The Big Book of Retail Design

Foreword 13
Let me first say thank you… 13
…and introduce the book… 13
…its academic grounding… 15
…from a Western European perspective… 15
…aiming to shed some light in the complex world of retail design 16

PART 1: FROM RETAILING TO RETAIL DESIGN 19

Chapter 1: WHAT WAS 22
A. Retail throwback 23
Halls of temptation 23
From Europe… 24
…to America… 27
…the timing was right… 27
…for a rising star 29
The wheel of retailing 30
Learnings from history 30
Efficient machines 32
From Self-Service… 32
…to self-service furniture… 34
…the start of the rationalization process has begun 36
Learnings from history 37
The struggle for uniqueness or uniformity 40
And then there was retail branding, too much uniformity 41
Learnings from history 44
B. The emancipation of retail design 46
The role of design agencies 47
It all started in London 47
A multi-disciplinary field 49
The role of retailers 50
Starbucks: the design of a third place 51
Calvin Klein & Prada: leveling products up to pieces of art 53
Niketown & Samsung: designing brand experiences 54
Comme des Garçons: the start of ephemeral retail spaces 55
Apple: the store of the people 56
Pop-up retail 58
Flagship stores 62
The role of consumers and the society at large 64

Chapter 2 WHAT IS 66
A. The discipline of retail design in the 20s 67
From designing the space to facilitate the selling of goods… 68
…to emphasize its strategic level… 70
…and its relationship with the customer… 71
…and its uniqueness… 72
…to a new definition 72
B. Designing the physical store space 73
Understanding the customer 74
Understanding the role of the physical store 75
The role of ‘experience’ 77
The role of design 79
The role of technology 81
From making a personal connection…. 82
…to serve us 84
Where do we go from here? 85

Chapter 3 WHAT WE KNOW 87
A. Scientific research 89
The WHAT 89
The HOW 91
From studying the customer… 91
…to understanding retail design processes 92
The WHY 93
B. Some truths 97

PART II: LET’S MOVE THE DISCUSSION FROM TASTE TO SCIENCE 101

Chapter 4 SOME RULES TO PLAY THE GAME 105
Rule #1 is about the DNA 106
It starts with knowing who you are… 108
…to WHY you exist… 109
…and WHAT makes you relevant… 109
…putting it all to life in HOW you behave 110
Rule #2 is about coherency, consistency and detail 112
Rule #3 is about knowing the customer 113
Use data as a basis... 113
…but it’s really about empathy 114
Rule #4a is about an image saying more than a thousand words 116
From product presentation…. 116
…to the design of the store… 116
…and the care of the shop 117
Rule #4b is about having that one chance only 118

Chapter 5 DESIGNING FOR RETAIL 121
A. Understanding the retail design process 124
It all starts with a thorough design brief… 125
…but usually, more research is needed… 125
…to come up with the concept… 128
…which will embody the design… 128
…till the smallest detail… 130
…constructed on the shop floor… 131
…ready to be evaluated 132
B. Optimizing the retail design process 134
Toolbox#education 135
Toolbox#designer 136
Toolbox#retailer 136
Phase one, designing the brief 136
Brand 137
Target group 139
Product/service offer 139
Competitors 140
Role of the store 140
Phase 2 141
Synthesizing 141
Understanding the target group 143
…by defining archetypes… 143
Creating archetypes: 145
Defining personality dimensions: 145
Understanding emotions: 146
… and understanding shopping motivations 147
Purpose driven shopping 149
Just browsing 149
In need of information 149
Solely service 150
Phase 3, the concept 151
Phase 4 152
Organizing 152
Bubbles first 153
Cut & paste 158
Choose a flow strategy 160
Optimizing 163
Calculate 163
Designing a flow 164
1. Avoid irregularities 166
Irregularities#logistic-affairs 166
Irregularities#dead-ends 167
Irregularities#waiting 167
2. Playing pinball 169
Pinball#focus-points 169
Pinball#personas 170
Pinball#communication 173
Creating an optimal experience 175
…is one that starts outside 175
Humor 185
Complexity 186
Nature 187
Fitting room 188
Atmosphere 189
…and playing with senses 189
To scent or not to scent 190
What are we hearing (or not) 192
Do you feel the DNA? 193
Adding some flavor 196
What meets the eye 197
Something called cross-modal congruency 203
Do not overdo it 203

Chapter 6 WALK THE TALK 207
NOOK 207
Who they are... 207
What they offer…. 208
…who they target 209
Phase 1: Designing the brief for NOOK 209
Phase 2: NOOK’s Brand pyramid 211
Phase 2: Understanding NOOK’s target group 212
Personas 212
The cocooners 213
The indulger 216
The newcomers 218
Shopping motivation model 220
Phase 3: Cocooning 221
Phase 4: Making it work 222
Organizing 222
Bubble diagram 222
Refinement first idea 225
Cut & paste 227
Choose a flow strategy 228
Optimizing 229
Designing a flow 230
Creating an optimal experience 238
Sense matrix 238

PART III: AN EDUCATED GUESS ABOUT THE FUTURE 243

Chapter 7 THE FUTURE OF... 246
A. Physical retail 247
From fluid experiences… 247
… taking up different roles… 247
Curation and community 249
Celebration 250
Culture 251
…to plasticizing formats… 252
…and service hubs… 252
…leaving no place for just stores being stores? 254
B. The ones designing for it 256
At the core… 257
…it is still about designing… 259
…based on research… 260
…and having knowledge of omni-channel & digital… 261
…communication… 261
…branding… 261
…marketing & strategy… 262
…and socio-cultural sciences… 262
…all this mixed with a good dose of organization & management skills 263
Meaning… 263
To teach or not to teach 265
C. Responsibilities that come with retail design 269
Ethical considerations stand out… 270
…but design is a key to success… 272
…considering well-being… 273
…and sustainability 275
Material efficiency 277
Sustainable material selection 279
Manufacturing and distribution 279
Usage 279
End of life 279
Back to the future 280

Bibliography 285