The initial task of creating an effective store display can seem daunting, especially if it&#;s a brand&#;s first time exploring retail display design.
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What should a brand know before contacting a custom display manufacturer, and what kind of questions will the manufacturer ask?
We sat down with Frank Mayer retail display experts who specialize in different areas and stages of production to find out what essential information brands should know before diving head-first into the world of store displays.
Here are some common questions a retail display manufacturer will ask when starting a program.
While this question is straightforward, sometimes the answer can be complicated to nail down.
When a brand first reaches out, often they&#;re still in the exploratory phase and don&#;t have a budget or quantities finalized.
Director of Strategic Initiatives Dave Loyda shares, &#;Frequently, I hear first from someone doing research into displays. The person might not be the ultimate decision-maker or have a budget in mind but is looking for guidance on the initial process.&#;
He goes on. &#;This is when we tend to have discussions on the brand&#;s display needs &#; will it be a permanent display? Freestanding? Counter? Does it need to merchandise a certain number of SKUs? All these questions influence pricing and can help establish a baseline for costs.&#;
Once a project moves further in the design process, it&#;s helpful for brands to be clearer on quantity needs and budget.
&#;We create custom displays, so our designers can render just about anything,&#; Loyda says. &#;That being said, knowing a budget helps ensure we design with those costs in mind and present something that fits a client&#;s budget.&#;
A custom display manufacturer will walk through the cost savings of ordering in bulk, what materials or processes can save money while still offering longevity in the field, and more. Thus, being prepared with an approximate budget and quantity number will ensure the program is efficient from the beginning.
What the manufacturer is really asking here is if the display in question is intended to be temporary, semi-temporary, or permanent.
But what&#;s the difference between these types of displays?
&#;The lifespan of a retail display really comes down to how long the retailer has dedicated the space on the floor or on the shelf for the brand,&#; explains David Anzia, Senior Vice President of Sales.
Temporary displays are in the field between one and three months. Because placement is brief, these displays are typically made of corrugated cardboard or thin plastic &#; materials that have a lower price point but are more susceptible to wear in a short period.
Displays that are out longer than three months but less than a year fall under the category of semi-permanent. These displays are usually built using styrene or a thicker corrugated material with a protective coating.
Finally, permanent displays remain in place for a full year or more. Since these fixtures are out longer and will need to withstand more interaction, heartier materials, such as wood, plastic, and powder-coated metal will be considered for the design.
Having a rough estimate of a fixture&#;s desired shelf-life is going to be a deciding factor on what kind of materials can be used to create the display.
Location, location, location. Why is it so important to know early on?
Even with chain stores, there isn&#;t always a one-size-fits-all display solution because not all locations are going to have exactly the same footprint or capabilities.
Steve Champagne, Vice President of In-Store Merchandising, breaks this concept down further.
&#;Some of the brands&#; retail partners have more space than others do for fixtures,&#; he says simply. &#;Some retailers have different volume stores, and they will carry different assortments by location. So, a large fixture may work for some locations, where a smaller counter unit may be the only space or exposure they can get in smaller volume stores.&#;
More specifically, the manufacturer will want to know where within a location the display is going to be placed, especially if the fixture contains an electronic element.
&#;In terms of location of the display, it is critical to know where the display will be located in the store, as this will inform where the power will enter the display,&#; explains Model Maker Josh Govek. &#;With the display&#;s final placement in mind, cable management outside of the display can be thought out.&#;
Retailers are going to set their own standards as well, which can influence the production timeline and materials used for the display.
Perhaps a brand already has a certain desired aesthetic in mind when reaching out to a display manufacturer. Or maybe there&#;s a specific feature required for the display in question.
This is the time to talk about it.
Apart from making a display visually attractive, specific material may be necessary to create the customer experience that brands want from it.
Knowing how a display needs to be able to function is imperative in deciding on what materials are necessary to make the soundest structure, says Govek.
A key factor in material requirements is going to be if the display has any interactive elements, particularly if those elements require a power source.
&#;In my experience, if a display is going to have powered elements, we would most likely make that display with metal or wood construction to support the extra weight of those elements.&#;
He continues, &#;The more rigid materials give the display the necessary structure to present in a solid and purposeful way, especially if there is any interactivity integrated into the display.&#;
With recent supply shortages, it&#;s important to keep in mind that some materials are going to take longer to get than others. This is going to affect the timeline of getting those fixtures out into the field.
Speaking with your retail display manufacturer about these factors before going into production is going to be beneficial to your overall timeline and budget.
Safety is always the name of the game, particularly when it comes to adding electronic components to store displays.
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Certification from Underwriters Laboratories (UL) is going to be a major player in terms of placing powered displays in-store.
However, it&#;s not as cut and dry as simply using UL certified parts to create the final product, explains veteran Model Maker Joe Poborsky. Even with certified parts, the powered display itself will need to undergo its own testing to ensure that it meets UL standards as a whole.
And while UL certification is not obligatory when creating all power-operated displays, it may be a prerequisite for certain location placements.
Engineer, Paul Kahre, explains, &#;Although all our displays are engineered with safety in mind, UL listing may be required by store chains. This normally adds significantly to production lead times and costs.&#;
&#;We ask about this early on because it can take a couple weeks,&#; Poborsky adds. &#;There&#;s also a monetary impact. UL could be upwards of $20,000. That&#;s something you&#;re not going to want to learn about later on.&#;
UL certification is a major reason why a retail display manufacturer is going to inquire about the addition of power. Safety is not the only factor at play. Budgets and timelines are also going to be dependent on these certification requirements, so it&#;s better to know now.
At first thought, it may seem strange for a retail display producer to ask about an inquiring brand&#;s competitors. After all, what&#;s the advantage of knowing what a brand&#;s competitor is doing in regard to store display design?
&#;If you have a new product to launch that competes with multiple brands in your industry, the launching brand must know how their competitors are going to market,&#; explains Champagne.
Within the retail setting, no one brand exists in a vacuum.
&#;Your brand will be adjacent to the other brands on the selling floor,&#; Champagne goes on to say. &#;The fixtures that best &#;attract and engage consumers&#; and communicate your products&#; features and benefits will go a long way to persuade consumers to purchase your product over the competitors.&#;
The goal isn&#;t necessarily to have the flashiest or most expensive display. Rather, the goal is to make the best impression on potential customers and maximize the brand&#;s return on that fixture.
Starting the journey into the world of display design doesn&#;t have to be overwhelming.
Knowing the answers to and understanding these basic questions is going to go a long way when contacting a retail display manufacturer for the first time.
Once the answers to these questions are established, a brand is well on its way to creating a distinct and memorable in-store presence.
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Prior to starting any POP display or retail store fixture project, it is important to think carefully about what you are trying to accomplish. Taking the time to think through your objectives and requirements will go a long way toward helping you approach your project strategically. The benefit of investing time in planning upfront is that the design process is likely to be much more efficient and you are more likely to achieve a successful outcome.
Before starting discussions with a point of purchase display firm, you should have a pretty good idea of how to answer 20 basic questions. We&#;ll look at the first 5 questions in this blog post and save the remaining 15 questions for subsequent blog posts. So let&#;s consider the first 5 questions:
If you are looking to do an in-and-out or promotional program and are not concerned about maintaining retail space going forward, then a temporary display might be the right answer for you. However, graphic-intensive corrugated displays at low quantities can be expensive once you amortize the die-cutting fees and plate charges so you need to ensure you have a sufficient quantity to make a corrugated display cost effective.
Many customers gravitate toward a corrugated display to start out since they think it will be a cheaper solution, but it almost never makes sense for small quantities like 25 or 50 units, particularly if maintaining an ongoing presence in the retailer means you have to provide another display once your product sells through.
Permanent displays are generally a good solution if you can get a retailer to commit space to your product for a reasonable period of time so that you will be able to amortize the cost of the display over the projected sales during that period.
This sounds like a pretty basic question, but more of our customers than you would think are not really sure if they want a floor or counter display. This is somewhat understandable if they are offering a new product, and they are not really sure about their retail placement options. In general, counter space at retail is fairly limited so the majority of display requests we get are for floor displays. Counter POP displays can yield great results, particularly if you can get close to the register. However, competition for limited counter space is fierce so it is important to understand your options before engaging in the design process.
It is important to determine upfront how much product you want the display to hold. This will affect the size of the display, the strength, materials, etc. POP displays that serve as product glorifiers generally hold no product except for possibly a demo product or an unpackaged product that enables the shopper to see the product in more detail. But, most retail store displays are designed to hold product and not just serve as glorifiers. Finding the right balance regarding the amount of product you are trying to fit on your display is important. If you don&#;t put enough product on the display, you may be losing out on sales, and your presentation may suffer as a result of having a display that looks partially empty. Too much product can also be a problem since the display may take up too much floor space relative to the sales turnover the display can generate.
Trying to predict sales turnover can be tricky, but it is worth going through the exercise to ensure you are making an intelligent choice about the amount of product you decide to display. It&#;s also important to consider how your product is packed. If you pack your product by the dozen, it probably makes sense to consider a multiple of 12 for the total product count. Remember that for permanent displays you always want to consider how the display will be reloaded once your product starts to sell.
Display dimensions are a very important consideration at the front-end of the design process. Most retailers are very focused on sales per square foot so keeping you display to the smallest footprint possible is generally well advised. Providing the POP design team with general or not-to-exceed dimension guidelines will save everybody a lot of time in the design process.
In addition to overall footprint specifications, knowing what retailers will and will not accept with regard to the height of your fixture is really important. Height allowances are likely to vary by retailer. Some retailers have very strict requirements on display height, and their line-of-sight police are vigilant. If you don&#;t know exactly which retailers you will be selling, then it is better to be cautious and make your display a little shorter. The trend over the last few years has been toward shorter POP displays.
Gathering the weights and dimensions of your products prior to engaging in the POP display design process will save time. Be sure to get all dimensions, including width, depth, and height of the product. If you have a hanging product, be sure to let the design team know the hanging length and if the hole in your packing is for a single peg or if it is a butterfly hole that might require a wider OSHA hook. It is also helpful to tell the design team how many of your packages can hang on a certain length hook.
For products that will be displayed on shelves, if you have a vertical height clearance requirement, it is helpful to communicate that to the design team in the beginning. Similarly, it is important to know the weight of the product so the designers can ensure that the materials they specify are strong enough to support the weight. For both hooks and shelves, it is important to specify the right gauge of wire or sheet metal, for example, so the hooks or shelves don&#;t bend when fully loaded. In addition, this will enable the design team to calculate the total load of the display so the correct castors and other materials will be strong enough.
Jim Hollen is the owner and President of RICH LTD. (www.richltd.com), a 35+ year-old California-based point-of-purchase display, retail store fixture, and merchandising solutions firm which has been named among the Top 50 U.S. POP display companies for 9 consecutive years. A former management consultant with McKinsey & Co. and graduate of Stanford Business School, Jim Hollen has served more than brands and retailers over more than 20 years and has authored nearly 500 blogs and e-Books on a wide range of topics related to POP displays, store fixtures, and retail merchandising.
Jim has been to China more than 50 times and has worked directly with more than 30 factories in Asia across a broad range of material categories, including metal, wood, acrylic, injection molded and vacuum formed plastic, corrugated, glass, LED lighting, digital media player, and more. Jim Hollen also oversees RICH LTD.&#;s domestic manufacturing operation and has experience manufacturing, sourcing, and importing from numerous Asian countries as well as Vietnam and Mexico.
His experience working with brands and retailers spans more than 25 industries such as food and beverage, apparel, consumer electronics, cosmetics/beauty, sporting goods, automotive, pet, gifts and souvenirs, toys, wine and spirits, home improvement, jewelry, eyewear, footwear, consumer products, mass market retail, specialty retail, convenience stores, and numerous other product/retailer categories.
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