Page 116 - AIT0119_E-Paper

VERKAUF UND PRÄSENTATION • RETAIL AND PRESENTATION THEORIE • THEORY
Expertentipp: Instagramtaugliche Umkleiden sollten groß ... • Instagrammable changing rooms should be ...
„Binnen kürzester Zeit hat Instagram
die Art und Weise, wie Mode inszeniert,
konsumiert und vermarktet wird,
vollkommen verändert.“
... sein und das Licht sollte keine harten Schatten werfen. • ... large and the light shouldn't cast harsh shadows.
116 • AIT 1/2.2019
F or a long time, the fashion industry used to be a small and coherent circle.
Access to it was a privilege, limited to an exclusive audience of specialist
editors and celebrities that had been hand-picked by the fashion labels them-
selves. Above all towered the glossy fashion magazines, revered as sovereigns
over everything that was, or would become, en vogue. This status quo prevailed
until the digital revolution gave rise to the blogging movement at the beginning
of this century: met with mild amusement at first, the bloggers soon became
powerful influencers. Their advent also initiated the rush for interconnectedness
over social media, and clicks became a yardstick for success, popularity and
influence. At this point, trends are no more than a click away from the real world:
a single picture can trigger an enormous response. Instagram grants customers
exclusive glimpses behind the scenes of the otherwise extremely elitist fashion
industry, providing the public with authentic, first-hand impressions. Access all
areas. Social media has democratised fashion. Besides information and inspira-
tion, it facilitates genuine social interaction with real-life people: the bloggers on
the popular social-media platform are no haughty celebrities who are omni -
present in various magazines, yet entirely aloof in terms of their real life. Insta -
gram actors are like close friends, and their fans get to observe their experiences
first-hand – one pretty, square picture at a time. They share their lives and allow
their followers to truly ‘follow’ them: on their holidays, to the restaurant, on a
date and, above all, on shopping trips.
On the desire for a staged reality
Today, fashion needs to meet one overarching requirement: it must be experi-
enceable. Much like Instagram, it thrives on visual staging. The users of the photo
app want to be inspired and taken on voyages of discovery through carefully
curated snapshots. After all, nobody would post a boring photo on Instagram and
later complain that their lunch was not sufficiently photogenic. Au contraire: the
photo platform encourages perfection. With its square format and visual imper-
ative on content, Instagram has formulated an aesthetic standard that is progres-
sively invading reality. Stationary retail is increasingly pressed to create lifestyle
worlds that meet this high aesthetic and design standard. Aspirations and long-
ings are key. Especially in stores, visual trends play an important role, as they
establish emotionalised environments. Customers have moved on from simple
quality require ments: today, their shopping behaviour is influenced by the fre-
quency of visual impressions. As a result of the fast-paced reality of social media,
product presentation stra tegies in stores and display windows are accelerating,
too. Store design and visual merchandising must satisfy the customers’ thirst for
fast transitions and endless new images. Retailers, then, need to recognise what
catches the attention of the target group – their latest wishes, dreams and needs.
The same old story! Once this knowledge has been attained, Instagram moments
can be moved in the right direction deliberately: with appropriate brand content
and the corresponding social-media store decoration. While there is no lack of
concrete methods for implementing these factors, they now adhere to new para-
digms: in the past, merchandise was the top priority. Today, a store must become
a stage for those visiting it.
Making space and setting stages
To follow this trend, the weighting of the retail space must change: a paradigm
shift from a focus on sales to a focus on image. To create an atmosphere in which
modern customers want to linger, you need openness, empty spaces and room
for creativity. At the same time, these spaces must function as a stage for con-
sumers to let their (digital) imagination run free and live the selfie lifestyle. An
inevitable side effect of this showroom look, which has become incredibly suc-
cessful by now, is a drop in product pressure. Another approach involves
redesigning changing rooms: fewer than before, but large and lovingly designed.
The changing room is, after all, the most popular spot for experimenting with
new clothes, composing individual outfits and sharing one’s creations with the
community. This is where the unique selling point of brick-and-mortar retail over
online shops comes into play: the opportunity to touch and try everything.
Lighting is one of the greatest challenges because pleasant light is not always