Store Design and Visual Merchandising: Creating Store Space That Encourages Buying

In an age of self-service stores, saturated markets, and ever more demanding
customers, the careful and science-driven design of the point of sale
has become a crucial success factor for both retailers and service businesses.
In this book, the interested reader will fi nd a variety of hands-on
suggestions for how to optimize the design of retail stores and service
environments to increase customer satisfaction and sales. While the focus
is on the practical applicability of the concepts discussed, the book is nevertheless
fi rmly grounded in consumer and psychological research. In this
respect it is uniquely positioned vis- á- vis books written by artists, architects,
and interior designers, which often lack a solid research foundation,
and academic journals articles, which are often inaccessible to the educated
yet nonspecialized reader. In writing this book, the authors draw on
both the recent research literature and their own experience in marketing
consulting and consumer research.
Topics covered in the book include goals and relevance of store design;
design tips derived from environmental psychology; cognitive and aff ective
approaches to store design and visual merchandising; use of ambient
factors such as music, colors, and scents; and creation of emotional experiences
and theming.