VMSD’s blue ribbon panel of design firm experts says retailers will be looking for new initiatives this year – because they have to.
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Last year was a rough one for the U.S. economy, rough for retailing and, therefore, rough for the design firm community. Retailers pulled in their belts and did less expanding and renovating, cutting their capital expenditure budgets. Our annual survey of design firms showed that more than three-fourths of the respondents said their business for the year was down. More than half said retail fees tumbled by at least 25 percent – nearly 20 percent said fees were down by 50 percent or more.
Given all the gloomy economic reports that still dominate the evening news, we were somewhat reluctant to ask design firms what they expected in 2010. But a panel of industry experts convened by VMSD offered some surprising and hopeful insights about the next 12 months and beyond. Our experts insist that smart retailers – those who’ve managed to survive – are taking a look at opportunities and the importance of being innovative and creative. Following is a report of what they had to say.
VMSD: So a difficult year comes to an end. I’m sure nobody is sorry to say goodbye to 2009.
David Kepron: It’s been tough, but there are some great signs that things are finally moving again, after eight months.
Christian Davies: Yes, there seems to be a lot of activity going on out there, a different sense of pace and energy than there was six months ago, maybe even than there was three months ago. It feels to me like it’s starting to heat up, but in a very different way.
Different how?
Randall Stone: Projects tend to be less comprehensive and more tactical – a lot more merchandising and in-store communication projects than total store redesigns. But there does seem to be activity, phones ringing about wanting to start projects, and even optimism on the retailers’ side that they’ve got to get themselves in a position to be coming out of this strong and they can’t wait too long.
Davies: There is a sense that retailers have to do something and that, as the market begins to turn, they want to be in a position to be ahead of the game.
Lee Peterson: There’s a pretty huge appetite for innovation. It could be a broader perspective, like “how do we portray discount or price?” or “how do we reinvent this part of our store?” or “how do we reinvent merchandising?” But we’ve received a ton of calls asking, “how do we innovate?”
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