kitchen Showroom Displays

Transcription

1 kitchen Showroom Displays Part l Elaine Cowan Consultant

2 Balanced showrooms You need a balance of styles, finishes and prices in: Furniture Appliances Work surfaces Sinks and Taps Accessories To a great extent, people buy from people, but your showroom displays are your tool to show what you can do with your product and design skills. If the client can see everything from the door or walk a straight line looking right and left to see each display they are unlikely to go into each display and engage. The more time they are in the showroom the more likely they are to find something that fires them up and makes them want to take the next step towards a purchase. 2

3 Create a flow through your showroom Your customer should see each display with a glimpse at another display. Provide a visual pathway from one display to the next. Don t give everything away from the door or window. This initial showroom plan proposal sketch shows the overall space has be laid out so that every display can be viewed in it s entirety without distraction, but at the same time the next display can be partially seen beyond it. There s a choice of routes to lead the client around the whole showroom, and the two window displays are positioned to suit the curved window frontage and make the most of passing traffic outside. Window Entrance 3

4 Entice customers to the next display Avoid solid walls. Use open shelving or glazed partitions. Try to avoid too large an area of solid wall areas obviously some are required and angled dividers work well. Larger spaces need dividing walls placed so that the showroom space is usefully utilised but still allows for an interesting flow of movement, but include some open shelving or glazed partitions as a way to divide display areas.that way the space does not close in too much and your clients can be enticed onwards. 4

5 Show a variety of display styles You need to show a variety of display styles in: Furniture Door colour Shapes Display layouts Some can be strongly designed to show more innovative features different is good, so long as you show safer alternatives elsewhere and the client can also see that without more unusual or coloured elements that a display could have a different feel. 5

6 Keep your displays current Change your displays every 2-3 years It will keep you and your staff enthused about your products Make sure you are up to date with trends Keep your displays current and change them every 2-3 years even if they are still current. This is not just for your clients, as they will only frequent the showroom whilst they are making a purchase, but because you and your Staff will become bored and unenthusiastic which will not help sales. Importantly, you need to make sure your showroom is kept up to date with new trends that your clients may otherwise see elsewhere. 6

7 Try to balance your colours Your showroom should always have a good balance of colours and styles. A wood finish A white display white never goes out of fashion and is a constant seller whether it s all white or mixed with another colour or wood A strong contrast of light and dark or strong colour A comfortable cream cream is always a good seller, but clients still need to see a display to make the decision And a dark sophisticated look 7

8 Combine colours and finishes You may find you can combine colours and finishes on one display and then this covers two of these and remember that within these there should be a mix of gloss, matt and textures. This mix works whether you are showing a modern or traditional style furniture. 8

9 Product display layouts You also need to keep in mind trying to show the types of layouts that typically suit room spaces; such as: Galley L-shape U-shape Peninsulars Island / Tallblock As clients often want to see a layout that relates to their room. Galley L-shape Peninsular Island 9

10 Make a showroom checklist You can adjust this essentials list as required by changing fashion and as new features and innovations become available from your suppliers. This list should be things that you feel are useful to show your clients when you are selling to them. Colours and finishes Unit sizes Unit internals Worktop finishes Appliances Sink and tap types 10

11 Understand your competition Also keep in mind that there are large chains selling lower end furniture who have a tried and tested business formula and infrastructure that ensures their showrooms are kept to a high standard of presentation - and you need to be able to compete! 11

12 Your showroom should look ACCESSORISED - to reflect kitchen use and that aspirational lifestyle. Look at the whole as roomsets and make sure it looks complete - sometimes just a few shelves or a picture is all that s needed to finish the area. IMMACULATE - everything should look brand new after all the client is looking to buy a new kitchen! PROFESSIONAL - a design and installation standard that reflects your service. The client is planning a considerable investment and they need to feel confident about it. ASPIRATIONAL and EXCITING a designed look that reflects what they wish to be in their lifestyle. All these things in no way should take the individualism away from your business - what big chains lack is the personal touch and your advantage is that your business can show personality and give a much more interesting and individual experience than a corporate using a formulaic selling process 12

13 Stand out Show your personality Be individual You are more interesting than the national chains The Meet the Team page on a professional looking website showed the staff and their job description, but also showed their dog who was in charge of customer experience and who s special abilities were listed as having a love of wood and making clients smile... The humour of this didn t detract from the professional image of the company and made them stand out compared to others. 13

14 People buy from people People buy from people - if everything in your showroom covers all the design and presentation standards, the addition of your personality in the business can be your winning touch! 14