Let's talk about how to use props in displays... shall we?!

Sometimes a prop can hold product, but it’s true purpose is to bring an spark of life to the product, or show an alternative use (‘added value’ sales technique). Props should make the product stand out and look good - sort of like a co-star does in a film. They don't steal the spotlight from the headliner! Anything can be a prop…you just need to keep in mind the style of the merchandise you are featuring so that you can coordinate it all.

For example, let’s say the products you will be placing in a display are rustic handpainted ceramic dinnerware items, and textured linens in red. You have a wood table to build a display on, so you'll want to create a composition that sticks with that rustic country or Mediterranean style. Grab a chair – rustic wood, rusty metal – and scoot it up to the table on the side. Sit it at an angle, allowing you to use the seat to place some large items there. Grab another chair or a small table or bench, and pop it up on top of the table. This gives your composition height, and another level for products to be featured on at eye level.

Find a few small and medium size rustic wire or wood harvest baskets and add them to your tabletop: stack a few, turn one on its side, even flip one upside down. Place them in a triangle formation on and in front of the bench on top of the table, to add dynamic energy. Now grab some fake tomatoes…green, red, and yellow. Tuck them into the stacked and sideways baskets. Place a large bowl on top of the overturned basket, and fill it with tomatoes. Now there is a whimsical ‘spark’ in your composition that will catch the eye! (It doesn’t hurt that it’s red, either – red is the most vibrant color in the spectrum.) Get a tall wire tomato cage, and twine some brilliant silk sunflowers through it, then place that in the center of the area to serve as a focal point – next to the bench that is on the tabletop. If you want to go a bit further, hang more wire tomato cages above the table like funky chandeliers! It's the unexpected that will stop traffic and get your display & products noticed.

Product is next…we have set the stage, and now the star can appear. Place the largest items first – pitchers, bowls, platters. Stack them, stand some up with easels, tuck some into the baskets. Move on to the medium and then smallest scale items – remember to keep it clean and make sure that you are placing items in a way that allows customers to get at them. A great idea for product like this is to create a full place setting at the front edge of the table, using all of the sizes of pottery. Bring in some glasses that coordinate for sparkle, and add one of them to the place setting. Coordinating napkins and napkin rings can be added, perhaps in another sideways basket, and tuck one set into the place setting.

You can easily stack plates, nest bowls, and set glasses in a block to fit mass quantities of merchandise into a display like this. But remember, you needn’t display every item at once! As long as you have two of each large item in the display (more in the case of plates & glasses), you will be able to keep it looking wonderful. Overcrowding a display doesn’t sell more products, it diffuses the focus and confuses the customer. If you have no storage space, stack multiple items in lovely large baskets or wood boxes, and place them beneath the table. Fill one small basket with more fake tomatoes and nestle it in, just to make it all look like it belongs there. Train your staff to keep this area neat.

For a cross-merchandising approach, add tomato pasta sauce and olive oil in beautiful jars – tuck them inside one of the casserole dishes! Add cello bags of specialty noodles in a bushel basket or large wire basket in the rear area of the table. (Only very large items should be placed on the floor – and NEVER place food there.)

This is a great way to develop a simple theme display – use products that are linked by color, use, season, holiday, etc. and inspire your customers to take the whole look home!