The document discusses the importance of storefront design for small retail stores. It notes that creating a strong visual brand identity through elements like signage, color schemes, and window displays is essential for attracting customers. It provides examples of well-designed storefronts internationally and discusses strategies independent Australian stores can use to differentiate themselves and compete against larger chains. Experts recommend shopfront designs that create a distinctive identity, allow visibility into the store, and balance illumination to attract customers.

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REATING THE RIGHT STORE BRAND
IMAGE THROUGH WELL DESIGNED
shop fronts, store signage and
logos, attractive colour schemes and
store windows are essential tools of
retailing that increase store recognition
and entice customers into the store.
It’s evident that a stronger retail visual brand
identity for smaller format store designs is
needed in Australia for independents and
chains operating stores of under 1,000sqm in
supermarket, grocery, food to go, convenience
and petrol station stores. Independent stores need
a real point of difference to compete with the
national food chains and their huge marketing,
store design and refurbishment budgets.
However, Australia has some good shopfront
design in this market, seen mainly in convenience
from groups such as Caltex Star Mart, 7-Eleven,
UCB’s fast&easy, Lucky 7 and some of the larger
independent supermarkets. Among the better
designs are gourmet/fresh grocers such as
Woolworths’ Thomas Dux, Leo’s in Melbourne
and Harris Farm in NSW, who try harder to create
a distinctive or clean and open shopfront look.
Cities like London and New York are regulary
visited by designers and retailers for inspiration.
In London, good store designs include gourmet
food to go shops such as Pret A Manger and
Camden Food Co, and grocery convenience stores
Waitrose, Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury Local.
One of the best U.S. convenience store designs is
the new WAWA store found at gas station sites. In
New York, Duane Reade drugstores offer groceries
and food to go. Their 40 Wall Street ‘up market’
store won the 2012 Convenience Store News Store
Design contest for Best Foodservice Presentation.
Opening up the
shopfront is good
design: Finschi phd
Director of Finschi, phd, Port Melbourne,
Paul Hickman says there are major differences
between high streets and shopping centres,
with the latter encouraging very large format
grocers. Colonial Fresh in Melbourne has a
completely open store and a shop front would
create a barrier for entry for a large format
store. Finschi, phd aims to create the largest
shopfront opening, while natural timber could
be used to create a portal around the entry.
Improve your shopfront design & image to win more customers
Looks matter
A gift store may add 30% glazing to the shopfront or store to display goods;
shopfronts are about merchandising and the higher up the client is in
the market, there is more need to display goods. If you are in an A grade
Westfield shopping centre it will have very strong design specifications.
The shopfront entry is also about establishing a brand positioning
through signage. If you’re trying to sell fruit and vegetables or flowers,
don’t have a barrier to the customers. But on high streets, retailers often
cannot afford to have wide glass fronts and may have to compromise on
space and limit entry/exit doors and consider the air conditioning.
Larger grocers such as Coles use strong corporate images, while smaller
grocers and greengrocers have limitations. We try to give them a distinctive,
branded and graphic look using timber frames or sometimes aluminium
panels around the shopfront and to make shopfronts more interesting and
colourful or distinctive, while it’s better to let people see into the store.
Thomas Dux is one of the better high street gourmet grocer/
supermarkets designs. They leave a fair amount of the store open with
a good graphic branding on shopfront glazing, such as at Black Rock,
Melbourne, good signage and merchandising. They bring a certain
amount of merchandise out and activate the entry and the footpath.
Thomas Dux doesn’t use huge signage and it’s only part of the
presentation. I don’t believe you need to use a lot of wording on signage
and brand positioning could run with the name and logo and use some
wording to establish it. But shopfront signage, positioning, graphics
and textures, and natural materials could be used to improve the brand
image and attract customers into the store, Mr Hickman says.
Shopfronts require strong,
distinctive identity: Edge id
Megan Roberts of Edge interior design, Annandale, Sydney says the initial
impression of a store happens at the shopfront. Customers make their
decision to go into a store generally within moments of passing by the frontage,
whether they are on a street or within a shopping centre. So what draws them
into your store?
A strong, distinctive identity is required to the shopfront so as to create a
prominent visual presence upon approach. The name and logo design are an
integral part to creating a positive store image, however the facade treatment,
merchandising and overall 3D environment all play an important role in
creating a strong visual identity for the store. All shopfront elements must be
looked at holistically.
The logo for the shopfront signage must be well considered to provide
a brand identity that not only reflects the product offer, but also provides a
visually strong image to the store facade. Additional graphic elements may
also be required to reinforce the product offer inside, however they must
be carefully considered to ensure that the customer is not overwhelmed by
too many design elements and messages. Visual clutter causes information
overload for customers.
The location of the store and its surrounding environment must also be
a consideration when designing the shopfront. Yes, the store needs to
stand out from the other stores around, however this does not mean that
it has it has to be bright, colourful and overbearing. It can be visually in-
keeping with its environment, making it part of the local community
and not an eyesore. The overall ambience and the positive impact that
it has on its customer is the most critical focus for the store. However, a
store exterior may need to have colour and movement, depending on
the type of store and its relationship to the surrounding environment.
The illumination of the retail store is also important. An over illuminated space
can be a harsh, unwelcoming environment to shop in. Of course a dimly lit
space is also not the right approach, however there needs to be a balance so as
to create a more welcoming experience for customers. The display windows
for instance, in both high street and shopping centre stores, should have a
brighter level of illumination to provide visual impact to the shopfront area.
Vision into the store is important to create a more inviting, open feel. Visual
clutter, entries that are difficult to access and blocked windows send a negative
and unwelcome message to customers. Well merchandised shopfront
windows are another consideration: the type of product offer on display will
determine if it is worth displaying at the shopfront line. Displaying fresh
produce at the front of a grocery / fruit and vegetable store is imperative.
However, with a convenience store, it may be best to keep the windows free
from display to allow clear vision to the merchandise offer inside. Basically
there must be a balance to create a strong, visually stimulating, uncluttered
shopfront that entices and invites customers into the retail environment.
STORE DESIGN

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Jack Rabbit’s unique convenience store image
Jack Rabbit is a unique convenience
store design that opened in
Taree in October 2012 alongside
a BP service station after store
co-owner Wade Death investigated
convenience and retail store designs
in London, Europe and New York.
The store has a distinctive image with
attention-grabbing shopfront and
creative, bold store name and rabbit logo,
which looks equally good day or night.
The welcoming, open glass shopfront is
supported by creative window graphics
promoting the offer, such as “great
coffee” and “fresh made rolls & salad”.
“We invested a lot in better presentation
and the store front look,” Wade says.
“The customer reaction has been great
and we’re very happy with customer
feedback and sales growth. Our store
sales compared with the previous
store sales initially were growing 25%
month-on-month, to the point where
we’ve hit a 100% sales improvement
on the previous store. It’s now levelling
out to a more manageable level.
“It was about creating a point of
difference and people leave with a
good experience - customers are
very impressed and ask where the
store design comes from. We did
not trade off cost in designing the
store and needed to achieve the
look and design we wanted.”
Marks & Spencer and Waitrose are both great examples of
convenience/supermarket stores in the UK, Ms Roberts says.
Strong visibility important
on high streets: Blue Leaves Design
Anshuman Bhargava, creative head with New Delhi,
India Blue Leaves Design says a retail store design needs
to offer a unique experience and support the brands it
sells, to remain fresh, flexible and intriguing, maintain
the interest of customers and ensure repeat business.
“A high-street store should be visible enough from
a distance since the customers are usually far from
the store and at times even in a car or a bus,” he says.
“So it should be able to catch the customer’s attention
immediately. Everything must stand out more and be
bolder – the branding, the signage, the facade, etc.”
Mr Bhargava believes high street storefronts need to be
designed for both day and night, while the lighting within
the high-street store and its external signage
should be adjustable according to the time of day.
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