It's Right There In Black & White!

Tradeshow booth design by Rosanna Inc. is, in one word, Brilliant!

White fomkore panels, a few black felt pens (okay, okay, they probably had it printed), and some creative brains - and you get this incredible concept for a booth. Simple, graphic, easy up/down, easy transport, easy easy easy. Those panels are affixed to the front of the huge rolling boxes that transport product. Unload, put against the wall, pop on the panels, and arrange products. The backdrops wedge between the base boxes and the top rail of the pipe-n-drape around the booth.

And effective: All of the marvelously playful colors of Rosanna ceramicware show up perfectly against the white. There is ample space for traffic flow. This photo was taken during show setup a few years ago - I do beleive they added some kitschy chrome & naugahyde kitchen table sets in the center of the space, providing an area for order-writing and sticking with the theme of a kitchen. And speaking of theme, what is more perfect for this product than a kitchen?

(hmmmm...maybe a candy shop or soda fountain.....)

I wanted to share this idea with you in case you are racking your brains trying to come up with a display idea for your show booth or showroom for the summer show season. Sometimes, simple is the most effective route you can take. Plus it gives you more time to sneak outside and catch some rays!

Also, in finding the correct link to Rosanna, Inc. for this post, I also found her blog. O dear....on it, she announces her summer warehouse sale which is being held Tomorrow and Saturday. If you are in Seattle, get thee to an ATM and hustle down to SoDo to see what bargains Rosanna has cooked up! (PS: right around the corner from her warehouse is the Seattle Goodwill Outlet - you could score some cool furniture for displays there! And don't forget to head over to Sand Point on Sunday for the long-awaited reprise of the Sand Point Antique Market...)

Sunshine and bargains in Seattle....is there anything better?!

Product photo: Rosanna, Inc.

Seasonal Color Forecasts

Pantone Color Forecast Fall 2007

I am preparing the style plan for some product displays that I'll create at the summer San Francisco International Gift Fair in late July. There is only one place to start this kind of project, for me, and that is the Pantone Insitute's Color Forecast. If you click on the link, you'll go straight to the page on their website that details the fall 2007 forecast colors, moods, styles, and inspirations for fashion & home. Leatrice Eiseman, one of the principle designers for Pantone, lives here in my neck of the Northwest woods and is a brilliant colorist. I love hearing her speak on color trends.

The Pantone seasonal forecast is an invaluable tool for retailers, trust me. No, you may not want to order every product in these colors - but you sure can paint a wall or display backdrop or even one single prop in one of these colors to make your displays relevant to current trends. And that catches your customers' eye, which sells products...amazing how that works!!! You can SO easily rev up even old merchandise by slipping in a touch of 'THE hot color' of a season...add some solid pottery or linens in one of these colors to existing neutrals, and you've upped the ante considerably.

I pulled colors directly from the forecast, and divvied them up to form two palettes: one Autumn, one Winter. I am creating two separate displays around those seasons at the entrance to the Moscone South Hall. Here's a sneak peek:

Autumn

Espresso Brown, Persimmon Orange, Saffron Yellow, Royal Purple, Moss Green, and Gold metal. It's an exotic, rich, textural, layered, Earth-friendly, Eco-conscious, and 'Green' main course with a Moroccan side dish.

Winter

Espresso Brown again, Deep Slate Blue, Ocean Teal, Periwinkle Blue, Chili Pepper Red, Moss Green again, and Silver metal. Urban, contemporary, minimalist Swedish design aesthetic, simple living, artist-made/high-art craft look. Holidays with panache, not kitsch: Cocktail party Christmas.

Exhibitors will receive this information from the show producers, and then choose & send in products that I will use in the display setups. (And I DO so love not having to run all over Moscone gathering them, I tell ya....) If you will be attending the San Fran show as an exhibitor, make sure you come by during setup and say hello! (Bacchus, this means YOU! Bring the baby!)


An Added Note: Kate commented that she likes the way I used the Pantone forecast palette to create my own....that is really how they intend you use it. It's supposed to be a tool for your business - if you have an ultra-modern store, some colors won't work well. Ditto if you're a shabby cottage style home store. You need to be judicious, and choose what works for your style, your brand, your customer base. Take that royal purple and pale it down to a grayed lavender & pair it with the moss green, or rev up the chili red by adding gray with it in groupings. Make color trends work for YOU - not the other way around! It's your store, and you're the expert that your customers listen to & follow.

SFIGF Link: http://www.sfigf.com/
Pantone link again:
http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/Pantone.aspx?pg=20367&ca=4

Sign of the Times

So we just ran to the local grocery store to grab something needed for dinner prep. The store has been undergoing a MAJOR remodel for months now, with departments being relocated and new structures, departments, prep areas, flooring, decor - the whole shebang - and they have been open all the while. I cannot even FATHOM handling the logistics of a redesign project on this gargantuan scale! It's a bit of a test of one's perserverance to go there, as merchandise moves every day to a new location. Yes, EVERY day. The coffee has been moved about six times now. That may sound utterly frustrating, but this company has truly worked hard to make sure that they have ample staff on hand, walking throughout the store, to help customers locate what they need. I still think they should give those employees pith helmets since it is such an adventure, but that's just me....hmmmmn, maybe the CUSTOMERS should get them......

So anyway, tonight I saw that the heavy plastic wall that had closed off the new 'Food Court' area had been taken down, allowing a full view of this newly-created space. I drove my little half-cart (have you SEEN these? Darling little things!!!!) at top speed to get over there. It's gorgeous in there - VERY hi-tech. VERY user-friendly. I smiled at the rows and rows of EMPTY plastic deli containers lined up in the cool cases: they are using them to categorize & create the planogram for stocking practices. I reached into my purse for my handy-dandy camera to get a shot - and no camera. It was at home, still hooked up to the computer. O yay.

And then it got even BETTER: I looked up. Up at the overhead awning above all of those shelves-in-process. Where a series of stainless steel letters had been installed to clearly label this area. 'DelicatessAN'. sigh. No camera. No camera phone, either. Yep, the Diva is prepared. Uh huh.

I told the gal at the customer service counter about the miss-spelled word. She looked at me like I was purple or something. We got home, hubby looked up 'Delicatessen' on Webster.com - ahem, excuse me, dear, but did you not trust me and my silly spelling-obsessed brain??? - and then he called the store, asked for the GM, and told him about it. That poor man said that he has heard about that sign more than anything else all week - but the company hasn't come out to fix it yet. He's being bombarded by spelling-obsessed people!!!! I feel kinda bad now. But I'd feel worse if I saw 'DelicatessAN' everytime I walked into my local market.

I'll go in tomorrow and try to get a shot before it's changed..... I'll post it here if I get it. I'll also send a copy to Rick Segel. He's 'MISTER signs' in the retail biz - be sure and catch his seminars at the San Francisco & Seattle Gift Shows this summer, and check out his website at www.RickSegel.com.

Tip of the day: "Spell Check: It isn't just for computers anymore."

Edited to add: I went back - WITH camera - and they had already fixed the sign. Darn. But at least they fixed it....

Mirror, Mirror.....

I'd like to show you how making a fast, simple but large-scale change can make an incredible impact in your retail displays. There is a 'logo' wall - made of faux tumbled marble tiles - at the front of the Columbia Winery retail shop. Here's a shot....

When it came time to install the new summer displays, we had a bit of a dilemma. The summer merchandise is very contemporary, and in colors of white, silver, and blues. With that warm-tone, old-world style tile mural, we had some serious clashing going on. I needed a solution.


Enter two very large mirrors that I had on hand, purchased for last years' Auction of Washington Wines Winemaker Dinner. I decided to use those mirrors to cover up the tile. (IKEA, $135. each). I had Karen help me heft them up onto the table, then I wired them to the sidewalls. There was still some tile showing, so I hung a white drapery panel on the side. In front of that went one of the two driftwood trellises that I purchased last year as summer props. On the top, to camoflage about six inches of tile, I hung white shutters at an angle - very 'Tommy Bahama'. Other shutters went beneath the table to lighten up the shadowed area a bit.

The result?

It's shockingly different from the previous look, and gets a LOT of positive comments. The mirror not only reflects the natural light coming in the windowed front doors straight across from it, but it also bounces light from the overhead trac fixtures.

Here's a shot of the entire main display, including the forward area with wine feature. The tables are made from driftwood, and are for sale. Those driftwood trellises aren't for sale, sorry! The white chair is mine, and also not for sale, just a prop. (That I fished out of a dumpster - really!)

The main merchandise here is incredible but almost unviewable in the photos - it's large-scale clear glass vases in the shape of fish. In several of them, I placed an unscented 'potpourri' of sorts that I created: a mix of sea salt, seashells, glass marbles in varied blue colors, and then mixed in a cup of Malt O' Meal (uncooked)....because that made it really look like sand and it won't scratch the insides of the glass vases like real sand would. I really need to go back and get some close-up shots of this cool stuff!

There ya' go!

Just to the left of that display is the rest of the 'beach' look, a low display with white glass float balls and white ceramic seashells, and a large display with aqua and green ceramics. The layout is very open and spacious. Detail shots of both below:

It took maybe half an hour to install the mirrors, curtain, shutters, and props for that front display. Well worth it, wouldn't you say? Now, think about what you might be able to do in your retail space....with some old doors, or a section of cedar fencing, or maybe even salvaged rusty corrugated tin roofing. The possibilities are endless, and the impact of a big change could be just what you need for the summer season.

Now.....where are my sunglasses? I'm heading for the beach......

VIP Digs....

'Extreme Makeover: Winery Edition' continues....

Hogue Cellars VIP Event Room, before. North wall.
Add a new ceiling & soffit, more lights, a new wood laminate floor, paint, wood window blinds, draperies, and furniture:

(Yes, that IS the 'Coffin' table from the retail shop! It's standing in until the large, dark wood hutch arrives from California)

East & South Walls, before

After. Hang on - the rug shows up better in an upcoming shot!

Those two tables (Palacek) were chosen for their flexibility. They have hidden leaves tucked away inside (makes them heavy, but it is a great storage solution), so they can expand to two foot longer than seen here. Also, the two tables can be configured to form an 'L', a square, a long row, two separate tables....many options for a room that performs many functions.

South & West walls, before.

After. And that gorgeous RUG!!!!! Chocolate brown with varied greens and golds. Perfect. (Sorry, I don't remember who it was from). The artwork is made up of the same warm tones found in the Hogue Cellars labels. This space will hold a portable bar and three tall bistro tables with three barstools each. They will have dark wood tops to match the tables (and hutch) and rustic, weathered sage green-painted legs/bases. We didn't want all of the furniture to match, like we bought it en suite at Ethan Allen. All of the custom furniture should be arriving soon - once it does, I'll head back over the mountains and take final photos.

One other important thing I did was to hang drapery panels at the doorways.

One doorway leads into a long hall filled with offices, that connects to the retail shop at one end. Draperies here give privacy to the event room and the offices, and function easily to allow guests to access restrooms down the hall.

The other goes out into the cellar and leads to the kitchen area. Privacy is one issue, sheer appearances is another. No one wants to see steel fire doors!!! (Check out the very first photo up above, for the 'before' look). The draperies help with the acoustic qualities of the space, and soften the many hard edges, as well.

I love this shot....

The trays and glass orbs are a nice, simple way to add color to the room, and in this case they reflect the colors in the artwork hanging on the West wall. They can be easily stored away during events, to allow full table use. The sunlight coming in the windows bounces through them beautifully. This room is now warm, inviting, elegant yet casual, and a perfect reflection of the brand image of Hogue.

Final Installment....

Whew. Back from a quick whirlwind tour of Central Texas (San Antonio, Austin, the Hill Country, et al) and ready to finish up this Hogue Cellars story at last.....here are before & after photos of the lower half of the floorplan, which is the West side of the shop.

This huge antique oak cabinet is located on the South wall, to the left side of the entrance. (See floorplan in last post). On it were some of the previously-mentioned Garfield bottles, some wines from the history of Hogue Cellars, and a few pieces of glass stemware. Up there near the top of the front of the cabinet, you'll see two of the stained glass panels that I showed in the last post. They were just propped up there on some brass handles - I am totally amazed that they never fell on someone's head. Yipes. The basket 'shelves' in the corner hold wine openers, etc., and were moved to the slatwall area I shared in another post. Notice the huge gaping bare space in the center of the room.

We loaded the cabinet with glassware so that customers could purchase four or six or eight glasses for a party or dinner....rather than wondering if the two of each style previously on display were the last of the stock. Massing the merchandise makes it easier for the customer and the staff - less stocking when items sell. And, um, more items SELL. The 'tree' wine holder adds enough wine to the display to make sense, but not a hulking mass of dark bottles in the midst of sparkling glass - remember Balance. Scale. Composition. Art class 101, kids.

Also: No more empty space! (More on this in a minute.)
The cabinet sparkles with lots of glass...detail below.

Moving around to the West wall, you can see from the photo that it was empty. Save for a bizarre table that we dubbed 'the Coffin'...which went to the event room to fill in for the hutch until it arrives. (Photos of that project next time).

This is a closeup of the display that is on the West wall. Wood bowls & platters, black candle lanterns, wine, books, linens, books, wood tables & wine racks, pear & apple candles and glass votives all mix together to create a vignette that focuses on the tones of the Hogue wine labels. It's home decor, tabletop, picnic, giftware, all in one. For fall, these same products can be merchandised with amber linens and some fall leaves to totally change the look without having to rebuild.

Before shot: view from the entry across the West side of the shop, to the tasting bar. Yes, it offered a clear view & path to the bar. But the bar is....huge. It's awesome, really. You can't miss it. So a clear path & view wasn't really needed. People come here to drink the wine - they'll find the bar. Show them some merchandise first. Romance them, welcome them. Entice them. They know they want wine. They may NOT know they want something gorgeous for Aunt Alma. Convince them - subtly.

After Shot: Filling up all that empty space are two displays. One is freestanding at the center front area, the other is against the wall/windows. Lots of space around them for traffic flow and line of sight - the bar is still there and you can see it just fine. But now, the interior of the shop vibrates with color and pattern and interest...it pulls the customers in and says 'Welcome! Look what we have to offer you!', instead of 'Here's the bar'. Blows their minds and makes them think "I never knew they had THIS!" Exactly. Now ya know. Come back often!

A detail shot of the front display....those pedestals are actually fibreglass planters, with glass on top to provide a surface for merchandise. I use them at Columbia, too. The products include ceramic dinnerware, amber glassware, linens, pear & apple candles, books, sunflowers, copper vases that look like big wine bottles, nested metal table sets, metal & stone wine racks and wine. There are two wine racks back-2-back, so the display is set up to be viewed from the tasting bar as well as from the front door. Can you see how the gold label of the wine (Genesis Syrah) perfectly blends with the colors of the merchandise? When we saw this pottery in the showroom, I knew these fixtures and this wine would be used. I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing my 'inner vision' come into 3-D reality like this!!!!

Okay, I'm exhausted just looking at all those photos again!

I do want to offer my never-ending gratitude to Lisa, who wins the 'Best Buyer in All of Christendom' Award, for finding amazing products for me to work with (and actually listens to my suggestions, amazingly enough!); to her assistant, Janel, without whom I would be sleeping at the wineries (because Janel unpacks and prices and assembles and hauls and takes away and rewraps and any number of other things that make my artistic efforts possible); and also to Miss Holly, who had the innate good sense to hire me as a retail consultant on her second (yes, SECOND) day directing NorthWest retail for Columbia's parent company Constellation Brands, and is also such a good friend that she will drive three hours across the desert to help me with a project like this one. We rocked, girl! (Just like the old days at the Chateau Ste. Michelle winery gift shop: after hours with a glass of wine, some loud music, making some really big messes, and a lot of laughter!) Thank you, dream team!!!

ps: Karen: Next time, you come, too!!!!

Hogue Cellars Redesign, Part Deux

Refresher: Above is the floorplan of Hogue Cellars Retail Shop. Entry mid-right, cashwrap center, tasting bar lower left. Today we'll look at the changes to the upper left quadrant.
I blew it on the shot of the entire 'Before', as I had already stripped two of three shelf units before I remembered to take a picture...(I was in overdrive!)

Above is the view from the front doors, across the shop, including the cashwrap station.

Same view, After. The cashwrap got cleaned up, candy placed in a tiered bowl for ease of shopping & stocking, and a much nicer look. The topiary just softens the edge - Feng Shui!
The shelf units beyond hold three separeate 'stories' of merchandise, but they all relate by using similar colors. The tones of the wood bowls, cutting boards, etc. on the left are echoed by the baskets holding varied acrylic picnicware on the right, and in the center is a collection of 'grape'-themed items: plates, coasters, a tray, glasses, bowls, etc. The tops of the units now hold stained glass panels that had been scattered throughout the shop - bringing them together makes more sense and focuses on the 'grape' theme below. The large-format bottles that had been on top looked too heavy and unstable - they were moved to the back of the tasting bar so that their funny labels (featuring Garfield the Cat, created because Mike Hogue knows Jim Davis, Garfield's creator) can be appreciated.

Some large-scale ferns soften the hard edges of the units and add a feeling of nature, the outdoors. At the end of the shelving is a small table with a grape-motif mosaic on top. This holds a small basket fixture that corrals acrylic plates that will not stack! Keeps the presentation clean & neat (and easy to stock). This became a small vignette with the addition of a wall-hung wine rack. Adding wine in quantities of at least six bottles per shelf unit keeps the look unified.

Close up of the table at the end. (Note: If this table had a tablecloth on it, it wouldn't work. Too bulky and it would draw all the attention away from the shelves. This is light, airy, picnic-y, and not visually intrusive.) Even doing something as simple as reorganizing three shelf units makes a HUGE impact in this space - so remember that restyling your displays doesn't have to be a huge undertaking. Tackle one small area at a time if you have to! It will reap large results in sales volume.

This little vignette is directly across from the shelves. The cashwrap has a curved front counter and this straight back counter. It has an extra register, but was generally used to drop stuff onto. It was a bit messy. I cleared it all and created this little grouping of olives, oils, and a few 'olive'-themed accessories - which I chose because there wasn't enough of it to devote shelves to it, but it needed to be highlighted. This area is perfect for small, end-of-line showcasing.
(All of those little 'herbs-in-pots' I tucked in were snapped up by an employee the next morning!!!!)

Next up, we'll move to the tasting bar side of the room....after I return from my trip to The Lone Star State!