The document discusses observations made about different retail stores. It notes things like store layouts, signage, decor, music, personnel, product placement, customer demographics, and insights. Specifically, it discusses how stores use colors, smells, materials, and atmospherics to target different customer groups and influence perceptions of products. It also provides insights like challenging standard product display patterns and giving customers free samples and seating areas to improve their shopping experience.

1. OBSERVE!

2. At the door…
• Every door is open
• Makes you feel invited, so you rash in
• The bigger the store, the more probable to get
in
• Most of the stores have big lettering sign
• Otherwise it has peculiar font
• Sign lettering shows company’s strength,
stability, playfulness, even targeted customers

3. Colours and shapes ∩⌂∆
• Our first playing & educational activities
• “Colour the fish” or “which colour is this?”
• Dialogue with the collective unconcious and
natural world
• Colours and shapes provoke specific feelings
and moods
• Stimulus response process
• Role of functional aesthetics & atmospherics

4. Atmospherics
• Your house decoration reveals your character
• In stores it’s not so innocent, reveals targeted
customers
• All ceilings were high and with multiple lights
• Strong smells in women stores
• Big stores have loud music, smaller have lower
volume
• Music selected upon customers’ age criteria
• Listened to 5 different types of music: pop,
mainstream, instrumental, alternative, lounge music

5. Warmness depends on materials
• Materials in decoration depend on the product
• Communications products: super modern minimal environment
• Technological products: industrial and metallic based environment
• Fashion products: modernized warm wooden floor and mirrors
• Luxury products: wooden floor, clean and organized environment
• Pharmaceutical cosmetic products: tiles walls and organized shelves
• Cosmetics products: black and white, high contrast, luxurious
environment
Environment influences strongly what you perceive of the product

6. Store’s personnel
• Doesn’t really affect you
• But… a nice and proactive sales representative
can add value
• All wore uniform
• All were there to contact you from few seconds
to a couple of minutes
• And they actually matched the store’s image
• From 1 salesman for 3 persons up to 1 salesman
for 10 persons
• Technological products are more 1 on 1

7. Products
• Most desirable products are at the front of the
store or at special displays in the centre and of
course at eye level
• Products are mostly arranged by function
• There were free samples everywhere
• Expensive products are near the door and
cheap near the cash register
• Prices are easy to locate but smartly disposed

8. Customers
• The average shopper is between 30-45
• All tended to walk the same path
• Touching things is encouraged in big stores
• Customers are neither browsing nor on a
mission
• More likely they are browsing their mission
• Up to 25% was actually buying

9. Insights and Hidden opportunities
• Patterns of product display are same for every product
category…let’s challenge that
For example let’s display clothes in a different way
• People want to try products for a while, so give them
something to try for free
• A shopping experience can be completed with other services
like chairs to sit for a while, fingerfood or a refreshment
• There are no pets in the stores and no special place for them
• Technological stores are similar to one another (grey carpet ,
metallic materials) and have non differentiated products: put
some colour in your life!
• Stores must reveal their true self through decoration
• If they don’t have one, they should find one and then stick to
that!