Category: Retail Store Design

June 23, 2016

GIO Looks at Current Retail Store Design Trends

Photo by Wilson Rivera via Flickr

With the advent of e-commerce, the recent decades have proven to be a very interesting period for retail. While shopping in a brick-and-mortar store isn’t as easy or straightforward as the online retail experience, people are beginning to seek a different kind of urban experience: they want to get out of the house, and they want an adventure. Today’s retail shopping is all about the experience.

As these savvy shoppers demand more interactive and visually appealing ways of purchasing products, retailers are coming up with ever more innovative ways to keep consumers coming back for more. Here’s a look at some of the latest trends in retail store design.

Natural Light

The trend is for more natural light in retail environments. The daylight versus artificial light argument has been won, with designers choosing daylight to create an atmosphere that replicates an authentic urban experience.

Over-the-Top Window Displays

Retail designers are coming up with weird and wonderful window designs to captivate customers and draw them in. Today’s window displays are a sophisticated mix of art, fashion, design and marketing that will quickly grab passersby attention.

Industrial/Raw Look

Less is more in modern retail design. Retailers are now realizing that minimalistic design has more of an impact than bright colors and plastic fixtures. Going back to basics in an industrial space with exposed beams and concrete make the store look less cluttered and ensure that the products stand out more.

Retail as Theater

Today’s retail experience needs to be an adventure, with the experience taking center stage. Retail stores do not just need to be a nice places; they have be interesting, too. The design details are often what differentiate a great in-store experience from a mediocre one.

Premium Materials

To differentiate the retail experience and make physical locations true destinations for shoppers, many retailers are investing in more upscale options for their spaces. Use of premium materials and inventive, finely designed spaces are lures to get consumers in the stores and keep them coming back.

GIO’s range of beautiful tile collections is ideal for enhancing retail experiences. Our options support both aesthetic and technical performance requirements that demanding shopping locations demand. Be sure to review our many products to find the right solution for your next project.

June 29, 2015

Pop-Up Shops are Here to Stay (and may provide a source of revenue for the A&D industry)

The concept of the pop-up shop is not new; it began in the early 2000s when retailers started “popping up” with informal, quickly-fabricated storefronts, where products could be sold quickly and in a cost-effective manner. The concept helped landlords fill vacant space and allowed retailers to test new markets with low start-up costs. But the pop-up shop has rapidly become a mainstay of retail culture, with seemingly endless possibilities for unique fashion, food and interior design concepts. Here are some reasons pop-ups are here to stay.

Original
Consumer interest has been built (and retained) by the unique, unpredictable, and often quirky, temporal nature of the concept store. It’s much easier to create a fun, offbeat environment for a pop-up theme store compared with traditional retail, which has more rigid constraints.

Targeting
Pop-ups are an incredibly effective and low-cost method of marketing products to a targeted demographic. Today’s pop-ups allow global brands to break into new markets in a modern and cost-effective way, bringing designer items to to new markets. From taking over space in a chosen geographic area to creating retail environments associated with seasons or special events, marketers of all sizes can tap into new audiences in contained, lower cost ways. In effect, pop-ups are democratizing the retail industry.

Socially Connected
It’s no coincidence that the rise of the pop-up shop has coincided with the rise in social media platforms. The pop-up model works extremely well with social media, allowing businesses to connect instantly with customers and interact with them in real time, adding to the “cool factor” of this model. With the millennial generation on the cusp of commanding huge wallet power, this connection to social media gives the pop-up shop even more long term viability.

What this Means for the A&D Industry
The development of the pop-up from mere trend to global retail revolution is very interesting for the A&D industry, and may provide an additional source of revenue for firms looking to diversify and modernize their scope of work. The once informal shops placed in vacant spaces are now developing into installations and movable retail centers, allowing new opportunities not only for retailers, but also designers.

Designers may find opportunities in decking transitional retail spaces to be beautifully blank slates that invite custom decor for whatever pop-ups may utilize the spaces. Designers can guide property owners to advance the value of their retail spaces by making smarter material choices that empower temporary retailers to create the inviting experiences they hope to achieve. Also, designers may find lots of creativity in partnering with pop-ups to invent retail designs that travel and install beautifully.

GIO brings you a carefully curated selection of tile and stone products developed expressly for your commercial design projects. We not only know tile, but we also deeply understand the needs of interior designers, architects, and commercial product specifiers. Turn to us for the latest solutions in architectural surfacing for your projects. We’re here to work with you!

May 19, 2015

GIO Looks at 7 Hot Retail Store Design Trends

Knowing what is current and what will be the next big thing are essential when creating retail environments that will set the stage for great shopping experiences. Retail store designers are coming up with ever more creative and innovative ways to keep consumers coming back for more. Here’s a look at some of the latest and burgeoning trends in retail design.

Industrial Style
Getting back to basics with exposed steel beams, concrete pillars, and other structural elements can make a space look less cluttered and ensures the product stands out. Incorporating raw, unfinished materials such as old wooden crates, pallets, sheet metal or tin, and re-purposed wood adds a humanizing element and communicates authenticity.

Back to Nature
Store designers are using plants and other natural materials to add texture and bring the outdoors in. Elements from nature create a more soothing environment that encourages people to linger longer. Sustainability and authenticity of materials have become key philosophies for many successful brands.

Mood Lighting
Lighting can make a big difference in store design. While proper lighting is critical in highlighting key areas of the store and drawing shoppers in and around, this is one category where innovation meets artistry. Lighting no longer just serves as an accent or highlight; it is a major feature that is used to create ambiance and enhance the store experience.

Eclectic Design
Uniformity is out as more and more brands launch new store design concepts based on an eclectic mix of materials which are traditionally not combined. Today’s cutting-edge stores mix a wide variety of styles, furnishings, and scale, which allows them to express different facets of the brand image and distinguish themselves from other competitors.

Local Design Elements
The addition of local design elements will create context for the store’s location and increase acceptance by local customers.

Marble Effects
Luxury brands are using marble or marble effects to achieve a chic modern look in their stores. Many retailers are using painted faux marble finishes and marble-like porcelain tiles on floors, walls and countertops to obtain this look without the expense and maintenance of real marble.

Copper
Copper is the new metal that’s replacing gold and silver. Retailers are including this rosy metal into their store design with pendant lamps, store fixtures, display tables and even even wallpaper designs.

Photo Credit: Click image to view source.