This document provides observations and insights from visiting different stores. It summarizes the environmental factors, products, salespeople, and customers at each store. Key findings include that attracting initial customers through attractive signage can draw in more people, and that maintaining a good environment, products, and customer service are important to keeping people in the store. A modern design was noted as something novel that could attract customers in Switzerland. Balance in aspects like lighting and customer treatment were also highlighted as important.

1. So
you think
you can pay
attention?
Hamideh Jafarpoorchekab
A crash course in creativity
2012

2. Task:
Go to different stores, observe
and capture INSIGHTS and HIDDEN
OPPORTUNITIES!

3. 1. Manor: Why is this general store usually my first choice?
OR Because a lot of people are going in, I go in too? 
Its stylish sign design in black and red
and the fact they are smartly installed
to be seen from many directions?

4. Environment: This store has a very old building:
The main floors are renovated in light colors though. They have
better lighting too.
The smell is not as controllable! You either smell old and damp
or a very strong perfume scent.

5. Environment:
The store is overall bright enough. Not too much to look
cheap but bright enough to make the products look nicer!
The air-conditioning of the store is relatively good so except
for the smell from the building itself, one feels comfortable.
There are not enough guide signs in the store.
There are different music playing in different places of the
building and they can sometimes get mixed in an annoying
way.
I could not find any easily visible surveillance cameras!

6. Environment: The position of cash registers and escalators
changes on each floor. A possible trend is the NOT near the
entrance of the floor! People commonly go to the wrong
direction although it is not one of their first visits to the
store. They have a lot of impulse items nearby though!

7. Products: The store sells both over expensive and normal
price products.

8. Products: They are categorized by applications and placed in
different floors:
0. Food,
1. Accessories and Cosmetics,
2. clothing for women,
3. Clothing for men,
4. Kids floor,
5. Fabrics,
6. House wares,
7. Restaurant

9. Products: The store is extremely crowded with
merchandise but not everywhere!
They literally put all the products in the shelves!

10. Products:
There are central display tables for
new arrivals items which is usually in
front of the entrance.
For sales items are put deeper inside
the store!
The prices of all the products are very
easy to find.

11. Products:
There is not a big difference
between the items placed at eye level
and the others but some items which
should not be touched are put out of
reach!
There are demos available specially
in Cosmetic and house wares sections.
You might get a gift card in special
occasions and on special purchases

12. Sales people:
They are normally young with a middle age head.
There are as many as 10-20% of the customers.
3/4 girls and 1/4 boys. All happen to be beautiful with nice makeup!
Their uniform is black from top to bottom.
They usually dnn’t say mnre than BONJOUR tn the custnmers!
Unless you have a question and you go to them. They will be
respecting anyway. It sounds more like a Suisse culture.
The ones who have something special to offer or demonstrate
would start the conversation with you ONLY If they find you suitable!
You can see them obviously hesitate sometimes! :D

13. Customers:
They can be if any age or gender depending also on the time.
There are usually alone.
People are looking for something and not just browsing. Window
shopping is not common in Switzerland.
Customers are usually allowed to touch the products unless it is
written on it.
They stay in the store for up to about 30 minutes to 1 hour and
more than 50% buy eventually. In the house ware section, almost
90% buy.

14. Other observations:
I found a free gift wrapping
station in a corner of the store !
I also found out about an
extension of the store for electronic
products which was quite a big one
but somehow not very easily visible
as it was behind a corner.
Now I am more convenient to use
the guide signs than before!

15. 2. Ochsner Shoes: One of most popular shoe stores in the city.
The store is a small part of COOP City, general store, so it does
not have a separate entrance. Similar stuff attracts you in
such as a nice window in red theme (unfortunately no picture
available) or sales announcements:

16. The building is much newer than the previous store. New is
rare in Lausanne city center. The grey color theme stills gives
the feeling of old!

17. Environment:
The store lighting is not homogeneous.! There are some kind
of spot lights on some parts of the store and in the other parts,
there is normal light.
There used to be a
specific smell in this
store that is now
removed by electrical
order absorbers
installed.

18. Environment:
The music is not too loud or too low. The
album might be selected by somebody of
age around 30! NICE!
The air conditioning is also sufficient.
The surveillance cameras are quite
visible and there is also a screen showing
their recordings online. This is one of the
differences between COOP city and
MANOR.

19. Environment:
The cash register is
placed near the entrance.
There is one main
straight route along the
store and different
categories of products
are placed on the side of
this aisle.

20. Product:
The products are categorized by the usual gender groups
(Women, kids and men). The Women shoes are the nearest to
the door, then kids and then men.
There is another categorization according to price. The
designers shoes which are more expensive are placed on the
left side of the aisle and the usual ones on the right (entering).
The decoration of the store is not very fancy but it looks
nice enough and not very crowded.

21. Product:
There are some shelves and also
using the shoe boxes, some
platforms were made as tall as 1.5-2
meters. The shoes were placed on
top of these tables or the shelves so
that they will be at eye level:
The bags or other products which
are not the main products are placed
more out of reach and sight

22. Product:
The prices are very well seen.
There was no sale at that time in the store.
There was no show table in the store for special products
but the store window was doing the job.
There were also some impulse items at the cash register.

23. Sales people:
They are young with an old lady as the boss.
There are 5 of them while they had an average umber of 10
customers.
4 girls and 1 boy with normal look.
They did not have any specific uniform but they were all wearing
black!
It was mandatory for them to use the shoes from the store.
Not all the staff was not very willing to help the customers. Some
of the customers were behaving very nervously due to this attitude.

24. Customers:
They customers are usually middle age or young.
There are different type of customers alone, with friends,
mother and daughter, husband and wife, a family with two kids.
People are looking for something and not just browsing. Window
shopping is not common in Switzerland.
Customers can freely touch the products.
They stay in the store for up to about 20 minutes to 30 minutes
and more than 35% buy eventually.

25. Other observations:
There are some nice features in
this store, such as a height
measurement stand for kids or
some colorful balloons in the kid
shoes sections. It is interesting that
they sold two pairs of kids shoes
during my observation.

26. 3. Bata Shoes: One of cheapest shoe stores in the city.
The stnre’s dnnr are
completely open. It feels
good that you enter the
store without feeling to be
separated from outside
world. I feel more free.
(There is no need to close
the door for this store as it
is an inside store).

27. It is a newly build store: But the temporary ceiling is not
complete which give the store a
poor and unsafe look:
The part of the store with a more
completed ceiling is usually more
crowded!

28. Environment:
The color theme of the store is brown and crème which
makes it look a little bit dull and repelling.
The lighting of the store is quite good that enhances the look
of the products.

29. Environment:
Other environmental characteristic of the store is normal
including the smell, noises,..
I could not see the surveillance camera.
There are many mirrors available that make the place to look
larger while it helps the customer better.

30. Product:
The products are categorized by the usual gender groups
(Women, kids and men). The Women shoes are the nearest to
the door, then kids and men. The more expensive ones are
placed in the shelves on the walls and the rest in the middle
shelves.
There are some tables
for the new shoes which
are not pretty well
organized:

31. Product:
The sales items are placed in front of the entrance in a very
crowded and messy structures. However, it is also tried to keep
the shoes at the eye level for attracting customers' attention!
The store is a quite big and open area . You can see
everywhere in the store from the point you stand. The cash
registry is in the middle back.

32. Sales people:
They are young with an old lady as the boss.
There are 4 of them while they had an average umber of 8
customers.
3 girls and 1 boy with sport looks.
Their uniform is black with Bata logo!
It was mandatory for them to use
the shoes from the store.
The staff are communicating and helful

33. Customers:
They customers are usually middle age or young.
The customers are usually alone or with a friend.
People are looking for something and not just browsing. Window
shopping is not common in Switzerland.
Customers can freely touch the products.
They stay in the store for about 15 minutes and then about 25%
of them buy something.

34. 4. Lily Prune clothing store
Its modern artistic outside view was very eye-catching!

35. Information
Although the view of the store was really nice, the director
was a very strict person and did not let any photography inside
The color theme was green olive which is supposed to be
stylish but made the place dark and cold.
The prices were high but nothing very different from other
stores.
The staff were not friendly and working based on
categorizing the people to buyers and watchers.
There were barely 2 customers in 20 minutes who gave up
very fast and left.

36. Insights:
• we gn tn the stnres that a lnt nf nther penple gn tn even if they dnn’t dn
their shopping their. One point would be to have attract people in to attract
more people in!
• Once you have the people in, keep them in with good environment, good
behavior and a nice product! :p
• A modern environment in Switzerland is something unexplored for
people! Could be attractive enough to get in!
• Serving the customer friendlily and honestly can do magic, if it is added
to Suisse quality.
• Balance seems to be working like always! Like Not too bright, not too
dark.