COMMERCIAL ALUMINIUM SHOPFRONTS

High street retailers are encouraging customers to take a chance on them this Christmas - pointing out the advantages of shopping in a bricks and mortar store, rather than online. The high street is fighting back after a mediocre year in an uncertain economic climate! A report released in September revealed high street shops had suffered their worst month's trading since 2011, with the financial uncertainty caused by Brexit largely being blamed for the slump. Sales in-store were down 3.1% compared with September 2018. © lazyllama / Adobe Stock   High street blues Sales had already plummeted by 2.7% prior to this. According to the BDO High Street Sales Tracker, the worst-hit category in 2019 was lifestyle, which fell by 5.4%, producing its worst figures since the recession in November 2008. Fashion had recovered slightly at the start of 2019, but sales fell by 2% in September. The continuing wrangle over Britain's impending exit from the EU was cited as the largest single contributory factor, although the collapse of big household names such as Thomas Cook appeared to unnerve shoppers even more. Some analysts have called it a "disastrous" year for the high street so far.   Festive fightback It's no surprise that retailers are hoping to fight back this Christmas. Traditionally, this is the "golden quarter" in the financial year, thanks to Black Friday and the festive season, so the sector needs to finish the year strong. A consumer survey of 1,000 adults in the UK in August 2019 revealed 30% of them intended to head to the high street first for their Christmas shopping. This compared with 30.1% of respondents who planned to shop on Amazon. The survey by Shopblocks concluded it was important that the high street made every effort to entice shoppers who were planning to look online for gift ideas. Bricks and mortar stores have a unique opportunity to give consumers something the e-commerce stores can't offer - the whole sensory experience of physically checking out products. For example, people can test the make-up and check out the colours in person. Many larger stores even offer customers a free mini-makeover so they can see how the latest cosmetics look. Customers can smell the perfumes, feel how smooth the garments are and touch the shoe leather to test its quality.   Christmas experience While it's undoubtedly convenient to shop online from your own home, in the run-up to Christmas, there's nothing like the complete high street experience. Walking through a shopping centre, hearing the festive music, stopping to listen to carol singers and grabbing a snack from a food vendor... well, that’s what Christmas shopping is about, surely? Soak up the Christmas atmosphere in the shops and then go for mulled wine and mince pies to bring your trip to a festive conclusion. Retailers need to capitalise on the enjoyment of Christmas shopping in person to lure consumers away from internet shopping sites like Amazon and eBay. The current Visa Christmas advert encourages people to shop on the high street. The advert features 13 real-life shopkeepers including a greengrocer, a bookseller, an antique dealer and a café owner encouraging shoppers to shop locally. They sing Queen's Somebody To Love, as they ask people to show their high street some love and support local businesses.   Window display With competition at a peak over Christmas, just what can shopkeepers do to make their premises stand out from their rivals? First impressions count and the answer is to have an eye-catching and engaging window display that stands out from the rest as shoppers walk down the high street. It's the first thing people see, turning passers-by into customers. Even if you're a small retailer, who doesn't have the luxury of a dedicated visual merchandising team, make the most of your window space with the resources you have available. Your Christmas window display is the key to your festive sales and it's important to give it plenty of thought and plan the design carefully. Concentrate on building a positive identity for your brand, so that passers-by are tempted to stop, take a second look and come inside.   Story-telling Most professional window dressers will agree that a Christmas window display works best when it tells a story. This relates to the fact that we love hearing stories as children. When we grow up, we still love a good story, so visual merchandising that captures a magical Christmas tale can connect with shoppers on an emotional level. Think about the story you wish to tell and how it impacts on your brand and your target audience. Create a festive feeling using a mixture of lights and colours. The traditional festive hues are golds, reds and greens and you can incorporate them into your window display, further setting the mood with the lighting and decorations. You have only one chance to make a first impression, so help the high street fight back this Christmas by creating an enticing window display that captures the festive spirit. Even if you attract only a small percentage of the thousands of passers-by, this will increase your footfall significantly. Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts (CAS) supplies and installs high-quality shopfront windows for your retail store, creating a fresh and inviting feel. Please contact us for details – we can help you stay in the game!

An eye-catching window display can encourage people to come into your store, when otherwise they might have simply walked past. It is arguably THE most important marketing tool you possess, in terms of turning passers-by into customers. As a business, the benefits of visual marketing are plentiful. High street stores are up against stiff competition from their online rivals. A survey by Statista revealed that e-commerce stores are expected to have a 30% share of the December sales revenue in the UK. © gpointstudio / Adobe Stock When it comes to the high street versus the online marketplace, 8.7% of British consumers say they are likely to do all of their Christmas shopping online. The study also found that the average person in the UK is expected to spend between £500 and £700 on Christmas gifts in December. For brick-and-mortar stores, the goal should not only be to lure shoppers in with an attractive window display, but also to encourage people who are shopping online to come back to the high street. After all, nothing can beat the attraction of having the actual goods at your fingertips, particularly where colour matching and new fragrances are concerned. Your window display is important all-year-round and not just at Christmas - so take time to consider your approach before you begin the task of reworking your shopfront.   Before you begin Some basic rules for creating a good shop window display, regardless of the nature and size of your retail business, should always begin with knowing your budget and establishing your goals. One of the most important things to consider is the positioning of key items at eye level, where they are going to instantly grab the attention of passers-by. Your window display should be sufficiently targeted to entice the right people - but not so specific that it will alienate potential shoppers. You must try to strike the right balance. Stay away from clichés - they can look dated and like no thought whatsoever has gone into your display. For example, at Halloween, it may be easy to put pumpkins or ghouls in the window, but it can appear superficial. It's been done so many times that shoppers don't even notice any more. Avoid clutter - although it's tempting to pack as many of your products as possible into the display, so people can see exactly what you have on offer, just don't do it! The window area can look cluttered and chaotic, creating exactly the opposite effect of what you're aiming to achieve.   Window display theme A memorable display will engage the consumer and help to drive sales. The window display must showcase not only your brand, but also the lifestyle behind it. Choose a theme that shouts out your unique personality. The best window displays have a "wow" factor powerful enough to engage passers-by and make them stop and decide to take a look inside your store. Take into account your target audience and the message you're aiming to convey. Study your product range and the special offers you wish to promote. Are you advertising a new seasonal range that's just come in - or are you promoting a sale and aiming to convince shoppers you have the best bargains on the high street?   Tell a story According to research published in The Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, a good window display will tell a basic story. Brands who used this strategy said plot development in their advertising campaign fared better than a one-off, stand-alone campaign, with no real depth or meaning. For example, Harvey Nichols, in the Mall of the Emirates, caused a huge stir with its Hot Stuff campaign, which featured a singe mark on the ceilings and faux burns on the walls! The story was that the new range was so hot, it burned everything it touched. Love it! Tiffany & Co is famous for its storytelling, with window displays that create the same buzz at Christmas as the launch of a new art gallery! The mannequins become props and products are displayed as part of a visual narrative. The brand's signature piece, the Tiffany Blue Box, is always used to add magic to the windows. Researchers suggest we like displays with a narrative because humans are social creatures, so it helps us to relate to what's happening. Begin with a theme and an understanding of the products you wish to display and then use storytelling to make it interesting. The message you put out with your window display should encompass everything in your armoury - the tools and props, the fabrics, mannequins, lighting and accessories must all come together to create greatness - after all, you only get one chance to make a first impression, so don't waste it! Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts provides professional shopfronts that will instantly enhance your display and put your premises centre stage of the high street. Contact us today for further details of our products and services.

Although it doesn't seem long since we were enjoying the summer heatwave, it's now less than three months to Christmas! Retailers should be thinking about how to create the best Christmas window display to grab the customers' attention. Window shopfronts are very important when it comes to attracting passers-by and if you have an eye-catching display, it gives you an advantage over high street competitors. Display your brand and demonstrate your store's unique personality - it's a proven winner for driving sales. © Marina Andrejchenko / Adobe Stock   Interactive displays Every year, there's huge competition to create the ‘perfect Christmas window display’, particularly among the major retailers and department stores. Christmas sales can compensate for a mediocre year, when shoppers flood in searching for the perfect gift. Traditionally, retailers go for plenty of sparkle when it comes to a festive display, stirring up some Christmas magic. One of the modern trends is an interactive display that can transform your storefront into a personalised advert. The displays will pitch products, depending on who's looking in the window, based on their gender or age. If a child walks past, for example, images of toys can be projected on to the window. The retailer who has an interactive display can stand out this Christmas.   Festive themes Another popular Christmas trend is combining a colour scheme of sparkling silver and gold on a winter white wonderland. For example, a white Christmas tree can have gold and silver ornaments, fixed together like pearls on a sparkly string. This is a particularly luxurious theme for a shop window. Environmentally conscious The country Christmas theme uses natural products, such as tree branches sprayed in gold, traditional wreaths, hand-crafted snowflakes and a plain linen cloth to create a rustic feel that makes shoppers think of Christmas past. The traditional display can showcase the items for sale without overpowering them and it can be a ‘greener’ way to bring your Christmas display to life.   Glitter-free Christmas The natural trend is being taken one step further by major retailer Marks and Spencer. The high street brand is having a glitter-free Christmas, in an effort to reduce single-use plastic in the environment. There won't be any glitter in the window display - nor will there be glitter in any of the store's Christmas celebration range including cards, crackers, wrapping paper and gift bags. Although glitter may look pretty, it isn't at all environmentally friendly and is a source of plastic waste. Marks and Spencer says it hopes to reduce its own waste, while encouraging customers to think "green" and recycle.   Reducing plastic waste Waitrose is also pledging to stop using non-biodegradable glitter in its range by Christmas 2020 and is seeking biodegradable alternatives instead. Budget supermarket Aldi has made a commitment to replace glitter with more eco-friendly alternatives. Glitter contains micro-plastics that can get into our oceans and harm marine life. According to a recent study, one-third of fish caught in the North Sea had micro-plastics, including glitter, in their body. British scientists, led by Stephen Cotton, have created "eco-glitter" by using a plant-based material instead of plastic in the production process. Sir David Attenborough - a keen campaigner against the hazards of plastic in our oceans - is supporting the non-plastic glitter.   Will it catch on? Whether it will catch on remains to be seen, as glitter is a mainstay of many sparkling Christmas window displays and of the festive period in general. Convincing businesses not to use or stock it may prove challenging. The campaign group, 38 Degrees, is calling on the government to ban the sale of glitter altogether. Glitter has been banned by the children's nursery chain, Tops Day Nurseries, because of its effects on the planet. The BBC show, Strictly Come Dancing, has also stopped using glitter. However, when a BBC poll asked people if they thought glitter should be banned, a massive 76% of respondents voted "no" and only 24% said "yes", so it may be a long time before we stop seeing traditional sparkly Christmas displays! Give your Christmas window display a head start by enhancing your shopfront. Commercial Aluminium Shopfronts provides a professional service for retailers and other businesses across a broad spectrum. Contact CAS today and let the quality of your window do some of the talking for you!