up its most recent store based on the cowboy theme to reflect its brand image. Huge LP records, mannequins styled in thematic merchandise and props like electric guitars, drum, microphone and bike are used extensively to highlight the spirit of the urban cowboy. Wrangler has also imported a metal bull for display. Retro-looking television and props like a cowboy hat, floor cushions and Venetian blinds complete the look. Another interesting feature is the POP wall — a mural with props like mannequin head, ropes, chains, three dimensional denim jeans combined in an interesting way with plaster of Paris and white paint. The wall has a raw and rugged look complementing the Wrangler denim style. There's also another wall section covered with biking helmets. The company spent about Rs 1.5 crore on this 3,000 sq. ft store in Bangalore.

Design is not an area that relies on serendipity. It involves careful planning and thought process. While most brands and retailers outsource work to design houses both local and international, Kishore Biyani's Future Group has its own in-house design company, Idiom, that employs close to 200 people who are constantly working on design ideas. Apart from designing products for group companies, these designers also work on space design for Future Group's retail chains.

How does retail design in India compare with the rest of the world? Says Nair of RAMMS: "Globally, the store design concept is changed once in 2-3 years. In India, most of them do it once in five years. The store concept is changed once the market reaches a saturation level. For example, in apparel store design, the industry has already achieved saturation point and they have to necessarily change once in 2-3 years. But the diamonds market is yet to mature.

There are 14 brands under which diamonds are being marketed in India but there's not much differentiation in either their store design or the brand concept. In departmental stores, it's still the brand that has a bigger impact than the retail design. But internationally, stores have their own unique identity, which draws customers inside. It will take about 3-4 years for India to reach there."