The document provides observations from Ralph Kerle's time spent at the Chatswood Retail Shopping Centre in Sydney, Australia. Over the course of multiple visits to different stores, Kerle observes the atmospheres, customers, products, and staff within each store. Some key stores mentioned include The Chinese Oddments Store, a cafe, Chinese herbal medicine store, and a retail shop. Kerle focuses on subtle details rather than products or brands, seeking to understand what attracts customers or leads to business success or failure through his observational lens.

1. The Observational Lab
Chatswood Retail Shopping Centre, Sydney Australia
By Ralph Kerle (c) Oct 29 2012
All images remain the property of Ralph Kerle

2. Tiger Lily
Child of Michael Hutchens and Paula Yates
Retro look and feel contemporized
Hippy influence
Thai dye
Wrought iron doors
Warm and welcoming
Memories of marijuana smell
Youthful sex

4. TOP RANKING
THE CHINESE ODDMENTS STORE

5. Brands is not important at The Chinese Oddments Store
There is no order to the shelves or stock placement
My observational senses are on full alert in this environment

6. •In 15 minutes
nobody entered •The TV showed
the store Psy and
•Never saw the Gangnam Style
product •The music
•Nobody asked me playing loudly
to buy through the
•Still don’t know shop was bad
what they sell 90’s heavy
•The store was so metal
sterile it was like
an operating
theatre

7. Yoghurtberry
What do you sell?

8. The Chinese Herbal Medicine Store

9. The man in the back of
the store was occupied
with his computer so I
never found out what
Placenta Cream was
made of and cured

10. The Panda is for Good Luck!

11. This is the worst cafe in the world. This photo was taken at 1.00pm
right on lunch time. The cafe is empty.
I have been going to this cafe for 5 years to see how long it might
last before it goes bankrupt. I have had my coffee spoiled, my ham
and cheese croissant burnt to a cinder and abused for taking it
back. It often appears new staff don’t even have rudimentary cafe
skills. I have had bad food poisoning from unwashed salad.
I keep going back because I want to observe how bad it can get
before the cafe finally starts to improve or......

12. The menu has not been changed in 5 years

13. The new manager is smiling.
That’s a first!!

14. It’s NOT It’s NOT the
The Sale Prices Shirts
That Attract That Attract
Me Me

15. It’s NOT the nice light that attracts me

16. The Brand and the Signage Don’t Attract Me

17. It’s the He keeps me up
Service. to date with
The President
manager, a Assad and the
Lebanese Syrian crisis
Christian. with his
has been knowledge of
running Byzantium
the shop history.
for 20 I trust him.
years
THAT’S WHY I BUY

18. The End
Chatswood Retail Shopping Centre, Sydney Australia
By Ralph Kerle (c) Oct 29 2012
All images remain the property of Ralph Kerle