Why do people shop?

Here is a little research on the psychology of shoppers.

How are men different from women?

Understanding the psychologies of men and women while designing a retail store!

How will the principles for retail change in the future?

These are some of the principles that i came up with, after researching on Apple, Ikea and some other brands and their respective retail strategies which have made them superior to the others in the market. These principles according to me will cater to the need of the changing phenomena of shopping with the increase of online shopping.

Principles (Subject to change):

1. A Place to socialize: The store should be a place where customers can just hang out, have a fantastic experience, browse machines, talk to people and sales associates. A place where people wander around with a coffee in their hands, spending leisure time with their kids, getting fantastic service and having a little chat with the staff who they know very well. We could look more in terms of the collaboration of shopping centres, high streets with theatres, museums, galleries etc.

2. Value creation for customers: There has to be a shift from ‘How do we sell more stuff,’ to value creation. The store has to help people enrich their lives; it has to add value beyond simply providing merchandise. 

3. Integration between virtual and physical: There should be integration between the virtual and the physical experience. The retail strategy should aim to have an interaction between mobile, Internet and in-store experience in a way that creates value.

4. Intuition Oriented: While planning the retail strategy it is very important to trust your intuition much more than data. If everyone flowed the data, they would all land up in the same place. These days department stores are redundant because they import the same products, price them the same way. They carry the same percent of private label to National Brands. The people whose primary strength is data analysis drive these.

5. Leadership and Deepening Human Connections: The stores are supposed to lead their customers. They should be able to anticipate the customer’s needs even before he knows what he wants.

6. Innovation: The stores need to be more innovative and creative while forming their retail strategies. They could have a completely different relationship with the city, turning city centres into gardens or playgrounds.

7. Exclusivity of brands and products: This will help to avoid the mind from numbering sameness of a product. When you go to a mall it's the same clothes, the same gadgets, the same books etc. The store should aim to provide an experience which is not available anywhere else- it is exclusive!

8. 'A- Job-to-be-done'- a job that has high priority in peoples lives: There should be a clear formula for positioning the retail operations. 

9. Destination Shopping: The stores should be such that the customers visit the stores just to see the local ‘vibe,‘ even if there is no particular ‘need ‘for something. The questions should be –How can we reinvent the stores to enrich our customer’s lives? In doing this we might just create the space in which we can re-cast and revitalize our shopping centre communities.

10. 'Here today Gone tomorrow'- curiosity oriented: There should be a sense of excitement and urgency in the minds of the customers. Customers should be eager to know what is coming next. The retail strategies should be oriented towards something that nobody can find again. This could be something like a site for a number of pop-up stores that changes every week.

11. Experience the Products or the Brand: The brand or products should be readily available for the customers to experience and use. They should get a chance to experience the brand.

Hi, sorry haven't posted for so many days!

I am writing a book for retail display. The title of my book is going to be "Step- by- Step Guide for Retail Display Design" As the name suggests it is going to be book dedicated to those people who are interested in learning how to design retail displays. 

This book is targeting people who have an idea about branding and now want to further specialize in retail design display. My book will teach the entire process of designing a display right from the initial creative thinking strategies to the final production and presentation for the client.

I will be giving my special "tips and techniques" in the middle of the process to make it easier for my audience to follow and come up with amazing displays! This book is also a showcase for my knowledge, ideas and work. It will act as a portfolio and also an instructional piece for others to learn from.

There are some images of my initial developmental work and the major contents, will be posting updates as I write more.