Does retail lighting boost sales? Gerry Weber, a fashion retailer in Germany saw its sales increase by 12% in one pilot store, after installing a new lighting scheme. If you are still using fluorescent tubes, it is definitely time for an upgrade to LED. Fluorescent lighting casts a harsh light that cannot be controlled or dimmed which makes it unsuitable to a retail environment.
A good lighting base should consist of a number of grids that can be individually controlled depending on the area of the store as well as the time of day or year. Once you have a good base, you are ready to start incorporating more layers and techniques.
Below, five lighting techniques to apply to your stores
1. Behind the Shelf Lighting
Lighting behind the shelves can be achieved easily with simple LED strips. It instantly creates a luxury feel for your stores. Each strip can be individually controlled so you can highlight some shelves and not others. This technique is especially effective when you lower overhead lighting in the store and let the products take center stage.
2. Changeroom Lighting
Changeroom lighting is very important. This is where your customer is going make a purchasing decision. If your lighting creates unflattering shadows or is in a harsh tone that makes the customer feel less attractive, they won’t want to make the purchase.
Changeroom lighting needs to strike the right balance of not being too cool (unflattering) or too warm (too yellow will change the color of items). Changeroom lighting should also have lighting incorporated either into or around the mirror to ensure even lighting of the customer and avoid unflattering shadows.
3. Display Rack Lighting
Similar to incorporating lighting behind your shelving, another interesting place to incorporate LED strips is on the underside of your display racks. Since LED strips can be individually controlled, they can help highlight different racks throughout the day/seasons. This technique also creates a luxurious feeling so it is an easy way to help the customer justify a higher spend.
4. Lower Level Lighting
Gemanco Design
Space is always at a premium in retail stores, so you probably have some of your merchandise on the floor. Since it is well below eye level, strategically placing some lighting lower to the ground can help draw attention to it.
5. End Cap Lighting
End-caps are usually left un-lit entirely but if you are a CPG in a large retail store, you need to the product to be noticed. End-caps can be a perfect place not only to incorporate lighting but also play with colored lights. This helps draw the attention of customers.
More ways to improve your visual merchandising standards and boost sales
- 7 Visual Merchandising Techniques to Increase Sales
- 5 Retail Merchandising Trends to Watch Out for in 2019
- How to build a store merchandising checklist
- 6 Ways to use Visual Merchandising to Drive Social Shares
- The purpose, scope and methods of merchandising audits
- Conduct a merchandising audit in 10 steps
OTHER MERCHANDISING RESOURCES
Refer to the Merchandising category for checklists, how-tos and best practices for merchandising.
