Chapter 1: Fit to Store Requirements

When designing retail displays, you’ll want to optimize them to fit different retail store requirements. Some stores have specific size or customization requirements they’ll want to approve before you go into production. Be sure to keep up with and understand these requirements so your designs will be approved and displayed in a store.

This chapter explains some of the retail store merchandising rules, the benefits of complying with these rules and tips to optimize your size and design.

Retail Store Merchandising Rules

Major retailers like Walmart and Target often have merchandising rules for packaging and displays. For example, Walmart currently requires all product packaging to be retail-ready since it’s available for immediate sale and more attractive to consumers. Club stores, like Costco or Sam’s Club, also have their own display rules. These mandates make it easier for busy retail employees to set up merchandise displays quickly, avoiding additional labor for product setup.

These stores use merchandising rules to cut costs, meaning displays must eliminate excess packing materials and waste. Some rules that retailers use include:

• Pre-approved designs by retailers
• Displays that catch the eye and showcase the value of your product
• Specific sizing, such as pre-packaged pallet displays of 48 inches by 40 inches for club stores

Merchandising rules are constantly changing and very specific. It’s essential to stay updated on these requirements to ensure your displays fit within the standards. You can contact us to get the latest specification information for different retailers.

The Benefits of Complying With Retail Standards

Following retail standards for displays creates numerous benefits for your business, such as:

• Improved presentation: Ready-to-go displays appeal to customers and make products easier to identify or find. Improving the appearance of your displays makes them more likely to generate sales. Many of these displays also have enhanced designs to help you achieve your ideal look.
• Larger display potential: Large displays allow customers to view your products completely, making them more likely to notice them as they walk by. Large customized displays with panels for appealing graphics can draw interest, exposing customers to various products. Large displays with pop culture characters are also popular, especially with children and their parents.
• Affordability: Suppliers often buy their displays and set their prices based on product value, which is more convenient for retailers.
• Efficient replacements: When it comes time to promote new products, retailers can easily change their old displays with something new that advertises your new products. Retailers must replace products during different seasons or promotional events, such as for holiday sales or back-to-school deals. Having properly-sized displays that are easier and faster to set up is more convenient for retail employees.
• Customized graphics: A significant benefit of retail displays is the ability to personalize them to your needs. Whatever your design team imagines is possible with retail displays, allowing infinite possibilities.
• Solutions for customer needs: Retailers aim to solve customer needs, which makes seasonal displays an appealing option. Customers will look for different items during various seasons, which displays can help guide them toward. For example, parents will look for back-to-school supplies as summer ends, and many people look for decorations during the holiday season. Retail displays are an easy way for customers to identify product types or deals for events or holidays.
• Compact designs: Retail displays can be designed to fit more products while still being compact to save space. These displays can also help products slide forward automatically as customers take them, reducing the need for employees to shift products around constantly and making it easier for customers to purchase your product.
• Numerous store options: Retail-ready displays can go in multiple locations in a store, such as on a floor pallet or a specific area with high traffic. These displays can also stand independently, meaning retail employees won’t have to use shelving fixtures to set them up to showcase your products.
• Optimized displays: Retails displays are packaged and optimized for specific stores, such as Walmart, Target or club stores. Having optimized displays for specific stores helps save space while promoting your product. Stores are more likely to approve your displays when you comply with their retail standards.

Sizing Your Retail Display

Since requirements for merchandising displays can change continually, it can be challenging to keep up. However, if you keep specific retail display size and configuration designs in mind as you create your display, you’re less likely to develop something retailers won’t approve. While meeting the retail store’s merchandising rules is crucial, you also want to appeal to customers within those specifications. Consider the following during your design process:

• Size: Sizing your retail display is one of the essential aspects of the design process. Your display size should reach your target audience. For example, if your products are for adults, your displays should be taller, while displays for products geared toward children should be shorter. Remember that you don’t want to make your kids’ displays too short since the parents are still making the purchase.
• Type: Sizing also matters with the kind of display you choose. For example, if you choose a bin, you’ll likely want a smaller design, so customers won’t have to reach or stretch over the display to get to your product. Shelf displays are ideal for promoting your products at eye level and can be taller than bins.
• Efficiency: Depending on what store your display will be in, you’ll want to optimize your design to make it durable and adequately advertise your product. For example, displays in club stores tend to be larger since you’ll be selling your product in bulk. Take advantage of the large display to create a customized design with text, graphics and other elements that communicate your brand identity.
• Safety: Different stores have various requirements for safety, but in general, your displays should be durable enough to handle shipping and interactions with hundreds of shoppers who pass by your displays daily. You can choose durable packaging that can fold out into more extensive displays and sturdy display options to ensure your display resists wear and tear and protects your products from damage.
• Visibility: You must attract your customer’s attention as soon as possible. Your design should be easily identifiable from more than one side. You can also incorporate your brand’s colors so customers can easily recognize it from a distance. The design should also give the customer an idea of what your product will do for them, so make a customized design that communicates this effectively.

Design Retailer Approved Fixtures With Creative Displays Now!

If you’re trying to design a display that meets store requirements and communicates your brand and product details to generate a sale, work with Creative Displays Now. We develop custom-sized retail displays to fit the specific needs of your products. We can guide you through the requirements of different retailers to help your displays get approved and your products gain exposure.

We can help you get your display project started quickly to get your product in stores and customers’ hands. Contact us today to begin designing your custom retail displays!