Experience Retail Now

FEBRUARY 2011

vmsd.com
M A RC
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DESIGN FIRM SURVEY

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EUROSHOP EXHIBITOR PREVIEW

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PROPS AND DECS

EYE CANDY

A playful clothing brand sets up shop in Scotland

EuroShop Preview
2011 Outlook for Design Firms
Holiday Windows Tech the Halls

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Experience Retail Now

FEBRUARY 2011
Vol. 142, No. 2

CONTENTS

COLUMNS

24

FROM THE EDITOR

VMSD EDITORIAL
ADVISORY BOARD

THE GOODS

RDC review
Pratt and Pucci get crafty
How many Peeps do
you need to make a
holiday tree?
Highlights from Greenbuild
Two-Minute Tour:
Dusseldorf and Cologne,
Germany

16 NEXT STORE

Technology guru
Jim Crawford logs on
about a new era of
experience design

40 VMSD SHOW

PREVIEW

EuroShop 2011
48 VMSD SHOWROOM

Props and decs

55 AD INDEX
56 CHECKING OUT

34

Macys Jim Sloss

F E AT U R E S
18

STRATEGIC PARTNERS

VMSD brings retailers and designers to the table

to talk about the state of design in 2011.

24

A VERY TECHY CHRISTMAS

Technology took center stage in holiday windows

around the world.

34

ON VMSD.com

UNSTUFFED

White Stuffs edgy, fun lifestyle brand stands apart

on Edinburghs grand George Street.

Exclusives in February
WINE IS FINE

On the cover White Stuffs playful visual merchandising

strategy is on display at the candy-filled cashwrap inside

its newest location in Edinburgh, Scotland.
COURTESY OF MELVIN VINCENT, LONDON

Landor introduces a new

brand strategy for Fine Wine
& Good Spirits.

SWEET TREAT

A behind-the-scenes look at
the making of Peeps holiday
tree display.

Follow VMSD on
2 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

FE

FROM THE EDITOR

Tech Talk

VMSDs new column puts you in

touch with the technology you need
to build better retail experiences.

Were a culture obsessed with the Weather Channel. Or at least it

feels that way several months out of the year as we live from snowstorm
report to snowstorm report. If you were in New York last month attending NRFs Big Show, you know what Im talking about. There were
almost as many conversations on the showfloor asking Has your flight
been canceled? as Did you see that cool new technology over there?
When I got back into the office (thankfully, with no canceled or
rerouted flights from New York to Cincinnati), there was an e-mail message from Urban Outfitters saying Snowed In? Shop Online with Us.
Even though I wasnt, I appreciated the were-in-touch-with-you
sentiment. And even for e-mail, it felt personal. True, a large segment
of their consumer base, from Atlanta to Boston, was probably experiencing some sort of weather-related delay. But who doesnt enjoy a little
shopping inspiration especially with a discount attached to it.
This simple e-mail also illustrates a brand that gets it. After all, retail
is all about the experience, and just because a shopper cant make it into
your store on a particular day doesnt mean you should lose contact.
One of the biggest challenges for retailers in 2011 is learning to link
all brand touchpoints together. Gone are the days when your in-store
experience was separate from your online experience, from your Facebook experience. Today, its all about one seamless experience.
But retailers need some help. As Jim Crawford, executive director of
the Global Retail Executive Council and a principal at Taberna Retail
(Los Angeles), points out in his debut column Next Store (see page
16), consumers have rapidly adopted new technologies in their daily
lives while retail stores are stuck back in the 90s with clunky kiosks
and overhead TV monitors.
His vision of the future involves not only more advanced, immersive in-store technologies but also design and retail professionals who
design with the entire experience in mind, including at home, on-thego and in the store.
Well use this column to explore many of the technologies creating
the biggest impact on the next-generation shopping experience, says
Crawford, not from the IT-centric point of view, but rather how they
become tools for the store designer to create artful experiences.
Today that experience that can start anywhere. At the storefront. In
the fitting room. With a computer screen on a snowy day. The important
detail isnt where it started. Its about focusing on how to keep it going.

4 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

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EDITORIAL
Editor Anne DiNardo
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Senior Art Director Kimberly Pegram
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Editor at Large Steve Kaufman
steve.kaufman@stmediagroup.com
New York Editor Eric Feigenbaum
European Editor John Ryan, London

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vmsd editorial
advisory board

EAB

r e ta i l ers
Bevan Bloemendaal
Senior Director, Global Creative Services
Timberland
Rick Burbee
Divisional VP Home Design/Trend
Sears Holdings Corp.
Max Carmona
Senior Director
McDonalds USA
Tim Cox
Director, Creative Services
Publix Super Markets
DAVID CURTIS
Director, Store Design North America
Starbucks Coffee Co.
matt davison
Director, Store Design and Planning
Kohls Department Stores
Linda Fargo
Senior VP, Fashion Director and Store
Presentation
Bergdorf Goodman
Tracey finger
Senior Manager Retail Creative
Apple
Jason Floyd
Director, Store Development
GameStop Inc.
Amy Garrigan
VP, Brand Development
Family Christian Stores
Beth Harlor
Associate Director CBDi Design
Procter & Gamble
Jack Hruska
Executive VP, Creative Services
Bloomingdales
victor johnson
Director, Store Environment
White House | Black Market
Jeffrey Key
Store Environment Manager - Store
Planning
Lowes Companies Inc.
hak kim
Director of Store Design
Tumi

Jay Kratz
Architect, Senior Design Manager
Store Design
Luxottica Retail
sharon lessard
VP, Store Design
SuperValu Inc.
Dave Lindsey
Corporate VP, Store Planning
Nordstrom
david milne
VP, Architecture and Design
Carlson Restaurants Worldwide
Jose Raul Padron
Senior Visual Manager
Godiva Chocolatier
Tracey Peters
National Visual and Merchandising
Manager
Holt Renfrew
Stephanie Picone
VP, Marketing/Visual
IZOD Retail
Ken Pray
Director, Store Design
The Kroger Co.
reginaldo reyes
Senior Design Lead
Target
Kevin Ruehle
Store Layout, Senior Director, Prototype
Design & Evolution
Walmart
James Sloss
VP, Design|SPACE
Macy's Inc.
Todd Taylor
Director of Design
Darden Restaurants Inc.
Jan Tribbey
VP, Store Design & Construction
Victorias Secret Stores
Limited Brands
Parisa Zander
Director, Worldwide Visual Merchandising,
Store Design
Microsoft

Lynn Knutson
Visual Merchandising Program Manager
Harley-Davidson

DE SIGN/ i n dustry CON SULTANTS

Tom Beebe
Creative Consultant/Stylist
Michael Bodziner
Principal
Gensler
Jim Crawford
Executive Director
Global Retail Executive Council
Steven Derwoed
Senior VP and Managing Director
Callison RYA Studio
peter dixon
Senior Partner, Creative Director
Prophet
Bruce Dybvad
President
Interbrand Design Forum
niki fitzgerald
VP, Managing Creative Director
Graphic Design
FRCH Design Worldwide

Miho Koshido
Creative Director
JGA
Kevin ODonnell
Founder
Thread Collaborative
tara o'neil
Chief Creative Officer
Perennial Inc.
Lee Peterson
Executive VP, Creative Services
WD Partners
todd rowland
Director of Design, Retail
Little
Randy Sauer
Principal
MulvannyG2 Architecture
Brian Shafley
President
Chute Gerdeman

Bryan Gailey
VP Retail Design Director
Arc Worldwide

randall stone
Senior Partner
Lippincott

Les Hiscoe
VP, Retail Group
Shawmut Design and Construction

Dimitri Vermes
VP
CBX

david hogrefe
Managing Director
Fitch

rachel zsembery
Associate
Bergmeyer & Associates

jeffrey hutchison
President
Jeffrey Hutchison & Associates

TG
THE GOODS

Edited by Anne DiNardo

A.R.E. Retail Design Collective

Several records were broken in December as A.R.E.,
the Association for Retail Environments, hosted the
annual Retail Design Collective, Dec. 8 -10. The 2011
event involved more showrooms than ever, greater
traffic (including a strong international contingent)
and a record-breaking crowd at the 14th PAVE Gala.
The show headquarters at 7 W New York hosted
18 of the 36 showrooms as well as conference sessions and networking events. During VMSDs session
on visual merchandising trends, New York editor Eric
Feigenbaum and panelists Lauren Shaw of Louis
8 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

Vuitton, Tom Davidson of Food Emporium and Paul

Olszewski of Macys Herald Square discussed the
role of visual merchandising as the communicator
of the brand and the use of technology, handcrafted
props and color to help in that effort.
Our job is to captivate our clients and envelope
them in a sense of what our brand is, said Shaw.
Olszewski added, Its more important than ever to
define who we are.
Many showrooms displayed new materials, finishes and product lines to help retailers in their

10

11

13

12

14
quest for something new and fresh. Brass and black
chrome finishes were popular in fixturing, reflecting a desire for a warmer materials palette. Textures
could be seen everywhere, whether displayed on
mannequins or in visual props. Vintage looks, including the mixing of metals and woods, also showed a
renewed popularity in many of the showrooms.
During the PAVE Gala, held on December 8,
Leonard Barszap, studio design manager at d-ash
design (New York), received the 2010 Rising Star
Award. VMSD also presented its eighth annual Excellence in New York Visual Merchandising and Design
awards to retailers Aeropostale and Ralph Lauren.
Next years show is scheduled for December 7-9.

15
1 PAVE Gala 2 Rising Star winner Leonard Barszap (left),
d-ash design, with last years winner, Travis Burnham from
J.Crew 3 JP Metal America 4 Lifestyle/Trimco 5 Holiday
Image 6 Bernstein Display | MC 7 Universal Display &
Design 8 Elevations Inc. 9 Mondo Mannequins 10 Adel
Rootstein 11 CNL Mannequins 12 DK Display 13 Patina-V
14 Holiday Foliage 15 Megavision Inc.

Anne DiNardo

vmsd.com | FEBRUARY 2011

the goods

Teragren

antoin e b o ot z , n e w yor k

Greenbuild 2010 Review

White Paper
Students at Pratt Institute School of Art and Design partnered with
Ralph Pucci Intl. (New York) on Pratt+Paper & Ralph Pucci this
past December. Students outfitted 20 of the manufacturers new
Girl 2 mannequins in fashions constructed entirely of white paper.
A panel of judges selected the top three designs, with the top prize
(shown) going to Dana Otto, an industrial design student at Pratt.
In January, the exhibit was featured inside the windows at Macys
Herald Square before getting ready for transport to EuroShop. For
more images, visit VMSD.com.

Shopping will continue to

be this nations highest form
of entertainment.
Jerry Storch, ceo, Toys R Us
Source: USA Today, November 28, 2010

10 February 2011 | vmsd.com

Last falls annual Greenbuild conference in Chicago

opened with retired Gen. Colin Powell touting sustainable
building as part of a bigger purpose. But as noble as the
green design concept is, the movement wont be furthered
by idealism alone. Luckily, the tradeshow floor was stocked
with products made with consideration for both the natural
environment and the retail environment.
Teragren showed off its recently expanded Portfolio
Collection of bamboo flooring (shown), an alternative to
rainforest hardwoods that is currently being used in Timberland stores. Recycled leather tiles by Eco Domo, which
the company says can be found on the floors and walls of
such retailers as Starbucks, Levis and Guess, reuse leather
scraps left over from the production of other goods.
Several companies unveiled new cork products, ranging
from wood floor replacements to countertops. Expankos
new cork flooring line includes high-end residential looks,
which can be found in specialty apparel stores such as
J.Crew. High-density cork countertops made by Suberra
turn cork from the wine industry into a completely nonporous surface with the same density as oak.
Re-use is also the name of the game at Eco Timber,
which has developed a flooring product made from furniture manufacturing industry waste. Alkemis recycled surfacing materials are made of post-industrial waste, offering
alternatives to stone, glass, plastic and wood, and Alkemi
says it can be found in Neiman Marcus Cusp stores.
The lighting industry demonstrated its continuing evolution, as Cooper Lighting unveiled its Combolight Next
Generation recessed LED with dimmable, adjustable
18-watt LEDs replacing 90-watt PAR38s. Lutron offered
a host of new technologies aimed at increasing efficiency
among lighting systems, including occupancy and daylight
sensors and CFL and LED dimmers and controls.
Green design is here to stay. If Greenbuild 2010 was any
indication, so is the continued evolution of products that
are thoughtfully sourced and creatively designed. DC

j oh n g ran e n, te rag ren llc

TG

JPMA-VMSD-Ad_01172011.pdf 2011-01-17 16:47:20

CM

MY

CY

CMY

TG

the goods

Colorium
building in
Duesseldorf,
Germany

Rhine River and Dom in

Cologne, Germany
Mediahafen harbour in Duesseldorf, Germany

Two-Minute Tour: Dusseldorf and Cologne, Germany

The Numbers

The Hotspots

Dusseldorf and Cologne are located in the heart of Europes Blue

Banana, a corridor of urbanization that stretches from Northwest
England in the north to Milan in the south. They are the largest economic centers and the highest populated cities in Germanys RhineRuhr metropolitan region, a megacity located within the federal
state of North-Rhine-Westphalia. The Rhine-Ruhr region is home
to more than 10 million residents and 12 Fortune 500 companies,
and it accounts for about 15 percent of the countrys GDP. Cologne
is home to 70,000 of the regions 300,000 college students and hosts
more than 50 trade fairs and 2000 conventions per year, which
draw many of the regions 12 million visitors per year.

Colognes Hohe Strasse is a popular street among tourists for its

trendy retail chains and it runs directly into Schildergasse, Europes
busiest shopping street, with more than 13,000 people passing
through per hour, according to market research company GfK.
Schildergasse houses flagships of some of the best known German
and European fashion brands, including Gucci and Prada. In Dusseldorf, Konigsallee is one of Germanys most exclusive shopping
destinations, housing Armani, Jil Sander and Chanel flagships,
among others. In 2009, Cologne-based Rewe Group, Germanys
second-largest food retailing company, launched Temma, an urban
market concept combining elements of a convenience store, deli,
natural food store and caf.

The Pulse
Cologne has a youthful feel, says Claudia Horbert, director research
store planning and design, EHI Retail Institute (Cologne), adding
that the citys large student population attracts a wide range of fashion retailers and serves as a test market for new concepts. Colognes
Globetrotter concept store allows shoppers to test outerwear and
outdoors equipment in rooms that simulate extreme elements.
Dusseldorf is the countrys political and fashion center and its
residents higher incomes and strong buying power support
designer labels and other luxury retail, Horbert adds. Local fashion
businesses bring in $19.8 billion a year, with the regions biggest
fashion retailers Esprit, C&A and fashion department store Peek &
Cloppenburg generating $7.4 billion.

12 February 2011 | vmsd.com

The Opportunities/Obstacles
German consumers are price sensitive, Horbert says, but outside
retailers must be aware that they dont make purchases based on
price alone. Its very important to have something special that distinguishes your company from all the others, she says, noting that
Swedish and Spanish fashion retailers are already offering quality
products at low prices. Food retailers in Germany face state-regulated limitations on store size, which have kept supermarkets from
entering the market so far. Fashion continues to be a strong sector
in Dusseldorf, which is home to five fashion schools and actively
supports the local scene through sponsorships of events and
awards. Danny Cross

See us at Euroshop 2011

HALL 04
STAND-N 4D35

HANS BOODT.
CREATING
CHARACTERS

WWW.HANSBOODT.COM

TG

the goods

A Peeps-ful Season
Forget a partridge in a pear tree. Visitors to The Gaylord Hotel
(National Harbor, Md.) this past holiday season could see the first
ever Peeps holiday tree constructed of the marshmallow treats.
Here, VMSD breaks down the display by the numbers:

For more on the making of the

Peeps tree, visit VMSD.com.
Retailer

Just Born Inc. (parent company of

Peeps & Co.), Bethlehem, Pa.
Creative Direction

ZenGenius, Columbus, Ohio

184

Peeps on the star

311

20 feet

Hours to construct

Height of tree

2025

Glue sticks used to adhere

Peeps to tree structure

336

Chick and Pink Bunny Peeps

used for ornaments

6000+

7 feet

Total number of
Peeps used on tree

Diameter of the tree

Rolls of chicken wire that wrap

the structures aluminum frame

11

Glue gun burns

15

Classic Chick Peeps

on tree skirt

287

Classic Chicks and Pink Bunnies

used as ribbon on presents

14 February 2011 | vmsd.com

258

Chocolate Mousse
Reindeer for the trunk

Ri ch ar d Ca dan , Fa irf i e ld, Con n .

203

Peeps eaten
during installation

Its All About the List

Supermarkets are scientifically designed to capture the attention of impulse shoppers: the tempting rack near the checkout line, the eye-catching
endcap display, the point-of-sale signage.
The problem with that strategy: Its largely
pointless!
At least according to a recent report by The
NPD Group (Port Washington, N.Y.), which found
that 94 percent of U.S. households prepare a written list prior to grocery shopping. And 72 percent
of shoppers never or only occasionally veer
from that list.
Before they ever enter a grocery store, most
U.S. households have already made the majority
of their purchasing decisions, and rarely buy on
impulse, says the report, Before the Store.
Its all about getting on the list, says Ann Hanson, executive director of product development
and author of the report, to focus on the consumers at home before they leave for the store. x
Steve Kaufman

call for entries

2010 Winner
Macys Herald Square Paper

VMSD International
Visual Competition
Enter VMSDs 17th annual International Visual Competition,
celebrating great achievements in visual merchandising,
storewide promotions and window displays.
For more information and entry form, visit VMSD.com.
(Look under Competitions on the Hot Topics page.)

Deadline: February 28, 2011

Direct questions to:
Anne DiNardo / anne.dinardo@stmediagroup.com / 513-263-9337

NS

nex t store
By Jim Crawford

A Brand-New Tool Kit

How advancing in-store technology is

leading to a new era of experience design.

it easy when it came to technology as a part of their

design tool kit. The IT department would specify
the size of the point-of-sale terminals, perhaps a big
blocky kiosk unit replacing a well-designed endcap,
or maybe marketing would add a clunky TV over an
aisle to show paid ads from brands carried in the
store. Simple concepts that didnt challenge the
basic premises of traffic flow, visual merchandising,
layout and design.
But fast-forward to 2011, where shoppers armed
with smartphones roam store aisles checking prices
and searching Facebook for shopping advice from
friends; where iPads have (literally) put the alwayson power of e-commerce into the hands of shoppers
in the stores; and where multiple HD televisions
throughout the home have become the norm rather

The dam has burst and technology is now

racing into stores like a floodwater. But its
being controlled by the shopper.
than the centerpiece of an expensive media room.
The reality is that consumers especially shoppers
have rapidly adopted new technologies in their
daily lives.
Retail stores, on the other hand, have lingered
back in the stone age of the 1990s. Consider that
p-o-s systems and kiosks still dominate the technology footprint of stores, and shoppers looking for
product information are more apt to Google it on
their mobile phones than find a sales associate to
ask. Despite a huge hype in the mid-2000s around
the store of the future, most of the innovation has
been on the back end.
Technology prices have come dramatically down
over the years, shoppers are clamoring for new experiences and retail management teams strive to differentiate from the competition by any and all means.
So why has it been so hard for next-generation shopping technology to get into the stores?
16 February 2011 | vmsd.com

Over the years, retail has adopted a strategy of

embracing multichannel retail, separating the
shopping experience into channels and assigning
organizational responsibility over each channel. This
worked well for the past decade, as retailers accepted
a certain loss of control over the shopping experience
on the Web (where competitors and information
about prices and products were only a click away)
while retaining control of the shopping experience
inside their stores.
Unfortunately, shoppers didnt stay in the neat
little channel lines retailers laid down for them. The
cracks in the dam started subtly: A shopper walks
into a Best Buy store carrying a printout from bestbuy.com, asking why the price is different on the web
site than the signage in the store. Grocery cashiers
are handed coupons printed off the Internet that
seem too good to be true, yet ring up correctly. Then
suddenly, that same shopper is waving a cell phone,
demanding price matching for a competitor that the
retailer didnt even know existed. The dam has burst
and technology is now racing into stores like a floodwater. But its being controlled by the shopper.
Its this phenomenon technology change driven
by the shopper, not by the IT department that
presents both the greatest challenge and the greatest
opportunity to store designers.
The Challenge
The biggest problem retailers face today is organizational apathy. The boundary lines around responsibility for the shopper have been drawn too strongly.
IT sees its role to support, not to innovate; e-com-

Tabe rna Re ta i l , Lo s Ang el es

Just five short years ago, store designers had

merce/multichannel departments take care of online

shopping, but end their vision with store finders
and product locators; marketing manages Facebook
pages and Twitter streams, but doesnt touch the
shopper in the store; and store designers pick up the
shopper at the store entrance.
Few retailers have anyone who thinks about the
end-to-end shopping experience from the customers
point of view other than perhaps the ceo.
This begs the question: Which discipline will take
the lead in crafting the next-generation shopping
experience using new technologies? For store designers, this sea-change in technology opens up a whole
world of opportunity to redefine their role in the retail
enterprise. Retail executives must master not only the
science of the technology (the bits and bytes), but,
more importantly, the art of understanding how these
technologies are used by shoppers to create a more
compelling and effective shopping experience. Out
of all the possible leaders within the retail enterprise,
only store design has the blending of art and science
necessary to embrace these new technologies.
The recent NRF Big Show expo in New York
illustrated this perfectly: The show floor was chock
full of innovative technology, but without a guide,
store designers were forced to wander through a
bewildering array of booths filled with buzzwords
rather than leveragable solutions.
The Path Forward
Over the course of the next year, we will use this
column to explore many of the technologies creating
the biggest impact on the next-generation shopping
experience, not from the IT-centric point of view, but
rather how they become tools for the store designer
to create artful experiences. For many of these, a
deep technical understanding is far less important
than a conceptual understanding of how shoppers
actually use them.
Armed with this knowledge, designers need to
shift their thinking around their role from store
design to experience design, encompassing all the
various touchpoints with a shopper: at home, on-thego and in the store. By transforming the discipline
into a single perspective on the shopper as she moves
through the shopping process, todays store designers
will become tomorrows creators of the unified shopping experience.
Where to Begin
Rather than diving into the specifics of smartphone

market share or application development strategy,

store designers need to start by grounding themselves
in the three key areas of shopper-centric technology.
1) Mobile Retailing . Shoppers are armed with

smartphones that offer high-definition touchscreen

interaction, location-awareness, camera interfaces
and an always on Internet connection. Couple this
with the easy download of apps, making it simple
for anyone to add new programs to their phone,
and shoppers have a powerful tool in their hands to
check prices, read reviews, locate products, manage lists and just about any other shopping feature
imaginable.
Retailers need to look at how the mobile device
fits into the store experience, and store designers
need to seize the opportunity to begin incorporating
smartphones into the ways they see shoppers interacting in stores.
2) Social Retailing. Facebook has been a near-

unstoppable force, skyrocketing to over a half-billion

users around the world in less than five years. Its
making a huge impact on the world of e-commerce,
but its poised to impact retailing even more directly:
200 million Facebook users access the service on
their phones, and those who do so spend about twice
as much time as other users on Facebook. Whether
its posting a review of a product, checking in at
stores and restaurants or asking friends in real-time
for information and recommendations on products
and services, shoppers are increasingly blurring the
lines and using Facebook in stores.
3) New In-Store Technologies. Today, radical

new technologies make the in-store experience

even more immersive. From HD projectors that can
light up entire buildings to interfaces that actually
read what a shopper is doing and respond without a
mouse or touchscreen, the possibilities for shoppers
to engage with immersive touchpoints in the store
have grown exponentially over the past five years.
By approaching these new technology paradigms
with a new set of eyes and looking to pull them into
the disciple of store design along art, architecture
and materials science, store designers can create
powerful new experiences that delight shoppers.
This will make experience design more profitable for
the retail enterprise and strategically more relevant
and important than ever before. x

Jim Crawford is executive

director of the Global Retail
Executive Council (grec), an
international association,
and a principal at Taberna
Retail, a global retail shopping
experience consulting company.
He will share his knowledge
on developing in-store
technologies and trends in a
bi-monthly column for VMSD.
You can reach him at http://
about.me/jimcrawford.
vmsd.com | February 2011

17

By Steve Kaufman, Editor at Large

Strategic Partners
Retail is re-examining what good design means. The new buzzword is customer-centric, and
todays design firm is increasingly being called on for cultural and demographic expertise as
much as for designing a store.

In a slowly improving economic climate, retailers

are looking for innovative answers. And, as strategic
initiatives begin to open up again, theyre turning to
an old resource for new services.
To develop our annual picture of the design firm
business, weve brought both sides of the business
to the table. Joining us this year to discuss the health
of the industry, 2011-style, are four members of the
VMSD Editorial Advisory Boards design consultancy
component: David Hogrefe of Fitch (Columbus,
Ohio), Tara ONeil of Perennial (Toronto), Todd
Rowland of Little (Charlotte, N.C.) and Brian Shafley of Chute Gerdeman (Columbus, Ohio). And,
to get the retail perspective, we were joined by
representatives of two of the countrys largest organizations: Ken Pray, director of store design for The
Kroger Co., and Jim Sloss, vp, design/SPACE, for
Macys Inc.
What did they tell us? That retailers and brands
are trying to zero in on the way consumers behave
and how theyre motivated by their shopping environments. The buzzword of the day is customercentric. And, as those habits and needs are being
turned into store design elements, design firms find
themselves morphing into strategic and research
resources valued as much for their experience and
insights as for their design capabilities.

18 February 2011 | vmsd.com

VMSD: How has this economy changed the

design firm business?

Brian Shafley: The projects are more strategic in

nature, not so bricks-and-mortar-related. And were
dealing a lot more with top retailing executives.
David Hogrefe: Weve been working with several
brands on retail activation projects. And there have
been more opportunities to think about how to really,
truly engage consumers in new and interesting ways.
Tara ONeil: There does seem to be a growing appreciation for our insights about strategy. I dont know if
its because retailers realize there really is a return on
investment for it, but were having to sell a little less
hard on why strategys important.
So it seems youre no longer being looked at
strictly for your design and architecture
capabilities but also for your knowledge of
the retail business?

Shafley: Definitely. We not only understand the selling environment but we also have an acute understanding of shopping behavior, what motivates people to buy, how demographics affect shopping, and
also how to integrate all these various tools brand
communications, digital technology, visual merchandising, etc.

VMSD Design Firm Roundtable Participants:

Design Consultants

David Hogrefe,
managing director,
Fitch

Tara ONeil,
chief creative officer,
Perennial

retailers

Todd Rowland,
director of design, retail,
Little

Brian Shafley,
president,
Chute Gerdeman

Ken Pray,
director of store design,
The Kroger Co.

Jim Sloss,
vp, design/SPACE,
Macys

Hogrefe: I think were all paying a lot more attention

to consumers, too, and their shifting needs and their
expectations, which continue to grow every year
exponentially. How do you make the shopping experience fun, lively, interesting and convenient? The
strategies are driven by involving the consumers in
the process of the design and the solution and paying
a lot more attention to what they say and want. Weve
been preaching consumer-centricity for years and I
think its really hit its stride in the last year.

Ken Pray: Over the past four years, we have become

entirely customer-centric. Were not making a fashion statement. We can no longer try to please just
ourselves, as supermarket executives and designers.
We have to connect the design with our customers.
We have to make sure theres a return on investment
when we make any physical change in the store.
There has to be something we can point to that actually moves the dial that our customers really like
and that we can back up with research data.

Are retailers seeing the changing

relationship in the same way?

Are you enlisting design firms to perform

any of this research?

Jim Sloss: Yes. Our focus these days is on growing

same-store sales, launching new initiatives, refocusing on branding elements. And with that workload,
were turning to our consultants for some of those services. Were also asking them to do research, to help
us fill what knowledge we have and maybe give us a
different perspective on what our assumptions were.

Pray: Yes, to a certain degree. I think the reason to go

outside to design services and consultants is to bring
us some ideas, some concepts, because weve got to
get outside of our own walls.

retailers and brands are zeroing in on the

way consumers behave and how theyre
motivated by their shopping environments.

vmsd.com | February 2011

19

Are you handing the design firm a fairly

specific brief? Or are you saying, This is what
we dont want, this is what hasnt worked,
now you guide us through the wilderness?

Hi, Tech
VMSD: There seems to be an enormous
potential for new technology in the
stores, and thats going to require some
design integration. Do design firms see
this as a brave new world for them?

Hogrefe: We have to start thinking about

technology from the consumers point of view.
What does she have in her purse? How do we
become more engaging with the customer
and the use of her smart phone? How do we
communicate to draw her in, and how do we
communicate once shes in the store?
But is that your normal area of
expertise?

Shafley: Just because its technology doesnt

mean you have different fundamentals to deal
with. You still have to grab the customers attention and give her what she needs to make
a selection. And if you dont do that, it just
becomes gee-whiz technology, a cool factor but
not a whole lot of return on investment.
ONeil: Weve put a number of digital signs into
stores, only to see dark screens as time went on.
So now were being asked to develop content
and keep it going, both for digital and social
media. Clients are saying to us, If youre going
to suggest that, you actually have to bring us actual solutions, as well, and maintain them for us.

Pray: We try to be very careful not to give the design

firm solutions. We dont hand designers a color palette and say design with this in mind. We think
thats where their expertise should be. But there are
qualitative concepts about space that we hear our
customers talking about all the time: It should be
welcoming, warm, non-cluttered, inviting. It should
make them happy to be in the space. That will form
the design parameters and become the guidelines.
Sloss: We have plenty of knowledge and research on
customers preferences, but were looking for a fresh
outlook. If theres any tendency we have, its to revert
to our old standard ways or convince ourselves that
we tried that before and it wouldnt work now. Outside design firms have experience with other retailers
or other situations and can provide a compelling, convincing message. Sometimes, the message is a validation of what weve done; sometimes, it will take us
away from where our old habits have always led us.
Shafley: Because we work in a lot of different categories, and a lot of different retail channels and
segments, we can pull together ideas from those
different corners in new and fresh ways. Thats one
thing we always go to market with: this ability to
have a fresh angle on a problem the retailer has been
experiencing.
Retailers, prior experience is not always the
key to solving problems, is it?

Pray: Experience is a great thing, but its also a liability. It can help us see clearly where weve been, but
what we really need to understand is, more aspirationally, where are we going? What are the things we
dont know yet?
Hogrefe: And we can bring both kinds of thinking
into the equation. A lot of times, we challenge our

20 February 2011 | vmsd.com

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clients by asking, Why do you do it that way? The

answer is often, Because weve always done it that
way. If you look at certain industries within retail,
and you look at photographs from 25 years ago and
photographs today, theres often not a lot of change.

Higher, and Hire

VMSD: The additional capabilities youve
all mentioned suggest that youll have
to add staff. Is that what youre all
experiencing?

Shafley: Yes, but there has been a change in

composition. Its less architects and engineers,
more people with branding and technological
capabilities.
Hogrefe: Were hiring across the board, looking
for designers who have knowledge and skill and
are also bold and ambitious in their thinking.
We want people who can ask, and answer,
How does technology play into the consumer
shopping experience? And how do we make
this brand, or this retailer, stand out and be different in new ways?
Rowland: Essentially, for our retail team here at
Little, it has been primarily about stability. And
were now seeing increased activity in several
retail sectors that has enabled us to make a few
key hires.
ONeil: Our business is as busy as its ever been.
As such, weve been hiring like crazy for the
traditional skill sets, like architecture, interior
design, industrial design, graphics, communications, writers and client services. Well be almost
doubling our size, both at our studio in Toronto
and our office in Bangalore, India.

22 February 2011 | vmsd.com

Design firms, does that affect how you deal

with your clients?

Todd Rowland: Definitely. Most consultancies now

bring a pretty robust team of experience from more
than just design and interiors. We also examine the
client organization, seeing how various departments
interact with one another. We overhear things, get a
sense of their culture, hear how store planning talks to
marketing, what marketings niches are, where some
of the rubs are in terms of getting things initiated.
More than just design and interiors.
In fact, weve talked very little about
designing stores. Are all of these ancillary
services being developed because there just
arent many new stores being built? Is that
not coming back?

Shafley: Were seeing signs of a pick-up in activity.

But most of our clients and prospective clients are
looking at it as more of an integrated process, multichannel strategies and bringing technology into the
stores, part of a larger effort to reposition their business. And you cant do that without changing the
stores themselves. So I do think there is new-store
development happening, though its not at the absolute numbers it used to be.
Hogrefe: A lot of retailers are testing new format
concepts and different sizes, playing with size and
shapes and geographical locations.
Pray: All of that is true. But I think the overall store
design is more of a backdrop for merchandising elements that connect with our customers and make
their experience relevant. The rest is kind of background anyway and Im not sure anyone gets excited
about that. x

24 February 2011 | vmsd.com

By Danny Cross, Associate Editor

A Very Techy Christmas

Last year marked the first time in his 18 years at
Neiman Marcus that Ignaz Gorischek, vp, store
development, repeated a specific holiday window
element. After incorporating a 90-foot crawl tube
into 2009s future sources of energy holiday display, this years interactive journey took kids to the
moon using 200 feet of crawl tube. Inside the tube,
children were able to navigate their way through
windows depicting several stages of space travel,
from blast off to touch down, even following the tube
outside the windows, over the sidewalk and around
the corner before re-entering the display.
Neiman Marcus also added something for adults
in the form of six different texting stations where
onlookers could control special effects from their
phones, such as activating space figures. The installation included augmented reality features the
retailer has never before attempted, including a
dancing robot, rocket blasting off and a solar system,
which were activated via a cell phone or special QR
code printed on visitors space passports. More than
8000 people played along.
What were learning through this is that people
will stop and engage the window if you motivate
them to do so, Gorischek says. Were using these
technologies for entertainment now, but what were
learning is that we can use them as marketing and
selling tools, too.
Several other retailers put new technologies to
work inside their windows. At Saks Fifth Avenues
New York flagship, a 3-D projection on the buildings
faade simulated snow gathering on the ledges and
bubbles floating out the windows. Bloomingdales

used a mosaic of overlapping flatscreen TVs to show

dreamy, winter forest landscapes.
Macys Herald Square, which has been implementing technology into its windows for the last
several years, combined the traditional 1897 classic
Yes, Virginia, with animation, voiceovers and strategically placed LCD screens in a theatrically styled
remake.
Some of the LCD screens are obvious, but some
are hidden within buildings and scenery to give the
viewer that extra little bit of surprise, says Paul
Olszewski, Macys director of windows.
Enjoy VMSDs collection of the best holiday windows of 2010 and be sure to log onto vmsd.com for
more head-turning displays.

1 Neiman Marcus, Dallas

Big Encounters of the Little Kind
Ignaz Gorischek, vp store development
Photography: Charlie Mayer, Chicago

vmsd.com | February 2011

25

2 Hugo Boss, New York

Holiday Window 2010
Lisa Chamberlain, Hugo Boss; Matthew
Schwam, president/ceo, Holiday Image
Photography: Kathy Wong Boegh, Queens, N.Y.

3 Saks Fifth Avenue, New York

The Snowflake and the Bubble
Julio Gomez, window director
Photography: Courtesy of Saks Fifth Avenue/
Richard Cadan Photography, Fairfield, Conn.

26 February 2011 | vmsd.com

4 Guess, Hollywood
Winter White Holiday
Anthony Saracino, visual merchandising
creative manager
Photography: Jesse Tenorlo, Culver City, Calif.

5 Macys, New York

Yes, Virginia
Paul Olszewski, director of windows
Photography: Richard Cadan Photography,
Fairfield, Conn.

vmsd.com | February 2011

27

28 February 2011 | vmsd.com

6 Bloomingdales, New York

Holiday 2010
Jack Hruska, executive vp of creative services
Photography: Willo Font, New York

7 The Bay, Toronto

Holiday 2010
Ana Fernandes, creative design manager
Photography: James Dioron, Toronto

8 Halls Crown center, Kansas City, Mo.

Wishing You the Very Best
Don Rogers, visual merchandising manager
Photography: Hollis Officer, Kansas City

9 Holt Renfrew, Toronto

Happy Christmas
John Gerhardt, creative director
Photography: Deryck Lewis, Toronto

vmsd.com | February 2011

29

10

10 Tiffany, New York

The Blue Bird
Richard Moore, vp visual and
creative services; Lucy-Ann
Bouwman, Sightgeist Design
Photography: Pax Whitford/Chris
Akelian, New York/Massachusetts

11 Apple, global
iPhone FaceTime Holiday Window
Michael Fisher, senior creative
director; Tracey Finger, manager,
retail creative
Photography: Circe Photography
LLC, New York

11

30 February 2011 | vmsd.com

Bernstein VMSD Feb 2011:Bernstein Dec AW

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T. 212.337.9578 F. 212.337.9579 WWW.BERNSTEINDISPLAY.COM WWW.MC-COLLECTIONS.COM

12

12 M
 yer Melbourne, Melbourne,
Australia
The Nutcracker and the King of Mice
Wayne Latham, general manager visual brand
Photography: Rob Anderson Photography, South
Yarra, Victoria, Australia

13 Bergdorf Goodman, New York

Wish You Were Here
David Hoey, senior director, visual merchandising/
window designer
Photography: Ricky Zehavi, New York x

13

32 February 2011 | vmsd.com

EuroShop

The Global Retail Trade Fair

Dusseldorf, Germany
Feb. 26 - Mar. 3, 2011
www.euroshop.de

Visit Us: Hall 4, Stand 4M01

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Inside White Stuff s new George Street emporium,

a traditional British red phone box is home to a
computer monitor that allows shoppers to access
additional inventory online.

UNSTUFFED
A cheeky lifestyle brand takes up residence
on the toniest street in Edinburgh.
By John Ryan, European Editor

34 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

George Street is the grandest thoroughfare in the

august city of Edinburgh, with much of its length
filled with law offices, side by side with retail stores
of the kind that only those with a lawyers salary
could afford to frequent. However, there are a few
exceptions, and the latest arrival is one of them.
White Stuff, a fashion retailer out of the edgy
London suburb of Brixton, is markedly cheaper than
what is normally expected of George Street but it
adds a dash of mid-market fun, making its arrival here
something of an event. There are, in fact, two parallel
major shopping streets in Edinburgh, George and
Princes streets, and the latter is where youd expect

M elv i n V i nce nt, Lon do n

The Edinburgh
stores been a year
in the making and
there will be more
White Stuff stores
similar to it, but
definitely not the
same, in 2011.

vmsd.com | February 2011

35

Above Wooden gardening

sheds at the back of the

store serve as the mens
fitting rooms, deliberately
aged with a centerfold
from a 1970s tabloid
newspaper attached to
the inside of each of the
fitting room doors.

36 February 2011 | vmsd.com

to find a store like White Stuff. The decision by the

retailer to open on George Street was in part opportunist (a site became available), but it was also a conscious choice to locate in a more chichi destination.
Lifestyle brand White Stuff, founded in the
1980s by two ski bums, was built around fun and
loveliness, according to Lee Cooper, creative director. The new two-floor, 6600-square-foot store is the
retailers first emporium, more than twice the size
of any of the 74 other White Stuff locations.
Here, Cooper and his team have taken an old-fash-

ioned ironmongery shop, Grays of George Street, and

opened up the interior to restore much of its Victorian
integrity, with everything from the elaborately carved
wooden staircase to the heavily moulded ceilings getting attention. Everything was covered up and had
been hidden by 1960s shopfitting, says Cooper.
But its the visual merchandising, which is central
to the White Stuff philosophy, that really defines this
interior, brought to life by Cooper and Lou Burnett,
head of shop interiors for the brand.
Burnett works by collecting suitable props for a

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Above Each of the womens

fitting rooms has its own

vintage wardrobe door
entrance and theme,
including a Scottish room,
boasting tartan wallpaper,
and a toy-strewn childs
playroom. The bathroomthemed room (top right)
comes complete with a
toilet seat thats glued down
to prevent it being mistaken
for the real thing.

38 February 2011 | vmsd.com

new store opening and hoarding them in a Brixton

warehouse ahead of the fit-out. So while each of the
stores shares similarities, this is not cookie-cutter
retailing; every branch is different.
Burnett points out that the sign over the door
states White Stuff of George Street and that it is
a local response to local people. Its the first time
that White Stuff has done this, an attempt to show
that the new arrival intends to be a firm part of the
George Street commercial community.
Standing at the entrance to the store, theres just
so much to look at. The majority of the first floor is
womenswear, and the offerings are punctuated by
unexpected elements such as a mounted, scarf-wearing antelope head and a cashwrap that looks like Ikes
general store from The Waltons (see cover).
Cooper is keen to head upstairs and show off the
fitting rooms for women. Theyre designed to be like

the wardrobes in [author C.S. Lewis] The Lion, The

Witch and The Wardrobe, because when you step
into them, you walk into a different world, he says.
And, indeed, when you open any of the vintage
wardrobe doors that form the entrances to the fitting
rooms, theres the curious sensation of walking into a
space thats much larger than youd expect. And each
of these rooms has been themed, including a bathroom, a Scottish room and a childs playroom.
The point about all of this, Cooper says, is to
bring the outdoor and the unexpected into the
store. And, more pointedly, Its about making people smile, he adds. Not all of the detail will be
picked up by every customer, but they may notice
new things on successive visits.
Its a strategy that puts White Stuff in a strong position. Sales at White Stuff soared 43 percent to 83.7m
(roughly $130 million U.S.) in the 52 weeks to May 1.
It also stands as testimony to the power of imaginative visual merchandising, as much as engaging store
design, to get shoppers through the doors. x
Project Suppliers
Retailer

White Stuff Emporium, Edinburgh, Scotland

Architect

AMD, London
For a full list of suppliers, go to vmsd.com.

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vmsd showroom
EuroShop 2011

Preview: EuroShop 2011

Europes triennial trade show will
welcome more than 100,000
visitors and nearly 2000 exhibitors
to Dusseldorf, Germany, this month
as EuroShop 2011 arrives to the
fairgrounds, February 26 March
2. The show includes four areas:
EuroConcept (store fixturing, lighting,
building, refrigeration equipment);
EuroSales (visual merchandising,
sales promotion); EuroCIS
(communication technology, security
systems, logistics); and EuroExpo
(exhibition systems, event design).

For 2011, event organizers

Messe Dusseldorf have added
MQ-City, an exclusive area for
fashion mannequins within a semitransparent structure and complete
with a networking lounge and
champagne bar. Messe Dusseldorf is
creating the framework for first-class
presentations of brands and products
in a stylish atmosphere, says Elke
Moebius, project director at Messe
Dusseldorf.
Reflecting the growing global
interest in sustainable design, a

new ECOPark specialty exhibit area,

organized in cooperation with the
EHI Retail Institute and the German
Sustainable Building Council, will
include exhibitors of sustainable
and energy-efficient products and a
forum of talks.
For more information on
EuroShop, visit www.mdna.com or
www.euroshop.de. And dont miss
VMSDs presentation, Store Design
Trends Across the U.S., at 4:15 p.m.
on Saturday, Feb. 26, as part of the
EuroShop RetailDesign Conference.

Almax S.p.A.

Hera Lighting

almax-italy.com
The Eye See Mannequin, in conjunction
with Kee Square, can record observational
data about shoppers and reveal details
about customer behavior, including who is
drawn to a display and dwell time.
Hall: 4 Booth: M13

heralighting.com
Slimlite XL-LED allows users to upgrade
from the Slimlite XL fluorescent to an LED
fixture. Offers same light output as T5
fluorescent but uses half the energy and
offers double the lamp life.
Hall: 11 Booth: C16

40 February 2011 | vmsd.com

Centiva

Lideimmagine

centiva.com
Coral Reef in Pearl, from the Victory Series,
is one of the U.S. manufacturers 250
flooring lines. Product range includes styles
in resilient tile and planks.
Hall: 10 Booth: E64

lideimmagine.com
Sexy Stender is the latest in the company line. The stand
measures 19-by-38 in. and the unit adjusts from 55 to 74
in. high. Stand comes in brown leather, polished iron and
white. Lateral adjustable arms also available.
Hall: 4 Booth: B34

Dana Industries Inc.

danaindustries.ca
The company will display its range of
products, including shelf talkers and signs,
clear and printed packaging, p-o-p displays
and price labels.
Hall: 3 Booth: E27

Jesco Lighting Group

jescolighting.com
Sleek Plus S601 is a 38-in. diameter plug-in
Slim Stix unit that comes in 8- or 12-in.
sizes. LEDS can be ordered in 2.06 watts
for 8-in. lengths or 3.1 watts for 12-in.
lengths. Extruded aluminum housings have
a protective lamp cover lens and printed
circuit board.
Hall: 11 Booth: F10

vmsd.com | FEBRUARY 2011

41

VS

vmsd showroom
EuroShop 2011

Nualight

MVM, Meric Manken Display Mannequins

nualight.ie
The companys Colour-Perfect HiCRI
LED lighting for food displays renders
the full spectrum of color with a vibrancy
equivalent to natural light.
Hall: 11 Booth: A29

mvmmannequins.com
Glossy mannequins are back to the stage with
styles including abstract, egghead, realistic and
headless. Offered in a variety of colors.
Hall: 4 Booth: D60

Alu

Umdasch

alu.com
Vitrine, a new accessory to the Slider system,
features a closed glass cabinet with metallic
bottom and equipped with a lock, for exhibiting
luxury goods such as jewelry or electronic
devices. Available in square or rectangular
shapes, in 11- or 15-in. depths.
Hall: 11 Booth: E30

umdasch.com
The StackEasy system uses universal fittings to
mount legs and spacing tubes onto flat sheets of
wood or glass to create a variety of tables. Fittings
come in stainless steel and legs and spacer tubes
are available in chrome-plated, matte chromeplated or stainless steel.
Hall: 12 Booth C62

42 February 2011 | vmsd.com

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VS

vmsd showroom
EuroShop 2011

Grottini S.R.L.

Visplay Intl.

grottini.com
The company partners in developing strategy, research and
branding for retail environments, with a distinctive Italian
design. Services include retail experience and environment
design, architecture, environment and fixture manufacturing,
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Hall: 12 Booth: D53

visplay.com
New merchandising systems will be
on display, including the plug and light
Invisible P/L (shown) and the Mono 6 for
small and lightweight accessories.
Hall: 12 Booth: B52

concept-s Ladenbau & Objektdesign GmbH

Ralph Pucci Intl.

concept-s-design.com
Slide System is a horizontal merchandise display
system with single showcases for products, such as
frames, watches, jewelry and accessories. The carriers
are protected by polycarbonate display boxes and can
be released individually while the others stay secured.
Hall: 12 Booth: D17

ralphpucci.net
Cofrad, the European representative of Ralph
Pucci, presents Girl 2, part of the Girl series.
This abstract and featureless addition keeps
in line with the minimal spirit of today.
Hall: 4 Booth: M12

44 February 2011 | vmsd.com

VS

VMSD SHOWROOM
EuroShop 2011

Hans Boodt Mannequins

iShopShape

hansboodt.nl
Casual Abstract Male is a new collection that
features a slim, lean sizing. Line includes four
new poses in abstract or realistic matte black,
as well as custom color orders.
Hall: 4 Booth: D35

ishopshape.com
ShopShape is an interactive mobile
communication tool with a focus on visual
merchandising management and compliance
in stores. Features include visual merchandising
instructions, layout control and reporting.
Hall: 5 Booth: F41

from the editors of

3995

Hardcover,
8.5" x 11",
168 pages

STORES AND RETAIL SPACES 11

Latest in this popular series, this edition features 44
projects chosen for excellence in store planning, visual
merchandising, innovation, graphics and lighting design.

Sign up for ST Media Groups Online Bookstore Newsletter

for announcements of new books, discounts andother special
promotions at http://bookstore.stmediagroup.com.

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JP Metal America Inc.

jpmetalamerica.com
The companys in-house production facilities contain
more than 1 million square feet of production space in
the areas of metal, wood, electroplating, powdercoating,
veneer, assembly/warehousing and shipping. The exhibit,
Where Fashion Meets Store Fixtures, will explore JPMAs
capabilities, design and the latest trends in fixture design.
Hall: 12 Booth: B76 x

Arthema Group,
three companies for a single philosophy.

www.arthemagroup.it

Arthema Group means soundness: each division and sister company has its own synergic and
strategic positioning.
Together they are part of a future-oriented ambitious business plan.
Soundness, balance and innovation have always been the guiding principles when it comes to make
vital choices, and this results in investments in new resources and technologies. Any need in terms
of shop fitting or visual merchandising is therefore met with original design solutions ranging from
mannequins to displays, from modular fixtures to turn-key packages.
Arthema Group has been working in the shop fitting industry for over 50 years. Initially covering a
12,000 sqm production area, it has developed over the years to reach 40,000 sqm, including seven
production facilities and a headquarter.
Vision, sculptors of worldwide
top mannequins industry creative
reputations
are
sculpturing
our ranges; featuring ad hoc
models, size and styles.
Such capabilities are ranking
Vision among the official suppliers
of the most prestigious fashion
brands, worldwide.
Vision, a specialist on standard
and customized mannequins;
styles created by live casting
models thus, assuring excellent
wearing performance and perfect
fit.
This makes Vision mannequins
unique for its natural and realistic
stances.
A shop window is key to store
or, generally speaking, brand
success.
Straight forward and empathic
communication to the end
consumer is the ultimate result of
accurate research and innovation.
Materials for imaging is the
watchword at Vanity, Arthema
Groups
division
specializing
in
designing,
manufacturing
and installing shop windows,
displays, special shop fittings and
furnishing accessories, scenery
elements and mock-ups, stands
on behalf of some of the most
prestigious brands in the world.

Domino designs and produces

customized complete solutions
for the point of sale, from retailers
to franchising stores, providing an
efficient turn-key service. Each
project is planned and defined in
detail using high level renderings
created by sophisticated software
design libraries and 3-D images.
Architects,
engineers
and
production managers share ideas
and experiences to give each
point of sale a touch of style and
personality of truly Italian design.
Domino is a division of Arthema
Group, which has over 50 years
experience in the shop fitting
industry.

HALLE 04 STAND M9

VANITY
MATERIALS FOR IMAGING

HALLE 12 STAND C79

HALLE 12 STAND C79

VS

VMSD SHOWROOM

THE WONDER
OF NATURE
Whimsy, magic and nature are three important themes in visual props and decoratives,
says Linda Cahan, visual merchandising consultant, Cahan and Co. (Portland, Ore.). People are
inspired to do more wonder right now, she says.
Bright, saturated colors, new textures and
adding modern touches to traditional elements
are good tools to use. Cahan cites Anthropologie, which created a forest of trees for its windows using colored green rags and paper strips
instead of prefabricated forms.
For a touch of nature, try birds, branches or
flowers. Nordstrom recently tucked birds nests
into product displays, including inside slippers
and hats, for a campaign about nesting for the
winter. Any time you bring a natural element
into the store environment, it ups the perceived
value of the merchandise because its real, says
Cahan. Anne DiNardo
Lifestyle/Trimco Inc.
lfs-trimco.com
The White Birch Curtain can be customized to
fit various sizes of windows and interior spaces.

Holiday Foliage Inc.

holidayfoliage.com
The Springtime Props
collection features green
botanical and floral spheres
that come in custom sizes.

48 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

Elevations Inc.
elevations.com
The Natural Urn collection
comes in a variety of sizes
and shapes with a natural
wood finish.

Christine Taylor Collection

christinetaylorcollection.com
Lacquer clothespins in a glossy
finish are 8 in. long and available
in a variety of bright colors.

Greneker
greneker.com
Abstract Display Forms, available
in assorted sizes and fabrics, come
in three variations and 10-in., 14-in.,
19-in. and 25-in. heights.

Seven Continents
sevencontinents.com
The Colossal Concrete
Urn, part of the H2Urn
Collection, is 67-by-67-by59-in. and comes in asphalt
grey or terracotta.

vmsd.com | FEBRUARY 2011

49

VS

VMSD SHOWROOM
Props and Decoratives

CDW Merchants
cdwmerchants.com
Inspired by old-fashioned cigarette
trays, the Holiday Prop for Gifting
is a product holder supported by
ribbon straps.

Design Solutions
designsolutions-usa.com
The Kinetic Twist spiral form is handfinished with color film and can be
installed individually or as a chandelier.
More color options are available.

Holiday Image
holidayimageinc.com
Glitter Fabric is offered
in 10 rainbow colors,
including red, silver, copper,
lime green, white, green,
gold, pink, blue and black,
as well as Pantone colors for
custom projects. Available
in 54-in. canvas rolls.
Fabric shown here in this
mannequins dress. x

Juniper Books
juniperbooks.com
The company offers custom book collections
and bookbinding skills for visual presentations.
Custom printed book jackets can carry company
logos, images and other graphics across the spine.

50 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

MARCH 28 - 30, 2011

SANDS EXPO AND CONVENTION CENTER
LAS VEGAS, NV
GLOBALSHOP.ORG

INSPIRATION
INNOVATION
INSIGHTS
WHERE INNOVATION MEETS EXECUTION
CONNECT WITH OVER 2,500 OF TODAYS HOTTEST
RETAILERS AND BRANDS IN ONE PLACE.

for retail design and at-retail marketing.

s

At-Retail Marketplace

Digital Store

Retail Marketing Services

Store Design & Operations

Store Fixturing Show

Visual Merchandising Show

Visit globalshop.org to register

Presented by

Produced by Nielsen Expositions,

a part of the Nielsen Company

Sponsored by

RD

regional directory
An advertising service for local or regional display and fixturing companies and national companies with local distributors and/or sales offices.

The Products & Services (P&S) Codes and the Business Classification Codes
in each listing are defined as follows:

1. Animations
2. Architectural and
Building Components
3. Audio/Video
5. Ceilings
6. Design Services
7. Decoratives
and Props

8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.

Fixtures
Flooring
Furniture
Lighting
Mannequins, Forms
Materials
Signage & Graphics
Supplies & Equipment

16. Wallcoverings
17. Security
A- Manufacturer
B- Importer
C- Distributor

Alpina Manufacturing

3418 N. Knox Avenue (60641).

P: 800-915-2828. F: 800-217-9431.
E: sales@fastchangeframes.com.
www.fastchangeframes.com.
[A International 6.7]

L ISTINGS/ADVERTISEMENTS
To appear for one year, payable in advance. 1" or 2" Ads require digital art. For information and rates
for advertising in the Regional Directory please contact Victoria Wells, Directory Coordinator
p: 800.925.1110, ext. 393, f: 513.744.6993, e: victoria.wells@stmediagroup.com

Arizona

San Diego

Flagstaff

FARKAS STORE EQUIPMENT

3008 E. Pine Dr. (86004). P: 928-526-9194.

F: 928-526-8004. Contact: Nancy Panlener
[C 12]

660 10th Ave. (92101). P: 619-232-0060.

F: 619-234-1413. Contact: Christie
Lee. E: farkas123@earthlink.net. www.
farkasstorefixtures.com.
[B.C 3.7.8.10.12.13.14.15.]

California

Holiday Foliage Inc.

MANNEQUIN RECOVERY

City of Commerce
NICONAT MFG. CO. STORE FIXTURES DISPLAY

2624 Yates Ave. Commerce, CA (90040). P:

323-721-1900. F: 323-728-7893. E: vicentv@
niconatmfg.com. www.niconatmfg.com.
Contact: Vicent V. [A 7.8.10.11]

City of Industry
PATINA-V

15650 Salt Lake Ave. (91745). P: 626-9612471. F: 626-333-6547. Contact: Robert Lade.
[A 7.10.12]

2592 Otay Center Dr. (92154). P: 619-6619094. F: 619-661-8382. E: info@holidayfoliage.

com. www.holidayfoliage.com. [A.B 6.7.9
International]

Santa Monica
HANG-UPS UNLIMITED

1904 14th St. (90404). P: 310-453-3806. 800461-8154. F: 800-426-4877. E: info@hangups.

com. www.hangups.com. Contact:
Lionel Freeman. [A 15]

Los Angeles

Nevada
Las Vegas
las vegas manequins

3230 Polaris Avenue, Suite 21, Las Vegas, NV

(89102), 702-987-5830, Fax: 702838-4463,
Email: info@lvmannequins.com, Website:
www.lvmannequins.com. Contact: Alison
Wainwright. National. (C12)

New York
Kingston
ZEE WIG STUDIO, INC.

333 Wall St. (12401). 8P: 45-331-0995.

F: 845-338-9352. Contact: Zee Caplan,
Gita Zanger. [A.B 12]

Canada

DISPLAYS BY JACK

1030 E. Valencia Dr., Fullerton, CA (92831).

P: 714-578-9100. F:714-578-9111. E: sales@
displaysbyjack.com. www.displaysbyjack.com.
Contact: Eric Wang, Ken Lin.
[B 8.12.15]

Alberta
Edmonton
VALUE STORE FIXTURES

9115 Stadium Rd. P: 780-420-0345.

800-535-2279. F: 780-426-7072. E:
value@valuestoresfixtures.com. www.
valuestorefixtures.com. Contact: John Koyko.
[C 8.12.15]
WESTMOUNT STORE FIXTURES

Illinois
Chicago
THE SIGN CENTRE

5221 N. Long (60630). P: 773-286-4599.

F: 773-286-8799. E: thesigncentre@aol.com.
Contact: Bob Dismang, Guy Dismang.
[A 14]

8520-106A Ave., Edmonton (T5H 0S4).

P: 780-424-8950. 800-561-1951.
F: 780-425-8578.
E: fixtures@westmountstorefixtures.com.
www.westmountstorefixtures.com.
Contact: Norman Vesala. [C 6.8.12.15]

British Columbia
Vancouver
EDDIES HANG-UP DISPLAY LTD.

R.A.P. Retail Associated Products

4630 Cecelia St., Cudahy, CA (90201). P: 888560-3493. F: 888-560-3496. E: info@rapstfx.

com. Contact: Robert Palmer [A 7.8]

52 FEBRUARY 2011 | vmsd.com

60 W. 3rd Ave. (V5Y 1E4) P: 604-708-3100.

F: 604-688-8230. 877-433-3437. www.
eddies.com. Contact: Morry Gaerber, Allen
Gaerber. [A.B.C 6.7.8.11.12.13]

regional directory

Ontario
Toronto
ALL TEAM GLASS AND MIRROR LTD.

281 Hanlan Rd. (Woodbridge) (L4L 3R7). P:

905-851-7711. 800-363-4651. F: 416-7452692. E: allteamglass@allteamglass.com.
www.allteamglass.com. Contact: Mark Timoll.
[A 2.8.13]

GOLDEN RACK CO. LTD.

OMNI-POWER CO., LTD.

9 Fl., No. 185, Chung Shan N Rd., Sec. 2, Taipei,

Taiwan, R.O.C. P: 886-2-2596-2185. F: 8862-2595-7406. 886-2-2593-5851. Factory:
Huicheng Folk-run Industrial District, Nan
Huan Rd, Xinhui Jiangmen City, Guangdong,
China. E: gdrack@ms31.hinet.net. www.
goldenrack.com.tw. Contact: Mr. C.C. Kuo.
[A 12]

4F, 348, Sec. 7, Cheng Te Rd., Taipei, Taiwan.

P: 886-2-2826 3500, F: 886-2-2822 0039.
E: sales@omni-power.com.tw www.omnipower.com.tw Contact: Evan Lee. [A 8.12]

RD

International
Republic of China
Bon Display Fixture Co., LTD

122 Cheng-Kung 3rd Road, Nan Tou City,

Taiwan R.O.C. P: 886-49-2252000, F:88649-2251227. E: lisa@brightdisplay.com.
tw; connieH@brightdisplay.com.tw. www.
brightdisplay.com.tw. Contact: Ms. Lisa Lai or
Ms. Connie Hwang. [A International 8.12]

OPPORTUNITY EXCHANGE
Opportunity Exchange is a means for retailers, manufacturers and designers to exchange
information on job openings, positions wanted and search services. For more information
contact Victoria Wells at 513-263-9393 or Email: victoria.wells@stmediagroup.com.

Business Development Executive Needed

B&N Industries is an innovative designer, manufacturer and provider of products and
services for the retail, architectural and consumer industries.
Location: Burlingame, CA
Responsibilities & Requirements
o Prospect California business opportunities within existing companies and new markets
o Establish, build and manage client relationships at multiple levels with key
decision makers
o Deliver sales presentations to design, architectural, retail and hospitality companies
o Manage the sales process from discovery to account development, negotiations
and closing
o Organize and clearly communicate pertinent information relating to the customer, order,
or project to the internal support team
o 5 years + proven sales experience in retail display / store fixture industry
o Demonstrated ability to build strong and lasting relationships with clients
o Assimilate industry product information and account knowledge into a sales strategy
o Ability to influence and persuade to achieve desired outcomes

Visit

vmsd.com
for more career
opportunities.

Please send your resume to kkirby@bnind.com

vmsd.com |

FEBRUARY 2011 53

Mark your calendar!

September 7-9, 2011 | Parc 55 Wyndham | San Francisco

For sponsorship opportunities contact Murray Kasmenn

at 770.578.2577 or murray.kasmenn@stmediagroup.com

Sign up for the IRDC E-newsbrief at

www.irdconline.com and get program
updates, speaker Q&As and deadline
reminders delivered to your inbox.

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Meric Display Mannequins has been manufacturing

display mannequins & busts for more than 45
years and basically focuses on production of high
quality female & male mannequins and torsos for
shops&department stores in its premises in Istanbul
under its supervision.
MVM focuses on details more than ever. Get ready
for the very different heads, realistic and abstract
Mannequins with extraordinary colors, atelier torsos ,
accessories, and the most stylish UK14 ! Check it out!
Visit us at EUROSHOP 2011 - Pav. 4 Stand D60
MVM MERIC MANKEN DISPLAY MANNEQUINS
IRMAK CAD.NO:10 DOLAPDERE
80080 ISTANBUL /TURKEY
Tfn : + 90. 532. 284.89.39
www.mericmanken.com

VMSD ADVERTISING INDEX

page

23
1

advertiser

Alpolic/Mitsubishi
Chemical FP America Inc.

page

IBC

advertiser

Goldsmith

Amerlux

43

Grottini

47

Arthema Group

13

Hans Boodt

31

Bernstein Display

11

JP Metal

Centiva by Intl. Floors of America

55

MVM Meric Display

CNL Mfg.

45

Nualight Ltd.

DK Display

15

Proportion London

D|Fab

OBC
IFC

6
46

Richard Cadan Photography

33

Econoco/Mondo Mannequins

37

Elevations Inc.

21

Fleetwood Fixtures

39

Visplay Intl

51

GlobalShop 2011

54

VMSD Intl Retail Design Conf.

AI

ST Books
Umdasch Shop Concept

vmsd.com | FEBRUARY 2011 55

co

Checking Out
Interview by Danny Cross

Jim Sloss
After designing more than 250 department stores, Macys vp of
design knows a thing or two about good and bad design trends.
See whats on his radar for 2011.

Your retail design career started at international architectural firm HOK.

What lessons from your experience there have helped you at Macys?
Learning to focus on the overall planning process and to always look at the
big picture has been extremely beneficial, especially with all the need for
vendor statements and shop-in-shop concepts in department stores today. I
also learned a tremendous amount about construction by designing and building projects all over the world.
Youve been with Macys for more than 19 years. How has the role of the
department store evolved during that time?
Competition has increased tremendously and therefore the importance to
retain customers and maintain market share has increased. Compelling
merchandise assortments, obvious value, quality environments and engaging
customer service have been key for the department stores to retain their
customers.
Why are department stores still relevant in todays retail landscape?
Department stores are still differentiated from most retailers. Customers still
value the full-line assortment of fashion, cosmetics and goods under one roof.
In 10 words or less, who is Macys target consumer?
Fashion-forward females and males who truly appreciate affordable luxury.

Media File
Favorite movie:
I am a big Grace Kelly fan. Any movie she
performed in would be a favorite.
Television:
I dont watch much TV, but when I do, its
sports. I have two sons who usually control
the channels.
Last live music performance I attended:
Muse. An unbelievable performance with
an unforgettable light show.

What current design trends are you particularly fond of?

Customer service fitting room environments that are comfortable, engaging
and interactive. Im also an advocate of bringing more daylighting into the
stores, especially the fitting rooms. I would add to that list food/restaurants
offerings and other services that make the shopping experience memorable
and help keep the customer in the store. Right now, international department
stores are providing these services more than those in the U.S.
Which one do you wish would go away?
Shopping carts in the department store environment.
Name one hobby you have outside the office that would surprise people.
One of my best friends from high school studied horticulture in college and
eventually became a landscape architect. As I was going through college,
he encouraged me to get a minor in landscape design. As a result, one of my
favorite hobbies now is gardening.
What advice has helped you along the way?
Always treat people with the utmost respect.
Whats the worst advice you received?
The idea that you can usually know somebody within minutes of working
with them. x

56 February 2011 | vmsd.com

1/10/11

12:04 PM

Page 1

3%

Centivas highly durable flooring allows limitless possibilities for creative expression and brand emphasis in retail environments.

Centiva_VMSD_Feb11

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EuroShop 2011 Hall 10 / E 64
GlobalShop 2011 Booth 4208
1 888 CENTIVA
www.centiva.com

Event Contour Victory