A colourful summer window promoting Paul Smith frames for Eye Design opticians.

Christmas this year feels more exciting than ever, it is so lovely to know that we can get together and celebrate face to face this year. Most importantly we are able to go out and shop, soak up the atmosphere and interact with brands in a very different way from last year and bricks and mortar retail has risen to this challenge and is more than ready to welcome customers.

Here is my round up of the key trends I have seen in my trip around London Town.

In these uncertain times Pop Up Shops are flexible, quick to set up, and exciting for customers. A great way to showcase a brand experience.

5 Actions to take before re-opening. April 12th is nearly upon us, is your shop ready to welcome customers back, showcase product and deliver an exciting retail experience? If you need a nudge here are five actionable things you can do….

Five Visual Merchandising techniques to help you sell online…..

A seamless customer experience through all available channels is more important than ever. Each channel has its own unique features and benefits which should be exploited, but it is crucial there is synergy in all touch points showcasing brand values, marketing stories and product. Customers need the same warm feeling about your brand however they shop with you.

We all instinctively crave human connection, I miss the buzz of meeting new people, chatting to strangers, hearing their stories. In a time when it is impossible to meet face to face or experience those chance encounters how can we link with people?

In a year where Christmas has never felt more important it was an honour to work with the fantastic team at Craig & Rose to design and develop a Christmas Window concept and implemented across their stores.

Non essential shops maybe closed for now, but at this critical time of year for retailers there are many ways to connect with customers through store fronts and help them make a purchase.

Visiting the Christmas windows in the West End of London has been a tradition for me from childhood when my Dad would take us to Oxford Street late one cold evening in December. My brother and I would soak up the magic and sparkle of Selfridges windows, the Regent Street lights and stare hard into Hamleys hoping to see our longed for toys. This excitement for the launch of Christmas Windows has always stayed with me and continued into my work life and I am lucky to have been paid to install 100’s of Christmas trees and design many Christmas windows over the years.

I worked with the fantastic team at Craig & Rose designing and developing windows for stores promoting their innovative ‘Unsame Your Home’ campaign.

The campaign highlights the creative possibilities of using Craig & Rose paint, encouraging customers to embrace colour and challenged the use of more traditional neutral tones.

From visualisation to implementation….

I worked with the fantastic team at Craig & Rose designing and developing windows for their UK showrooms promoting ‘Colour Patch’ an innovative, self adhesive paint colour sample which can be moved to different walls and reapplied testing how light and surrounding details effect the colour.

Creating a clear and enticing customer journey is more important than ever. Customers need to quickly connect with and understand the retail environment, which ensures an exceptional and memorable experience. Retail that is well positioned within a larger brand story will also win in these new times.

I took a sunny, leisurely wander around Wimbledon Village last week, it was lovely to see the mixture of shops and cafes, independent and larger brands emerging out of lockdown and warmly welcoming customers safely into their stores.

I took an early morning stroll around the West End of London a couple of days before non essential retailers were allowed to open to customers. I wanted to see how brands were preparing for this new world of shopping.

Visual merchandising workshop development and facilitation…

I created and facilitated an interactive and hands on one day visual merchandising workshop for Homer, a lifestyle brand with stores based in Edinburgh and Aberfeldy. 

Bright, colourful, dramatic and within a tight budget was the brief for Glassworks Christmas windows.

I collaborated with the lovely team at Glassworks London to plan their new store in Shoreditch.

I worked with them to design the space, plan fixture placement and test visual merchandising principles.