Customer’s Comment: AE's store designs combine powerful design elements like photography, graphics, music, and materials to create a powerful experience that really feels like you're stepping into another world.

Photo-graphy Graphics Music

Building Materi-

als

ANATOMY OF GOOD RETAIL STORE DESIGN: American Eagle

Anthropologie recreates an atmosphere similar to a high-end

flea market.

Targeted customer: Upscale Income Women in 30's to 40’s

Always something new, different, and exciting to look at on every

visit.

Typical Customer Profile: Independent-minded,

Understated, Off-beat, Feminine, Thin

Clothing Access-ories

Home Decor

Visually Stimul-ating

Unique Interior

Unusual, Un-

common

Surprise Factor

Escap-ism

Fantasy World

ANATOMY OF GOOD RETAIL STORE DESIGN: American Eagle

ClothingClothing Access-ories

Access-ories

Home DecorHome Decor

Visually Stimul-ating

Visually Stimul-ating

Unique InteriorUnique Interior

Unusual, Un-

common

Unusual, Un-

common

Surprise Factor

Surprise Factor

Escap-ism

Escap-ism

Fantasy World

Fantasy World

ANATOMY OF GOOD RETAIL STORE DESIGN: American Eagle

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Utilita-rian.

Functi-onal.

Multiple category

retail. Furni-ture,

Kitchen-ware

Muju: success-ful Japan-ese

retailer

Muju: success-ful Japan-ese

retailer

Muju: success-ful Japan-ese

retailer

Personal care,

house-hold

items, clothing.

Personal care,

house-hold

items, clothing.

Clothing, Home Décor items.

Mutliple category

retail.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Art Gallery-

like setting.

Art Gallery-

like setting.

Sci-Fi setting.

Sci-Fi setting.

Drama-tic

lighting.

Drama-tic

lighting.

Unusual color

palette.

Unusual color

palette.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Social Hub.

Home-like.

Relaxing setting. On your

time.Mutliple category

retail.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Interact with tech-

nology

Try, touch, taste, feel… every-thing

Contrasting

Objects.Gogles.

Art Gallery-

like setting.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGNDrama-

tic lighting.

Unco-mmon

material, decor.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Quirky. Bohe-mian.

Quirky. Bohe-mian.

Whimsi-cal

Whimsi-cal

Green. Eco-

Aware.

Green. Eco-

Aware.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

Cutting-edge.

Avant-Garde.

Fluid. Organic.

Drama-tic

lighting.

FUTURE TRENDS IN RETAIL DESIGN

DeflationDeflation is a key concern, it is our belief that the price of goods on sale in the middle market is low enough. The fixation with price has taken us to a lower level than ever before where a product can be sold as cheap as £4 ($A9.50) for a pair of fashion jeans and £2.50 ($A5.95) for a school uniform... and this in the most affluent market in the world. This trend is ultimately self-defeating and needs to be stabilised. Fast fashion The second issue is speed to the market or ‘fast fashion’. Fashion is fast enough, with retailers chasing styles so slavishly that they are tying themselves in knots. The true winners in this market are those who can create and interpret trends in their own vision.

DefinitionThe third issue is individuality and definition. In such a crowded market how can a brand stand out and how can design help them achieve that stand-out? This unique personality can be achieved by adopting several principles: Open architecture, the ability to flex space, the broad stretch of product, the introduction of revenue building events, the introduction of technology in the service proposition and the adoption of responsive, responsible design. OpenOpen architecture challenges the preconception that you can entice customers into a 1500sqm store through a 1500mm door, a practice adopted by many brands who are now waking up to the fact that if you are open in your approach and invite the customer into your store they might come. If the window is supportive and the entrance is impressive you can almost see the double take as the shoppers walk by. We predict more and more open shopfronts in the coming years. Flex Flex is a given in retail. If you can guarantee one thing about the future of retail it is that it is going to change. The offer changes, the brand position may change, the customer’s reaction to your store will change and by its very nature fashion changes. Only very flexible solutions can respond to those changes and by building in that flexibility you can create a future-proof solution. Moving walls, moving graphics, mobile furniture, modular lighting can all be used to support this ideal.

StretchStretch is the understanding that your customer is in different moods on different days and will need different offers to satisfy those moods. Knowing your customer and giving them what they want will require the retailer to offer a breadth of product in the same venue. This can be achieved through brand stretch, where one brand can sell many items, (ie. clothing, footwear, accessories, homewares, etc.), or by the introduction of strong guest brands, where the retailer’s credibility is not strong enough. EventsEvents are where the store and the brand can come to life. Dedicating space within the store for product launches, catwalk shows and most importantly selling in down times. A great tool to build loyalty, create theatre, drive sales and ultimately bring profit. Monday to Friday it can tick over... Friday to Sunday it can come to life. ServiceService is where the significant changes will occur. We have recently planned a successful Oxford St store with 64 tills. The displaced stock on those walls feels like 30% of the available space. Imagine if that cash function were spread amongst the dozens of staff the retailer employed, every member of staff a till, every member of staff actively servicing the shopper. This “can do” attitude to service and technology can be applied to every point of contact from the front door to the fitting rooms. 100 Personal Shoppers! Live shopping across the space on terminals and with the staff, it happens at the airport check-in and on the train, so why not in store?

RespondFinally, respond. Responsive retailing is driven by customer demand. ‘Paper bags, not plastic’ will become law, controls on power per square metre will become law, the specification of sustainable and responsible materials will become law so make that the heart of your brand, not just a PR activity. Anything we don’t do now that could be done, should be done and we don’t need to wait to be told to do it. So, in conclusion, create a unique and individual brand experience by adopting these principles and differentiation will come. Everyone who tries to create a unique experience will go some way towards achieving it and that has to be an improvement on those dozens of poor stores out there. The biggest trend in design is design itself and we have a lot to do. From value to high brand, they all want it and those who use it are reaping the benefits.

Key trends impacting store designInternational design and branding agency Dalziel-Pow identifies the key issues and concepts that will impact on store design in the coming years.