Project Report on Visual Merchsndising by-SYED AKRAM AZAD

7/31/2019 Project Report on Visual Merchsndising by-SYED AKRAM AZAD

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PROJECT REPORT

ON

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Dr. GAURAV BISARIA

FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH

INTEGRAL UNIVERSITY

LUCKNOW

SUBMITTED BY- AKRAM AZAD

Roll no-1100122010 (MBA-1styear, 2ndSEMESTER, Section-A)


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GUIDE CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Mr Akram Azad, student of M.B.A (Marketing) 1st Year

having Roll No. 1100122010 have completed his semester project on the topic

VISUAL MERCHANDISING

under my supervision and guidance.The behaviour of the student during the project period was found to be highly

appreciable and satisfactory.

I wish him all the best for his future endeavours.

Dr Gaurav Bisaria

FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH.

Integral University Lucknow


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I feel immense pleasure to give the credit of my project work not only to

one individual as this work is an integrated effort of all those who are

concerned with it. A teacher or a guide plays a great role to play in a field of

research and discovery. No research can be done without motivation,

guidance, and inspiration.

I take this opportunity to put my earnest thanks to Dr.Gaurav Bisaria

Faculty of management & research , who inspired and guided me a lot

while making this project.

I am thankful to Dean Dr.ZEESHAN AMIR for superb guidance, valuable

inputs and encouraging attitude. Above all, thanks to almighty Allah forshowing his blessing for the accomplishment of the project.

Akram Azad

MBA-2nd SEM

Roll.No-1100122010


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

INTRODUCTION TO TOPIC

This project has been undertaken to know about the consumer awareness

About visual merchandising & also to about the role of visual merchandising

In purchasing of any product. Visual merchandising, or visual presentation,

is the means to communicate a store/companys fashion value and quality

image to prospective customers. The purpose of visual merchandising is to

educate the customer, to enhance the store/companys image, and to

encourage multiple sales by showing apparel together with accessories.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Serial No. Topic Page Number

1 INTRODUCTION 6

2 Purpose/Objectives 9

3 Rationale/Significance 14

4 Visual Merchandising 15

5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 27

6 FINDING AND INTERPRETATION 29

7 CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION 38

8 ANNEXURES

* QUESTIONNAIRE

40

10 BIBLIOGRAPY 45


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INTRODUCTION

VISUAL MERCHANDISING

Visual Merchandising is everything the customer sees, both exterior and

interior, that creates a positive image of the business and results in attention,

interest, desire and action on part of the customer

A successful retailing business requires that a distinct and consistent image be

created in the customers mind that permeates all product and service offerings.

Visual Merchandising can help create that positive customer image that leads to

successful sales. It not only communicates the stores image, but also reinforces

the stores advertising efforts and encourages impulse buying by the customer.

Visual merchandising is a major factor often over looked in the success orfailure of a retail store. It is second only to effective customer relations. A story

can be told that communicates to the prospective customer what the store is all

about. It includes the dramatic presentation of merchandise as well as other

important subtle features that create the stores overall atmosphere.

Visual Merchandising at Big Bazaar- Eighty percent of our impressions are

created by sight; that is why one picture is worth a thousand words. Each

customer has a mental image of a store and its merchandise. A store should

have an inviting appearance that makes the customer feel comfortable and yet


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eager to buy. Some businesses maintain a minimum staff to reduce costs, which

means it is even more important for the merchandise to sell itself. Greater effort

must be spent on merchandise displays that make it easier for the customer to

find and purchase the items they want or need.

The basic objective for visual merchandising is a desire to attract customers to

place of business in order to sell the merchandise. Visual merchandising is

offered to the customer through exterior and interior presentation. Each should

be coordinated with the other using the stores overall theme.

Visual merchandising, or visual presentation, is the means to communicate

a store/companys fashion value and quality image to prospective

customers. The purpose of visual merchandising is to educate the customer, to

enhance the store/companys image, and to encourage multiple sales by

showing apparel together with accessories. Therefore, each store/company

tries to build and enhance its image and concept through visual presentations,

which appeal to shoppers and ultimately transform them into customers by

building brand loyalty and encouraging customers buying behaviors.

Visual Merchandising Evolution

Every shopkeeper and merchant's primary objective is to sell

merchandise.When the giant nineteenth century dry goods establishments like

Marshall Field & Co. shifted their business from wholesale to retail the visual

display of goods became necessary to attract the retail customer. The store

windows no longer simply allowed natural light to shine in the building or act as

storage space for stock; they became important venues to attractively display

the store's merchandise. Gradually, the design aesthetic used in window displays

moved indoors and became part of the overall interior store design, eventually

displacing the importance windows altogether in suburban malls.

The Victorian era made window displays popular and the Great Exhibition of

1851 in London established the prominence of display over the items while

commercializing the practice. In due course visual merchandising became an

inalienable part of the fashion and retail industry.

As far as the term Visual Merchandising is concerned, it became widespread

only in 1970 even though it was coined during the 1940s. From the late 1800s

till the 1920s, visual merchandisers were known as window trimmers. By the

late 1920s, the window trimmers were referred to as display men, just as


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advertising industry called its people ad men. The industry is evolving and

entering new domains,

Visual Merchandising is increasingly perceived as a part of the overall brand

communication process.

Todays fierce competition and the similarity of merchandise force each

segment of the fashion industry to utilize visual merchandising to improve

the desirability of products. Apparel retailers, especially, place more importance

on visual merchandising to differentiate their offerings from others.

Researchers found that impulse buyers usually do not set out with the specific

purpose of visiting a certain store and purchasing a certain item; the behavior

occurs after experiencing an urge to buy, and such behaviors are influenced by

internal states and environmental/external factors. Research findings suggest

that impulse buying accounts for substantial sales across a broad range of

product categories. Since impulse buying is a pervasive aspect of

consumers behaviors and a focal point for strategic marketing plans, it is

worthwhile for retailers to understand factors within the retail setting that

trigger consumers impulsive reactions. Retailers can help customers to find

the right products through focused merchandising, intelligent store design

and layout, and other visual merchandising practices, such as product

displays, packaging, and signage.


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Purpose/Objectives:

Young consumer group have gained significant importance from marketers

as they have growing purchasing power; their money attitude also has been

changing with relatively easy access to credit cards. Therefore, the consumer

behavior of an important sector of the young consumer group, college

students, is worth to be researched. Retailers try to find variables that

influence shoppers impulse buying urges and decisions and attempt to control

these influencing variables through strategic marketing and merchandising

activity.

Based on the literature review, it is reasonable to expect that visual

merchandising, a common external factor that encourages consumers urge to

buy, can affect consumers impulse buying decisions.

The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between college

students apparel impulse buying behaviors and common external factors

that trigger impulse buying.

External factors that the research will exam are attributes likely to be

encountered in many retailing contexts, such as visual merchandising. The

research, therefore, will focus on effects of four types of visual merchandising

on impulse buying behavior.

The types of visual merchandising used as predictors in this study are window

display, in-store form/mannequin display, floor merchandising and promotional

signage.


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Impulsive Buying :Impulse buying has been considered a pervasive and distinctive

phenomenon and has been receiving increasing attention from

consumer researchers and theorists. Despite the negative aspects of the

impulse buying behavior from past research, defining impulsive behavior

as an irrational behavior, resulting from a lack of behavioral control

impulse purchases account for substantial sales across a broad range of

product categories. A study found that impulse purchases represented

between27% and 62% of all department store purchases. Other

research findings support this assertion revealing almost 90% of

respondents have made grocery purchases on impulse occasionally, and

between 30% and 50% of all purchases can be classified by the buyers

themselves as impulse purchases.

Early studies on impulse buying were more concerned with the

definitional issues distinguishing impulse buying from non-impulse

buying and attempted to classify the types of impulse buying into

one of several sub-categories, rather than to understand impulse

buying as a trait of consumer buying behavior. Therefore, this

approach generated a theory that ignores the behavioral motivations

of impulse buying for a large variety of products and, instead, focuses

on a small number of relatively inexpensive products. However, this

type of approach did not provide sufficient explanations as to why so

many consumers appear to act on their buying impulse so frequently.

Therefore, researchers began to re-focus attention on impulse buying

behavior and to investigate the behavioral motivations of impulse buying.

The pervasiveness of impulse buying, even for relatively expensive

products, led researchers to look at impulse buying as an inherent

individual trait, rather than a response to inexpensive product

offerings. Recently, researchers appear to agree that impulse buying

involves a hedonic or affective component. Todays research suggests

that impulse buying behavior is much more complex than previously

conceptualized; that this behavior stems from the desire to satisfy

multiple needs that underlie many types of buying behavior.


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Characteristics of impulse buying behavior:Impulse buying behavior is identified with descriptors such as a

spontaneous, intense, exciting, urge to buy with the purchaser often

ignoring the consequences. While more recent research in this area

discusses impulse buying as a trait rather than as a classification of

a purchase decision, researchers agree that consumers vary in their

impulse-buying tendency. Without having prior information of a new

product or intention to purchase a certain item, a consumer is exposed to

stimuli, suggesting that a need can be satisfied through the purchase.

There are several different types of internal states and

environmental/sensory stimuli that serve as cues for triggering

impulse buying. Internal cues include respondents positive and

negative feeling states. Environmental/sensory cues encompass

atmospheric cues in retail settings, marketer-controlled cues, and

marketing mix stimuli.

Normative evaluations for impulse buying behavior:Past research shows that planned buying behavior results in accurate

decisions, but impulsive behavior results in decision errors,

increasing possibilities of negative consequences. These negative

evaluations of impulse buying behavior possibly stem from

psychological studies of impulsiveness that characterize impulsive

behavior as a sign of immaturity resulting in a lack of behavioral control

or as an irrational, risky, and wasteful behavior.

However, some research on impulse buying behavior indicates that

impulse buyers do not consider their impulsive purchases as wrong and

report even favorable evaluations of their behaviors. In the study of Trait

and normative aspects of impulsive buying behavior, a relatively

small number of respondents (only 20%) reported feeling bad about

their impulse buying, but a large number of respondents (4 1%)


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reported that they actually felt good about their impulse purchases.

One explanation for this phenomenon is that consumers buy products for

a variety of non-economic reasons, such as fun, fantasy, and social or

emotional pleasure. Some consumers even see shopping as retail

therapy, as a way of getting over the stresses of a working day or

simply a fun day out supporting the hedonic modification for impulse

buying.

Factors/Cues influencing impulse buying:Few recent studies investigated the factors that affect impulse

buying. Researchers have suggested that internal states and

environmental/external factors can serve as cues to trigger

consumers impulse behavior to purchase. Research shows that

situational factors have practical and theoretical significance in that

many decisions are made at the point-of-purchase as a reflection of

low involvement decision-making strategies. The research on

situational influence can be described as examining the relationship

among shopper characteristics and the features of retailing or point-of-

purchase situations. Shopper characteristics might include involvement,

attitude, and ethnicity, while the retailing features could include outlet

size, retail format, and store personality.

Internal factors:Affect or mood has been identified as a variable that influences

impulse purchasing. According to a survey 85% of respondents

indicated a positive mood would be more constructive to impulse

buying than a negative mood. Respondents stated that, in a positive

mood, they had an unconstrained feeling, the desire to reward

themselves, and higher energy levels. Thus, the impulse buyers

exhibited greater feelings of delight, enthusiasm, and joy.


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Individual consumers' impulse buying behavior is correlated with their desires

to fulfill hedonic needs, such as fun, novelty and surprise. In addition,

emotional support needs may also be satisfied by the social interaction

inherent in the shopping experience. For instance, research findings indicate that

consumers report feeling uplifted or energized after a shopping experience

supporting the recent concept of impulse buying behavior as a trait motivated by

hedonic desire. The hedonic value of shopping reflects potential entertainment

and emotional worth of shopping. It has been suggested that shopping without

specific intent, may be more significant than acquisition of products and can

provide a highly pleasurable shopping experience. Since the goal of the

shopping experience is to provide satisfaction of hedonic needs, the products

purchased during these excursions appear to be chosen without prior

planning and represent an impulse buying event.

External factors:Specific situations and retail settings influence both in-store responses

and future store choice decisions because of the changing and adoptive

nature of expectations, preferences, and behavior. For instance, thefindings of the study showed that consumers beliefs about the

physical attractiveness of a store had a higher correlation with a choice

of a store than did merchandise quality, general price level, and

selection. This supports the notion that consumers choice of a store is

influenced by the store environment, of which visual merchandising

plays a vital role. This observation that people approach, avoid,

and create situations in accordance with their desires. Customers

avoid or leave retail settings that are stressful or obstructive. Theexpectation/experience of positive feelings generally leads to

approach responses, while avoidance is associated with

expectations/experience of negative outcomes. Researchers have

suggested that various aspects of retailing environments can influence

consumer behavior. The significant role of various retailing

atmospherics, For instance, music and color have been related to

consumer behavior, suggesting visual merchandising within the retail

settings may influence consumer behavior as well.


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Rationale/significance of the study:

With increasing competition, retailers strive to ensure that their stores are

appealing to their target markets. As retailers are finding it increasingly

difficult to create a differential advantage on the basis of merchandisealone, the store itself plays an important role for market differentiation.

The correlation between consumers belief about the physical attractiveness

of a store and patronage intentions suggests that the visual aspect of the store

may be significant in relation to the consumers choice of a store and

buying behavior. Since many retailers use visual presentation of the

store/companys offering in order to encourage customers buying

behaviors, this fact was expected to be found in the consumer and

marketing literature. However, the literature does not include a coherent

approach or provide significant coverage for this subject. If first impressions

and appearance are important indicators of store image, then store window

displays must play an important role in a consumers decision whether or not to

enter the store.

However, classifications of store image components in the literature are

almost entirely related to the in-store merchandise placement. Display

communications, which frequently happen to influence consumers buyingbehavior, are not considered.

Buttle (1988) referred to visual merchandising as a neglected area in fashion

marketing research. This neglect does not signify that this area is unworthy

of academic research, but may indicate that since visual merchandising

concerns perceptions of creativity, an area which is difficult to test;

researchers may have difficulty in analyzing it meaningfully.

Therefore, this study will provide information as to why visualmerchandising should be considered an important component of a strategic

marketing plan in support of sales increase and positive store/company

image. This study will also provide insights to retailers about types of visual

merchandising that can influence consumers impulse buying behaviors.

The way in which merchandise will eventually be displayed and promoted at the

store level is an important consideration in the buying function as well as in the

strategic marketing/merchandising plan.


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Conceptual Definitions:

Conceptual definitions were adopted from the literature or created by theresearcher specifically for this study.

External cues: In-store and faade level display correlated with situationalenvironment that influences a customers buying decision.

Floor merchandising: The arrangement of merchandise according to plan-o-gram/zone-o-gram, in which merchandise is made available for sale to

customers

Form/mannequin display: The presentation of merchandise using formsor mannequins in order to provoke customers interest and create the

desire to buy.

In-store display: A creative way of presenting merchandise with thepurpose of providing consumers with information about new products,fashion trends, or coordination tips in order to encourage customers urge

to buy. For the purpose of this study, the following types of in-store

display were investigated: form/mannequin display, floor merchandising,

and promotional signage.

Internal cues: Emotional feelings and desires that influence customersbuying decisions.

Impulse buying: Impulse buying is a sudden and immediate purchasewith no pre-shopping intentions either to buy the specific product

category or to fulfill a specific buying task.

Signage: Wording used either alone or in conjunction with in-storedisplay to convey product or promotional information to customers withthe purpose of informing and creating demand for the merchandise.


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Visual merchandising: A way of presenting merchandise effectively toimprove the desirability of a product and to influence a customers

buying behavior.

Window display: Any kind of visual presentation of merchandise in thefaade level in order to attract attention and ultimately to enter the store.

Conceptual Framework:

Impulse buying has been defined as a spontaneous, immediate purchase

without pre-shopping intentions either to buy a specific product category or

to fulfill a specific buying task.

The impulse buying behavior occurs after experiencing an urge to buy

and tends to be spontaneous without a lot of reflection. Since impulse buyers

are not actively looking for a certain product and dont have prior plans or

intention to make a purchase, internal states and environmental/external

factors can serve as cues to trigger their impulse behavior.

Model :

Following is the model of the consumer buying process including five steps:

1. Need recognition,

2. Information search,

3. Alternative evaluation,

4. Purchase decision, and

5. Post-purchase evaluation.


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The buying process begins with a recognized need. This need recognition

may come from an internal feeling or it may come from external stimuli

generating motivation to purchase.

When consumers are motivated by identifying needs, they start looking forinformation. Based on the information, consumers evaluate ways to fulfill

the need.

After evaluating options, consumers may make a purchase. Finally,

consumers formally or informally evaluate the outcome of the purchase after

buying a product. This step involves consequences and satisfaction for the

purchase; a consumer who has positive experience may develop loyalty to

the store where she/he purchased. The process is repeated as consumers feel

needs for products.

This consumer buying process is influenced by social, marketing, and

situational Factors. Social influences reflect geographic and sociologic

factors. Those can be culture, subculture, social class, and family that

influence persons behavior by providing direct and indirect messages and

feedback.

Consumers are also influenced by their reference groups, the groups that

influence the consumers thoughts, feelings, and actions. Marketing influences

on the consumer buying process include the affect of the marketing mix, known

as product, price, placement, and promotion, which influence the consumer

buying process at various stages.

Consumers, in general, are influenced by characteristics of the situation,

circumstances surrounding their shopping trip.

Major situational influences include the physical surroundings, social

surroundings, time, task, monetary conditions, and momentary moods.

The physical surroundings that influence buying behavior are observable

features that include location of the store, merchandise display, store

interior/exterior design, and noise level of the store. The social surroundings of

a situation are other people, their characteristics and roles, and the way they

interact. The moods and condition as well as the time, task, and monetary

condition of a consumer at the time of purchase influence their buying

decision. Although useful in explaining planned purchase situations, the


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model does not lend itself to explaining the process of impulse buying. The

buying behavior is classified as planned or unplanned.

According to this classification, planned buying behavior involves a time-

consuming; where as unplanned buying refers to all purchases madewithout such advanced planning including impulse buying, which is

distinguished by the relatively speedy decision-making encouraged by

stimuli. Impulse purchases are not the result of a specific search to satisfy

a particular requirement since the satisfaction may come from the act of

shopping itself. Purchases are incidental to this speedy process although they

may provide some kind of enjoyment.

Therefore, several pre-purchase steps are entirely skipped in the impulse

buying process. Considering the nature of impulse buying, which occurs in a

short period of time without prior plans, has been modified for the purpose of

this study to describe the impulse buying process by omitting several

steps, such as need recognition, information search, and alternative

evaluation, and reclassifying influencing factors.

Visual Merchandising in Relation to Impulse Buying Behavior:

In-store browsing may be a link between internal and external factors, as an

important component in the impulse buying process as well as a link between

consumers impulse buying behavior and retail settings including exterior and

interior display. In-store browsing is the in-store examination of a retailers

merchandise for recreational and informational purposes without animmediate intent to buy. Customers who browsed in a store made more

unplanned purchases than non-browsers in a regional mall setting. As a

customer browses longer, she/he will tend to encounter more stimuli, which

would tend to increase the like hood of experiencing impulse urges. This

supports conceptualization of impulse buying as a response to the consumers

exposure to in-store stimuli. Shoppers may actually use a form of in-store

planning to finalize their intentions. The store stimuli serves as a type of

information aid for those who go to the store without any predetermination of


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what they need or buy, and once they get into the store, they are reminded or get

an idea of what they may need after looking around the store.

In other words, consumers impulse buying behavior is a response made

by being confronted with stimuli that provoke a desire that ultimately

motivate a consumer to make an unplanned purchase decision upon entering

the store. The more the store stimuli, such as visual merchandising, serves as a

shopping aid, the more likely the possibility of a desire or need arising

and finally creating an impulse purchase.

The importance of window display in relation to consumers buying

behavior has received minimal attention in the literature. However, since a

consumers choice of a store is influenced by the physical attractiveness of a

store, and the first impressions of the store image is normally created at the

faade level, it can be suggested that window display may influence, at least to

some degree, consumers choice of a store when they do not set out with a

specific purpose of visiting a certain store and purchasing a certain item. The

initial step to getting customers to purchase is getting them in the door.

COMPONENTS OF VISUAL MERCHANDISING :

STORE IMAGE Image can be described as the overall look of a store and the series of

mental pictures and feelings it evokes within the beholder. For the

retailer, developing a powerful image provides the opportunity to embody

a single message, stand out from the competition and be remembered. Asa rule, image is the foundation of all retailing efforts. While store layout,

presentation, signing, displays and events can all change to reflect

newness and excitement from week to week, season to season, they must

always remain true to the underlying store image. The following elements

combine to form a distinctive image that not only reaches out and grabs

the customer's attention, but also makes a positive Visual Merchandising

at mostly retail outlets.impression within those precious few seconds.

Image forms the solid foundation for the remaining components ofMaximizing Store Impact.


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STORE DESIGN-Store design plays a crucial role in branding: it reflects and reinforces the

corporate image. The sights, sounds, smells and other any other aspectshould therefore reflect what the retailer brand is about and what its

attributes are. Different types of store design are:-

Grid: It contains long gondolas (a free standing block of shelves used to

display goods in a supermarket) of merchandise and aisles in repetative pattern.

Racetrack: also known as loop. It provides a major aisle to facilitate customer

traffic that has access to the stores multiple entrances.

Free Form: also known as boutique; arranges fixtures and aisles

asymmetrically. Visual merchandising creates a connection between the

companys image and the look of the store.

EXTERIOR DESIGN:


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STORE NAME :

An effective store name sets the tone and provides a store's identification

by conjuring up an image in the customer's mind. An effective name is

consistent with both the product mix and the store atmosphere.

VISUAL TRADEMARK :

An identifiable trademark adds a visual image to the memory recall of a

store name, by combining words and pictures, colour, shape, typeface, texture

and/or style to make it stand out.

STORE FRONT :

Storefront is also an important element, which adds to the store image

like the exterior architecture, signing and window displays.

EXTERIOR ARCHITECTURE :A store's exterior look is often referred to as the architecture, and

comprises aspects such as building materials, architectural style and

detail, colours and textures. These elements give a lasting first impression

to the consumer. It is important that the exterior look and feel right to the

shopper.

STORE SIGN:

The store sign is a vital element of the storefront and also an important

component of Visual Merchandising it helps in identifying the store In realizing

the value of a strong storefront sign, many retailers are employing new design

techniques which include projecting or cantilevering the store sign beyond the

lease line, adding motion, or using three-dimensional lettering and unique

lighting applications to add depth to the sign.


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WINDOWS DISPLAY AND FLOORING :

A store's exterior windows or glass storefront provide an additional opportunity

to reach out and grab the passing customer. Windows are integral in creating a

positive impression since they offer an opportunity to begin telling the store's

unique merchandise story. The flooring and the number of floors a retail outlet

has, also make an important impact on the consumers.

INTERIOR DESIGN ELEMENTS :The elements of interior design can be used to create an image that

matches the desired customer profile.

FIXTURES :

A major consideration in developing an appropriate store design involves the

use of fixtures. They are used to display merchandise, to help sell, to guard it

and to provide a storage space for it. They should be attractive and focus

customers. Attention and interest on the merchandise.


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DISPLAYS :

Displays play an important role in a retail store. An attractive and informative

display can help sell goods. There are several principles that help ensure this

effectiveness. They are achieving balance, provide dominant point, create eyemovement etc.

MERCHANDISE PRESENTATION TECHNIQUE :Merchandise Presentation technique is one of the most important

component of Visual Merchandising. The following are the different

presentation techniques:

1.Idea-Oriented Presentation:a method of presenting merchandise based on a specific idea or image of

the store.

2.Style/Item Presentation:organizing stock by style or item

3.Colour Presentation:A major role in a display is that of the colour and lighting. Aesthetic and

innovative use of them can lure customers to visit more aisles than they

usually do and spend more time there.

4.Price- lining:is the technique when retailers offer a limited number of predeterminedprice points within a classification.

5.Vertical Merchandising:merchandise is presented vertically suing walls and high gondolas.

6.Tonnage Merchandising:here large quantities of merchandise are displayed together to enhanceand reinforce a stores price image.


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7.Frontal Presentation:here the retailer exposes its much of the product as possible to catch the

customers eye.

8.Fixtures:the primary purposes of fixtures are to efficiently hold and display

merchandise.

COLOUR :The psychological effect of colour continues to be important to retailers.

Colour probably more than any other factor except price, is the .stopper.

that catches the consumers attention. Intelligent use of colour is importantin store design.

LIGHTING :Proper lighting is one of the most important considerations in retail outlet.

Today lighting has become a display medium. It is an integral part of

the stores interior and exterior design. Lighting is used to highlight

merchandise, sculpt space and capture a mood or feeling that enhances

the stores image.

CEILINGS :Ceiling represents a potentially important element of interior design.

Ceiling heights colour and material used will influence the store look.

FLOORING :Flooring choices are important because the coverings can be used to

separate departments; muffs noise in high-traffic areas and strengthen thestore image.

SHELVING :The material used for shelving as well as its design must be compatible

with the merchandising strategy and the overall image desired. Music and

scent in the retail outlet can influence consumer behaviour to a large

extent.


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Visual Merchandising supports Retail Strategy:

VM physically carries out a store's promotional selling strategies by designing

and executing window and interior displays that supports ad goals.

Installing promotional signing for in-store selling

Producing workable departmental layouts and interior dcor

Devising merchandise fixture layouts for day to day operations

Placing and presenting merchandise on walls and fixtures

Working as team members with the store's promotional staff

Visual Merchandising supports selling:

Communicate the latest trends in fashion and colors

Assists customers in making a buying decision

Create an exciting environment within the store

Visual Merchandising transforms a shopper into a buyer

Visual Merchandising supports gift shopping

Visual Merchandising stimulates customers' appetites for artfully presented

merchandise in the same way that the gourmet cook stimulates diners' appetites

for the artfully presented meal Visual


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Visual Merchandising supports retailing trends:

A trend is a direction in which fashion seems to be moving. Visual

Merchandising is the invisible force that doing a lot of the pushing behind the

trend. Trends put 'fun' in fundamental merchandising. Some of the prominent

trends include:

Consumerism is the trend: Consumers like an opportunity to thoroughly

inspect the product before making a purchase

The barriers to 'showcase selling' had to come down. Stores began to move in

the direction of self service

Assortment which the consumers like is another trend

Visual Merchandisers should become experts in anticipating and responding

to lifestyle trends. The crux is how to target the customers live their lives.

Stand along stores in shopping villages is a trend where customers are able to

park their vehicles in front of retail stores

Non-store retailing will affect Visual Merchandising

Visual Merchandising also supports international retailing


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Research Methodology:

TYPE OF RESEARCH

The study can well be described as descriptive. As a descriptive research, the

study will deal with the variables affecting the customer preference process via

Visual Merchandising.

It finds facts.

AREA OF ENQUIRY

It is proposed to conduct research in Lucknow City.

Secondary Data :

The secondary data of the study will be based on the available literature in

Journals in the retailing sector.

Primary Data :

Primary Data was collected using the structured questionnaire. A sample size of

100 respondents was chosen through random sampling technique. Construction

of questionnaire: Visual Merchandising at various retail outlets.

The questionnaire was used as the respondents had to give a specific answer to

the questions. This also made it easier for the respondents to give their opinion

without too much time. Personal interaction with the consumers at the store and

observation technique was also used.

Sample Size :

Total 100 respondents were selected as the sample size.

Sampling technique: Random Sampling

Sampling profile : general consumers

Sampling unit: individual consumers


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FINDINGS & INTERPRETATION

Q1: Are you aware of the term visual merchandising?

A: YES 73%

B: NO 27%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis it is clear that most of the consumer are aware

about the term visual merchandising.

73%

27%

YES

NO


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Q2: Does visual merchandising plays important role in purchasing a particular

product?

A: YES 78%

B: NO 22%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis it is clear that most of the consumer are agreewith the role of visual merchandising in purchasing any particular

product.

78%

22%

YES

NO


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Q3: Tick mark the statement which you feel plays important role in purchasing?

Strongly agree, agree, cant say, disagree, strongly disagree

a)- placement of the product plays important role in purchasing.?

A: STRONGLY AGREE 56%

B: AGREE 18%

C: DISAGREE 26%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis most of the 56% consumer are strongly agree, 18% are

agree, & 26% consumer are disagree with the above given statement.

56%

18%

26%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


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b)- colours of the package of product influences consumer ?


B: AGREE 10%

C: DISAGREE 2%

INTERPRETATION:

Form the above analysis mostly 88% consumer were strongly agree with the

statement that colours & packaging influences in buying,10% are agree & only

2% consumer are disagree with the above given statement.

88%

10%

2%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


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c)- visual appearance of the information related with product is important ?


B: AGREE 12%

C: DISAGREE 30%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 58% consumer are strongly agree with appearance of

product information is helpful 12% agree & 30% consumer are disagree with

this statement.

58%

12%

30%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


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d)- price of the product should be clearly visible ?


B: AGREE 18%

C: DISAGREE 1%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 81% of consumer are strongly agree with the clear

visibility of product price on the product 18% were agree & 1% consumer were

disagree with the statement.

81%

18%

1%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


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e) - lighting plays important role in purchasing?


B: AGREE 36%

C: DISAGREE 30%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 34% consumers were strongly agree with the statement

that lightening plays important role in purchasing & 36% only agree, 30% were

disagree with the statement.

34%

36%

30%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


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f)- cleanness is an important element of visual merchandising ?

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 38% consumer says that cleanness is important for

visual merchandising while 32% were only agree & 30% disagree with the

given statement.

38%

32%

30%

STRONGLY AGREE

AGREE

DISAGREE


B: AGREE 32%

C: DISAGREE 30%


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Q4: Does visual merchandising is important for unorganised retailers?

A: YES 68%

B: NO 32%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 68% consumer were respond with yes on the above

given statement & only 32% were said no, so it is clear that visual

merchandising is also very important for unorganised retail segment.

68%

32%

YES

NO


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Q5: Choose any one among the following alternatives ?

A: visual merchandising is important 69%

B: non-visual merchandising is important. 31%

INTERPRETATION:

From the above analysis 69% consumer were agree with the statement

that visual merchandising is important & 31% were said no to non visual

merchandising.

69%

31%

visual merchandising is

important

non visual merchandising

is important


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Conclusion

1)During my survey it was been found that most of the consumers wereaware of the term visual merchandising. The rest limited sections of the

consumer were not knowing the technical terms of visual merchandising.But somewhere in common languages they were knowing the activity.

2)During my survey it was been found that most of the consumers were ofthe view that visual merchandising plays an important role in purchasing

of the product. Again limited section of the consumer were of the view

that visual merchandising is not important because it is the product & its

satisfaction which plays important role in purchasing.

3)During my survey it was been found :a) Most of the consumers were strongly agree related with the fact

that placement of the product plays important role in purchasing.

The next section of the people were not agreeing with the abovefact.

b)Most of the consumer were strongly agree that colours of thepackage of the product influences consumers. The next section

which was very limited were not agreeing with the above fact.

c)Most of the consumers were strongly agree that visual appearanceof the information related with the product is important & the next

section were disagree with the above fact.


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d)Most of the consumers were agreeing with the fact thatprice of the product should be clearly visible over the

product. The next very limited section of consumer were

not agreeing with the fact.

e)Nearly equal section of consumers were strongly agree as well asdisagree related with the fact that lightening plays important role

in visual merchandising .

f) Nearly equal section of the consumers were strongly agree as wellas disagree related with the fact that cleanness is an important

element of visual merchandising.

4)During my survey it was been found that most of the consumers wereagreeing that visual merchandising is important for unorganised retailers

as it is important for organised retailers. The limited section of theconsumers were not agreeing with the above fact.

5)During my survey it was been found that 69% of the consumer wereagreeing that visual merchandising is important. Rest 31% were agreeing

that non-visual merchandising is important.


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Suggestion

Suggestions to organised retailers as well as un-organised retailers

The sales man of the organised retailers / un-organised retailers shouldspeak in very easy going language with the consumer this is because that

most of the consumers are from middle class of the society & are more

interested in knowing the meaning of then only just speak the technical

terms.

The organised retailers / un- organised retailers check the placing of theproduct over the shelves so that it can be clearly seen by the passers. By

the seeing of the product over the shelves influences the customers

related with the quick purchasing of the product.

The organised / un-organised retailers as well as manufacturers shouldgive more emphasis to the colours of the package of the product. This is

because the colour develops influential impact over the consumers related

with the instant purchasing of the product.

The organised / un-organised retailers should keep the product over theshelves in such a way that the consumers can read the informationsrelated to the product , without actual touching the product.


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The organised / un-organised retailers should keep the products over theshelves in such a way that price of the product can be seen easily without

the pace. This is because of the facts that most of the indian consumersare more price conscious.

The organised as well as un- organised retailers should give importanceto the products appearance & display then to the lightening & cleanness

of the stores. But this doesnt mean that these two factors are not

important because there was positive sign of consumers related with the

light & cleanness of the store.

The last suggestion of mine is giving importance to visual merchandisingthen non-visual merchandising. This is because limited section of the

consumers are moving towards internet-marketing while still majority of

consumer are purchasing through organised or un-organised retailers.


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RESEARCH LIMITATIONS :

Our research investigation is beset with the following constraints:

Time and resource constraints.

At the micro level, the scope of our research investigation is restricted toonly one retail unit in Lucknow City.

Bias/prejudice creeping into the responses of the respondents. Howeverwe will exercise due care to obviate it through meticulous cross checking

of data;(Delphi Method) & pie charts.

Limited sample size, but, in our opinion, it is adequate enough to makevalid projections.

Visual Merchandising at retail outlets.


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APPENDIXES

Sample of survey

Questionnaire:

i. Are you aware of the term visual merchandising?a)- YES

b)- NO

ii. Does visual merchandising plays important role in purchasing a particularproduct?

a)- YES

b)- NO

iii. Tick mark the statement which you feel plays important role inpurchasing?

Strongly agree, agree, cant say, disagree, strongly disagree

a)- placement of the product plays important role in purchasing.

b)- colours of the package of product influences consumer.

c)- visual appearance of the information related with product is important.

d)- price of the product should be clearly visible.

e)- lighting plays important role in purchasing.

f)- cleanness is an important element of visual merchandising.


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iv. Does visual merchandising is important for unorganised retailers?a)- YES

b)- NO

v. Choose any one among the following alternatives.a)-visual merchandising is important.

b)- non-visual merchandising is important.

vi. Give your suggestions to the organised as well as un-organised retailersrelated with visual merchandising.

vii.


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BIBLIOGRAPHY :

BOOKS: Retail Management by Ron Hasty & James Reardon, Pearson

Publication

Retailing in India, ICFAI Publications,

Marketing Management by Philip Kotler (Chapter on Retailing)

Holly Bastow Shoop, Dale Zetocha North Dakota University,

Gregory Passewtiz, Visual Merchandising for Retailers, d.o.pMay

2001

JOURNALS & MAGZINES : Business Today

Marketing Mastermind

Journal of Marketing

Back numbers of A & M

International Journal of Management Sciences

WEBSITES: www.mbaindia.com

www.slideshare.com www.wikipedia.org

www.timesofindia.com
http://www.timesofindia.com/http://www.timesofindia.com/http://www.timesofindia.com/http://www.timesofindia.com/

Documents

Project Report on Visual Merchsndising by-SYED AKRAM AZAD