PINTEREST DISPLAY INSPIRATION

Halloween is less than two months away — have you come up with a clever idea for your window, and for in-store displays? Have you started planning your holiday look for your shop?

Our shop has been doing windows for almost 40 years, and we keep albums of all our past displays for reference and inspiration. And while there is no harm in repeating a concept we used a decade or two ago, it is always more fun to come up with something new and exciting.  Until recently, the only sources available to us — aside from our own albums — was gift show showroom and booth exhibits, and photos of other stores’ displays shown in trade magazines and visual merchandising publications.

Pinterest has changed that in the course of just a few years.  We can now see examples of display ideas from big and small retailers around the world. If you’re not using Pinterest for this, you are missing a treasure-trove of ideas.  On Pinterest you can search for display ideas by holiday, or by color, or by almost any other criteria you like, keeping in mind that the professional term for store displays is visual merchandising. And not only are the visual merchandising Pinterest boards helpful in getting display ideas — but you should also look at those aimed at consumers. There’s no reason why you can’t adapt an idea intended for someone’s front porch decoration at Halloween to make a great window display.

I will often share ideas on my board entitled For Retailers, from the Specialty Shop Retailing Blog.  I also contribute to a group board called Display Inspiration from Smart Retailer that has almost 500 pins. If you are looking for ideas for a new storefront, awning or signage, you might consider my board entitled Shops and Shopkeepers.  I follow quite a number of stores and magazines around the world, getting ideas that I can use myself or pass along.

One of the features of Pinterest that you may not know about is that you can create “secret” boards that is not available to your customers. According to Pinterest, to create a secret board, visit your profile and scroll down to the bottom. Then, click Create a Secret Board. You can also click Add+ on the top right-hand corner of Pinterest to select Create Board and turn the Secret button to On.  This is a great feature for compiling ideas for your store displays.

If you decide to set up a board for display ideas, you might consider inviting one of more of your employees to join in.  Those who accept your invitation will be able to pin ideas to the group board, and also to see what you’ve pinned.  Instructions for inviting people to a group bard are available at this Pinterest help link.  And don’t forget that you can look for a specific item on your secret board/s of display ideas by using the search feature in the upper left, and when clicking on Search Pins using this “just my pins” option.

You will, of course, want to take inspiration from someone else’s idea without copying it slavishly.  Some concepts are clearly common enough that no one “owns” them — but when in doubt, ask permission. And it’s only fair to pass it on by sharing photos of your best window ideas with others. This will gain your store some widespread recognition, and perhaps encourage a retailer in some other corner of the country — or globe — to try something new.

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder