The weather is getting milder, sunshine is boosting everyone’s mood, the first buds are appearing and there are already even some tender blossoms to marvel at – spring has sprung!
Pink, soft green, light blue, apricot and yellow provide colourful accents and mark a welcome change from dull, grey, rainy days. A light green floor covering and soft pink fabric panel in the shop window send a clear signal to passers-by that spring is in the air and there are fresh new ranges on offer. The pastel shades are continued in store. This is the season for products such as gift bags, wrapping paper, cardboard boxes, blank books, craft sets and pens in soft colours.
February, March and April are the time for spring décor. Good planning is needed to keep the workload in check while still varying product presentations throughout these months. Try to minimise the effort involved while ensuring a look that is new and surprising, time and again. Fabric panels in pastel colours serve as a good basis and can be switched up with different accessories. A panel of light blue fabric as a backdrop and a table runner in soft green go perfectly well with different product presentations. Retailers tell a visual story like a director and can set the scene in various ways using the product stage created.
Birch branches, pots with (artificial) snowdrops and green ribbon are the first signs of spring at the point of sale (POS). They can be used at a table to draw attention to all kinds of product groups. The pots can be grouped together and hung on ribbons above the table or stood on white varnished wooden chopping boards.
Swap the snowdrops for Easter bunnies and hang polka-dot paper bunting to create a bright and colourful Easter effect. Easter is also an event for trendsetters. Black and white is not a colour combination that we immediately associate with Easter. Simply pair with pink and a hint of gold (not a classic Easter colour, either) to create an exciting “Easter basket look” for a young, trendy target group. The Easter bunnies for this look should be graphically designed and have long ears and cute fluffy tails. Use gold as an accent colour for golden eggs, bunny ears or eggcups. Clear patterns such as polka dots and stripes set the tone, while paper lanterns and flowers complete the look.
Anything with long ears is now cleared from display to be replaced by butterflies, birds and blossoms arranged together with flowering twigs.
If you want to transport your customers to another country, take silk stems with delicate flower tendrils in pink and white, paper fans and products with a Japanese design aesthetic and invite passers-by to experience “Hanami”, the Japanese celebration of cherry blossoms.
There are many spring decoration ideas and anything is possible, from classic to trendy, depending on the target group. A small decoration toolkit makes the work easier. Neutral elements such as birch branches, various silk flowers, whether in pots, as floral chains or with twigs (make sure to go for good quality!), and different fabric panels are a solid basis and can be re-used in different combinations time and again. Whatever the visual spring story crafted, fresh green and soft colours brighten the mood in store and invite customers to enter, linger and browse.
About the author:
Sabine Gauditz is an expert in visual retail marketing and author of the German book "Schaufenster als Spiegel der Geschäfte" (The shop window as the mirror of the shop). Her consulting firm for visual marketing, Arte Perfectum, focuses on practical solutions delivered in presentations, seminars, workshops and in-house consulting sessions.
