Tuesday, November 17, 2009

The Evolution of Grocery Store Fixtures

Grocery store fixtures have built up with the stores themselves. As we all recognize, grocery shops have built up through the years. US grocery stores are hailed from trading places, which traded not only food but clothing, household items, instruments, furniture, and other assorted goods. These trading places evolved into bigger retail businesses known as general stores. Dry goods like baking soda, flour, canned foods, and dry beans were what these facilities dealt with. It was from specialty markets that perishable foods were acquired: Fresh meat was bought from a butcher, milk from a local dairy, eggs and vegetables were either raised by families themselves, bartered for with neighbors, or bought at a farmers' market or a local greengrocer.

Nowadays, grocery store construction is an complicated procedure involving a plethora of grocery store fixtures running from electronics to refrigeration, meat cutting equipment, store shelving, dairy fixtures, all kinds of displays, bakery equipment and lots more. Most store fixtures that you want to run your shop with are available used or pre-owned from many grocery store suppliers. When you purchase used restaurant equipment, you can save a killing, or you can choose to purchase top-of-the-line goods. You will acquire the foremost advise on how to appropriate your budget, as well as how to plan the project from the whole construction process to the selection of grocery store fixtures.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Retail Display Fixtures Psychology

People like shopping. This fact could then be utilized as a strategy for retailers to acquire as much revenue as they can. By using efficient retail display fixtures, you, as a retailer shall be able to put this strategy into action.

According to a research by Leonard Lee and Dan Ariely of the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), shoppers don't really have their goals pre-determined; these only become concretized as soon as they have wandered through the supermarket's aisles.

This is good news to retailers then. This demonstrates that consumers can be lured into buying something as soon as they enter a shop. But such a process is too fragile to be left to fate alone - you as a business owner should do something. Here is a couple of suggestions:

1. Limit the options of the customers into a few good ones.

People want to be given alternatives before they decide on purchasing a certain product. A study related to the one discussed above was conducted at the Northwestern University and the researchers have found out the following:

a. customers want to have as many choices as possible
b. consumers want to be able to decide what to purchase as easily as possible

These two things must be carried out in the same process. Now, if you're a business owner, you want to provide as many options as possible. But at the same time, you would love your customers to make a purchase. So which is more important?

Use retail display fixtures (such as slatwall racks) so you can keep your shoppers' interest in one "setting." These racks are great at making virtually anyone's browsing experience easier. At one glance, they can feast their eyes on an array of choices.

And since these slatwall racks aren't so large, the alternatives that are given to the customers are not that extensive. This cuts down the entire "shopping decision-making" process and this makes the purchase more probable.

2. Make your retail display system easy to navigate

A smooth shopping experience is what customers love. So plan your display system. Make certain that you have enough walking area to accommodate a few customers at a time.

Also, make use of the wonders of retail display fixtures such as magazine racks, counter top displays and glass display cases. Of course, know where to strategically place them. Provide a story out of the arrangement of your display. As such, your customers will have a better idea on how they'll carry out their shopping. For a customer, there's probably nothing worse than "being lost" in the display area.

By applying these tips into your display system, you are able to target the mind of your consumers. You are able to entice them into making a purchase without really shouting it out loud. Remember, shopping is not really a matter of pure numbers, but of volatile sentiments. So focus on those sentiments, utilize intelligent retail display fixtures so you can bring your business revenues up!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Supermarket Construction and Renovation

In the city of Los Angeles, there have been three supermarket renovations in the last year. Two supermarkets-The Pavilions in Marina Del Rey kept the outer shell of its building but was completely remodeled on the interior. On the other hand, an entire renovation of the interior of The Pavilions in West Hollywood was done. Lastly, increment reconstruction of the interior of Ralph's Supermarket in the West Pico District was carried out.

What is the common denominator of these three supermarket construction projects? The entrance. Before the renovation, food and consumer products used to dominate the entrances of these supermarkets. After the renovations and remodeling, you are now confronted with boutique specialty stands. These include a soup kiosk, a smoothie kiosk and special item bins. The newly-renovated supermarkets are also graced by wider aisles. There's an emphasis on the "old fashion butcher counter" including its more modern counterpart, the deli counter. An expansion on the bakery area is also seen. The Pavilions in West Hollywood even features a Starbucks kiosk.

From a construction perspective, the two Pavilion projects took about eleven months start to complete. On another note, three months is all it took to have the Ralph's project completed. Indeed, the difference is visible to the average consumer. The Pavilions seem to look like brand new stores while Ralph's is starting to unleash its unique beauty.

From an efficiency point of view, all these stores have self-checkout aisles. These allow you to get in and out of the grocery store more quickly-most of the time. If you buy alcohol, you can be slowed down as an attendant has to verify your age. This scenario isn't anymore an issue at Ralph's since this can be done remotely via a handheld console that is carried by the attendant. The attendance override, at the Pavilions, is to be done personally, at your own terminal. This can take a few minutes if the attendant is busy with another shopper. One word of advice though, be careful using self-checkout aisles especially in buying gift cards - it sometimes takes a lot of time.

There is a point to all of this construction. It is good for business. The opening of the West Hollywood Pavilions was a blast. There were block long lines to get into the parking lot for the first three days of business. Looking at the fresh produce inside the supermarket makes the shopper feel like she/he is in the Garden of Eden. From fresh products, organic and regular, to a staggering wine selection, there was variety and selection. Individual stations or kiosks abounded: Gelatto, soup, deli sandwiches, sushi, fried chicken, pizza, cheese, baked goods, salad bar and many more...with an eating area that has WIFI. Indeed, especially because of its emphasis on organic produce, the Pavilions West Hollywood belongs to the Supermarket Hall of Fame.

Savant Construction has specialized in supermarket construction and renovation for more than twenty years. They specialize in a range of services: full build out, remodeling, creation and installation of custom fixtures and displays. Savant Construction is an industry leader in supermarket construction within the states of California, Nevada and Arizona.