Dinosaur Installation-Day Two
About to head out the door for Day 3, but wanted to post some images from yesterday.
Headlines: Dinosaur gives birth to man!
We “upcycled” Pearlridge Center’s christmas trees by turning the bases and frames into willow and hapu‘u trees.
Sneak peek!
Dinosaur Installation-Day One
It’s been one year since we began this blog. Thanks so much for your feedback and support, it’s been fun posting our projects and retail info we find useful.
Our first entry last year was the installation of “Giant Insects” at Pearlridge Center. Well this year it’s Dinosaurs!
CS is responsible for creating the environments in which the dinosaurs live. Over the next few days we will be posting photos of our day-to-day progress as we load in all of the props and visuals.
Today was the unloading of two 40’ containers. All dinosaurs were un-crated, moved into the mall and then pieced together by the Kokoro technicians and Pearlridge Center crew. Here are a few pix:
Pteranoden over Pearlridge’s Center Court
Before take-off.
T-Rex getting a little help.
Maiasaura Family
The fun continues tomorrow as we begin to bring in the decor and build the environments.
GlobalShop 2010
Creative Solutions is packing up for a road trip. We will be attending this year’s GlobalShop held in Las Vegas. The first time we attended was in 2006 in Chicago and were blown away by the amount of resources there. We’ve been yearning to go back to see what’s new ever since.
GlobalShop hosts the latest vendors in retail and store design. Everything you need from lighting to signage and mannequins to fixtures. It is a visual merchandisers heaven.
Take a look at some photos of previous shows. We will be micro-blogging while there and will upload tons of photos upon our return. Follow us on Twitter, @iheartcs, for more images and tips from seminars we will be attending.
Alesco Booth
Infinity Booth
Musak Booth
5 Simple Tips for an Impressive Storefront
Operating and managing a retail store each day can lead to overexposure of your merchandise and general visual exhaustion. Unfortunately, by not maintaining an objective perspective on your stores visual presence can lead to promotional liabilities, especially your storefront.
Did you know the average time a customer will contemplate entering a store is 7 seconds? What does your storefront need to do to protect you from losing potential customers? Below are simple (and economical!) tips to create a functional and impressive storefront entrance.
1. Avoid tall fixtures
Using large fixtures or complex displays at your entrance will create visual barriers that reduces sight-lines and create a feeling of unwelcoming ‘separation’. Keep floor fixtures at waist or chest height for better browsing and overall higher visibility.
2. Provide a Decompression Zone
Place your lead fixture (preferably a table) 3’ - 4’ feet inside the store threshold rather than at the immediate entrance. This space will allow customers to prepare themselves for shopping and navigating your store.
An attractive and inviting storefront at Soha Living / Kahala Mall
3. Make a Statement!
Use exciting products to attract customers into your store. Tell a story through lifestyle, color or a mixture of both. Be creative and make an impact.
Victoria Secret’s Pink Store shows off a great example of classification merchandising; highlighting a few styles while using complimentary items to surround them.
ReForm School in Los Angeles shows a great lifestyle presentation. (photo credit targophoto.com via Flickr)
4. Change your Product Weekly
Plan to change your display product weekly. This will help keep the store looking fresh and appealing to frequent customers. Even better, be the customer! Shop your store for signs of stale or ineffective displays, then fix them.
5. Maintenance
IMPORTANT! Be mindful of untidy areas throughout the day, always check for dust or trash that has accumulated. Pickup after customers and remove unncessary clutter from view of the public. If you use an entry rug, straighten and clean it routinely.
Pictures Plus / Ward Warehouse
You have one chance to make a good first impression, make it count. By applying these steps to your storefront and actively working on improving your displays can help turn a passerby into a loyal customer. If you don’t take the time to care, neither will your customers.
Creative Solutions Word Cloud
Cool site we found that will generate word clouds. You can either type in your blog, blog feed or any other web page. Another option is to manually enter a bunch of text and it will formulate a cloud. Really fun. Use your clouds to make Thank You cards, signage or blow it up as a back drop for a window display.
Click on the image to go to the site or check them out at http://www.wordle.net/
It’s in the Mail
My holiday copy of Pictures Plus newest catalog just arrived in the mail. We posted a couple of months ago that we were working on a print project (click HERE to see the post) and here it is! It’s nice to see all or your hard work, literally in the palm of your hand.
Our crew’s favorite page:
Clean and concise layout, but there’s another reason…
Great personal gifts for family and friends. Remember, most of Pictures Plus product is Made in Hawai’i. Support local business! To find a location near you, click HERE.
Pictures Plus Holiday 2009 Catalog
Typically summer is quiet for Creative Solutions. It’s quite nice. Time to catch up on office work, organizing our supplies and a time to relax before Holiday installations.
The Insect installation was a nice surprise this summer and quite a fun one too! Thanks Pearlridge Center!
Once that project was complete, we rolled right into a photo shoot for another client, Pictures Plus. We normally do one catalog a year, but they decided to do two for their 4th quarter! No time to relax and organize it was onto planning all 30 pages!
During the planning phase, we assist our client with product development and goods that should be featured. Once that is determined, we do a rough layout of all pages, art direct, prop shop, and style all “looks” in the catalog.
Their new in-house graphic designer was great to work with. Discussing the look, ideas and flow of the catalog was a great partnership. Looking forward to seeing the printed copy…maybe the above shot could make the cover….
Months of prep work, logistics, meetings and location scouting made for a fun (and exhausting) time for our team.
Check back in October to see a copy of the completed catalog or check any Pictures Plus stores.
