Top 6 Considerations for Fashion Retail Fitout
Posted by The Team at Surestyle on 16th Mar 2022
A successful fashion store fit-out that strikes the perfect balance of function and aesthetics is no easy feat.
From planning store layout to selecting shop fixtures and fittings, a lot of decision making is required to deliver a customer experience that sells your products.
A combination of smart design, strategic planning and creativity will ultimately help guide your decision making.
Grab yourself a front row seat and read on to discover how to nail your fashion store fit-out:
- Unlocking the Value of Design Specialists
A wealth of design intelligence and strategic planning goes into executing a successful shop fit out. No matter what industry you are in, hiring professionals for design and construct of your project is highly recommended.
Though not absolutely necessary, there’s endless value in using fit-out specialists (interior designers, specifiers, construction fit-out experts) who are able to conceptualise your brand, translate it into a brick-and-mortar environment, influence customer behaviour and provide a customer experience built specifically to enhance your unique products.
- Use Your Brand Strategy to Guide Your Fit Out
Your store should ultimately be an extension of your brand itself.
If you have a brand strategy or marketing plan, it’s important to use it as a guide for the interior design and layout of your store. From the outset you need to be clear on your brand identity so that it can be accurately conveyed through your design. The goal is to translate brand image, colours, graphics, values, and messages through effective integration into the design of your store.
No matter what stage of business you are at, or whether if you are renovating, relocating or setting up a new shop, you need to customise your store to reflect your brand, products and services. That doesn’t mean that you have to start with a blank canvas, which brings us to our next point.
- Repurpose the Existing Finishes (Only If They Work)
Save time and money by using existing features and finishes of the space.
Consider the state of existing finishes in the building - the floors, ceiling, lighting, shopfront, walls, and back-of-house. Are you able to work with what is currently there and refresh rather than opting for demolition and rebuild? The more you can re-use, the more you will be able to save on your fit-out.
Before you go about making any changes to the store, be sure to get very clear on the terms and conditions of the rental property, so that there are no costly surprises. Best to get on the same page with your property agent or landlord about modifications and additions before signing the agreement.
- Selecting the Right Store Layout
How do you want your customers to interact with your store?
Everything from the position of your counter area to the strategy of your aisle mapping, placement of products, lighting, and even the spacing between products and fixtures impacts on the experience of your store. The options are endless but with a clear strategic plan, you can simplify the design phase.
There are multiple floor plan options that are commonly used for retail stores – grid, free-flow, diagonal, angular, loop, forced path, straight and geometric. Each floor plan offers your customers a different shopping experience and influence different modes of buying behaviour.
Check out The Essential Guide to Retail Store Layouts if you need more support with planning your fashion retail layout. Put your plan on paper to get a clearer picture. It will help you visualise the end goal and guide you in case you wish to mix two or more floor plans to accommodate for your range and customer profiling.
- Choosing Fixtures and Fittings for your Fashion Retail Store
Adopt the principle of ‘less is more’.
Remember, retail fixtures and fittings need to align with the brand image. Eg. formal vs industrial vs classic, etcetera.
Make sure that store fixtures don’t compete for attention with your products but instead that they should serve as the background for the presented products. You don’t want to make your store look overcrowded.
Even small spaces can seem spacious and inviting if the fixtures of a clothing store are carefully selected and limited to the most necessary elements.
Spent time to consider your use of shelving displays, storage, floor gondolas, wall panels, and wall-mounted displays for maximising space and impact. Research alternative means of displaying items, or invest in mirrors and displays that enhance the space or have dual purposes.
Optimise visual merchandising with display mobility using mannequins, accessory displays, floor displays, coat hangers and clothing racks.
Photo Sourced from: The Essential Guide to Retail Store Layouts
- Choose Modular: Modifiable Interiors Are Easier
Versatile, Flexible, Compliant and Easy-to-Install.
Modular presentation systems have revolutionised shop fit-out design and construction.
Modular systems, like flexiPlus, flexiWall, flexiVogue and Slatpanel or wall fixed shelving, are highly cost-effective and easily customisable to suit the needs of your product display. In a matter of hours, you can transform and make changes to your modular systems without the need to renovate the existing building.
Easily specified, quick to install, relocatable, removable and backed by customer support, modular display systems by SureStyle enhance brand presentation, drive sales and improves customer (and business) experience.
By choosing modular fixtures, you can easily make changes to the displays when featuring new or seasonal clothing ranges without major dismantling of the building.
Supplied with specification details, dimensions, and customer support, modular enables fast speed-of-delivery and interchangeable configurations to suit your products.
Step Up your Retail Game
Contact SureStyle
P 09 276 8878 or 0800 474 358
Visit www.surestyle.co.nz for more inspiration on project fit-outs
SureStyle is a family owned and operated business based in Auckland (New Zealand) since 1975. With over 40 years of experience in creating fixtures and designing interior spaces, we are experts in turning our client’s vision into reality.
Collaborating with us for your interior design requirements will enhance your brand, drive sales and improve the customer experience ten-fold.
Our sister company SureStyle Projects, offers 360° handling of retail store projects includes design, manufacturing, constructing and delivering. Our team specialises in locally manufactured custom fixtures and retail essentials as well as sourcing high quality imported products.