What are you featuring in your windows and front zone displays right now? Have you restyled them to reflect the season, new merchandise, and new inspiration? It's simple to refresh existing merchandise to look new and appealing to customers...

It's important to get a fresh start after the holidays - your customers will be coming in with gift cards, gift certs, and money they received, and they deserve to see fresh new ideas. Inspiring them to buy what you offer can be as simple as taking what you already have and combining it in a new way to reflect the season...

1. Color, my approach to store design is simple use paint to change the mood. Your store should be neutralized with wall colors like Benjamin Moore: Delaware Putty, White Sand or even Bronze Beige. Pick 1 area in your store that you can color block - one of my favorite colors for the Xmas season is Rouge by Benjamin Moore. Try this one -  all it takes is a quart of paint.
 
2.    Special note about  merchandising - only products that sell well should be on your floor at this time. You should have reports in hand that show you what sold and what didn't from last year. I hope your products reflect what your customers want and will buy. Make sure you are  bringing products out from the stock room daily.

3.    Staff training must continue weekly - focus on selling, product knowledge, store procedures and customer service. I know it's busy but a weekly check-in with your staff is a must. Never stop training; never stop getting feedback from your staff on how things are going.

4.    Daily work plans for every staff member are a must - your goal setting doesn't change when things get busy. It can be even more crucial at this time. I believe if it's in writing it keeps the work that needs to be done in the forefront of your staff's mind.

Joanne Versaggi says she should have joined Facebook a long time ago. She had pooh-poohed the social networking site but finally gave in.

"Facebook is one of the main ways I market the company," she told me. Her friends became "fans" and they recommended the store to their friends, and the process snowballed. Versaggi has welcomed shoppers from 40 miles away who found the store through Facebook.

Versaggi founded melange Home Décor, a 1,200-square-foot store in Marlton, NJ, in 2005.

Over the years, she has changed the way she markets the business and the website.

"I rarely do publication advertising," she told me. Partly that's because she is watching her advertising and marketing costs. "But I believe there are other, less costly ways to do so," like Facebook, website marketing and e-mail. She does very little direct mail.

Apps are sweeping M-Commerce like Starbucks swept the Coffee Industry in the 90's.  That iPhone App catch slogan, "There's an App for that," is even practically true.  OK, I know, there isn't an app for everything - but if there's not an app for that today, there will surely be one tomorrow - or more realistically - next month. 

The scariest month is upon us - no, not February when the bitter wind chill makes even the most active consumer a bit sluggish - but October.  Halloween is a month away, so it's time to get in the decorating mood.  I find myself feeling more connected more to a retailer who has put up decorations in the front window.  Fake spiders, cotton-ball cobwebs and bloody hands in your storefront go a long way.  While sure, it reminds customers of the holiday fast approaching, it more importantly makes your store more welcoming.

Is it worth it to revamp your business environment? From a small improvement like new paint or a restaging of the contents to a full-scale remodel of a facility, I can unequivocally say YES. Investing time, effort, and sometimes money into your environment can present your business, services, and products to the public in a whole new way - creating opportunity for success.

Retail Store Fixturing

Retail Store Color: