Trending Windows (Color): Turquoise x Store Analysis: Rimowa

One of the questions that I get asked by friends when I tell them I want to be a visual merchandiser is this: 

"So is it only about fashion/clothes?"

Of course not! Visual merchandising is very simple terms is all about ARRANGEMENT, with the purpose of making it APPEAL to the customer, and SELL! So besides your general clothing store, every single item that can be sold can hire a VM! Even when it comes to supermarkets selling food, there's a lot of thought into which items are place where and which level of shelves. Okay I digress. But my point is when windows are not about clothes, more creativity can be explored! Because clothes usually require mannequins for appeal, whereas items below can be positioned in interesting manners or employ certain themes to bring out the emotional appeal.  

Jewel tones have been trending for a while now. And I must say, for me, my favorite has to be turquoise because it reminds me so much of the sea! (Probably has got to do with my horoscope...) And Rimowa and Mont Blanc used it best!

I loved the voyage theme with with the lighter turquoise as the backdrop with fairytale-like wind patterns. So everything is pretty monotonous except for the contrasting dark grey metallic suitcases which makes it so much more attractive! Had it been placed beside black and navy suitcases I wouldn't have liked it so much.

This is actually the extended right side of the long window with various sizes of turquoise luggage they are selling. Lovely right? The color appeal here is very strong, with the contrasting flame red mats adding onto the focus. I believe the second luggage from the left is purposely left horizontal (i.e. lying on the broader surface) to open up the view of the consumer to the multi-colored display of luggage at the back.

Now look at the right side. Instead of just normal layers of shelving like those boring supermarket shelving, the levels are half-alternated, with some boxed up lit shelves to highlight some key products, which make all these similar looking rectangular luggage display way more interesting than those just stacked together from small to large, and by singular colors. During the time while I was taking the photos, a few passerby had stopped to look. SUCCESS! Making a shopper a stopper!

In the Mont Blanc window below, the use of the color is more subtle. Instead of having full coverage of the color, it is used as font of the poster with black illustrations and light brown feathers, all having the flow and color of ink. But this striking color makes it hard to ignore, and brings the viewer down to the similarly illustrated book at the left before drawing attention to the product. A clever one!

xoxo,
Yuhan

Inspiration: Origami birds

A common childhood activity familiar to many, this Japanese folding technique has expanded far beyond its native country; stretching its influences to graphic art and fashion. Endless possibilities are formed with each fold and twist, creating beautiful and interesting shapes. The Origami bird, the most iconic shape, seems to be on trend currently. And that is of no wonder, considering the gracefulness of the wing in contrast with the edgy core (body). Take a look at these wonderful displays below:

  Acrylic origami bird ornaments, Ramen Play, Katong I12

 Hanging floral-print origami birds with lights, The Cathay

Autumn-hued origami birds with hanging shoes, 

Coach display window, Wisma Atria

xoxo, 

Yuhan

Inspiration: Raphaelle H'Limi & Polka Dots

I am officially obsessed with this young woman's designs! From the first look at her SS14 collection presented at Paris fashion week, I'm absolutely hooked. The whimsical girly designs, soft fabrics, pastel colors, contrasted with the clean graphic lines, I love it! And later I found, like a crazy fan or stalker from her Pinterest folders and her designer profile at Avenue lifestyle (click here: Raphaelle HLimi of Hellopillow), that she has a graphic design background an dabbles in homeware design as well. Amazing!

Anyways, calming down, I would really like to comment on her interesting use of dots in her designs. I love polka dots, since a long time ago. To me, there's two things about it that attracts me, #1 the 60s retro era feel, which I love! And #2 it's graphic, straight and clean pattern which is easy to try, which is good for me when I wasn't as adventurous in my fashion choices then. The first female artist then truly opened my eye and imagination to polka dots used in totally unconventional manner, and scale, and color was Yayoi Kusama, when she did her collaboration with Louis Vuitton for one of their new bag collections:

In this case, I felt LV did a great job in transcending her artwork unto the bags and clothing. Personally, though I adore her spirit for art, the dots don't appeal to me that much. It's kind of creepy to me, like how they resemble octopus tentacles? So maybe quirky, but still nightmare-worthy-creepy.

Raphaelle does dots in a very different manner though. Non-possessive of space. Not really to me. Even in the MIST A RAY campaign below. Just shining quietly, like a star, like a prop (in her polka dot painted models in her SS14 campaign), seemingly fading into the background, but bright enough to induce interest.

RAPHAELLE H'LIMI // Mist A Ray A/W 13-14 from Frédéric Bussière

Her video here, or her designs, tend to focus around lightness; like the occasional mist that blows in your face from the models and her choice of fabrics. The sounds, movement (of lighting, mist, models), the lighting (dots), all lifts you into this state of floating, dreaming. 

This is one designer I'm keeping my eyes glued on. 

xoxo, 

Yuhan 

Store Analysis: Timberland Part 1

Timberland. Whenever this brand comes to my mind, two words appear: rustic and adventure. This is very much evident in the choice of colors in their murky mustard brown boots especially and also their earth-toned apparel. And even though there are a few other outdoor wear apparel brands in Singapore I believe, Columbia or The North Face, but none beats branding better than Timberland from a consumer perspective.

Take a look at their store, and you’ll know; this one below is taken from their outlet at Somerset 313. The illuminated ‘Timberland’ words with their logo in the top center of the store, the brown pillar at the corner, the wooden plinths used in the window display, and not forgetting the eye-catching logo facade located at the right corner of the store, all screams ‘Timberland’ in your face, making it impossible to ignore.

At the corridors, iconic mustard yellow (very Timberland indeed!) banners are hung that can be seen from other floors, help promote the opening of the new store and direct customers there.

And if that hasn't yet lured you into the store, then the store front should! I love elongated store fronts like these as they allow space for a wide window display as well as maximizes the exposure of product range even without having the customer walk in. This works for me as being me; I'm not the kind of customer who will go into a new store randomly without first being persuaded the need to or something WOW enough to attract me, all the more when the store is EMPTY with a BUNCH of salespeople. So in this case, I might have managed to catch at least 60% of the range of products without even stepping into the store. How? The Magic of Mannequins!

See the number of mannequins exposed from the picture? I can count 8, including the one on the right at the very back. So many styles! That was when I noticed, the store is actually divided into half sections for men and women. It’s not hard to notice really, just look at the darker browns used for flooring and paint in the men’s section as compared to the women’s cream background. Even the windows are also done separately!

This store seems to have paid attention to lighting too; from the outside, it looks like they do have adequate lighting for the store and merchandise that makes the place look bright. This is crucial here, considering earth-tones tend to cause the place look dull and boring, and sometimes even evoke the ‘dirty’ feel, which most adventurous outdoor people wouldn't mind…But hey, you wouldn't want to stop a cleanliness freak in his or her steps right?

xoxo,
Yuhan