For retailers and designers, things appear to have improved during 2015 more than in the past few years. Most of the big design consultancies have been busy, and their numbers are up, while shopfitters are generally showing increases – a fair indication of a sector that has been enjoying buoyant times.
The bigger picture, however, has been patchy. In the U.K., a bullish economic backdrop and recovering consumer confidence meant that retailers, such as funky bath products outfit Lush (Poole, England), and sports fashion company JD Sports (Bury, England), have stepped up to the plate and opened new flagships. In the case of these two, they have done so on London’s Oxford Street, which, for the cost of doing business there, surely points not just to good times, but to some confidence in the future.
Things have not been rosy across the whole of the continent, though, and the rise of discount food supermarkets – with Aldi (Essen, Germany) and Lidl (Baden-Württemberg, Germany) leading the charge – might lead some to conclude that design can go hang, so long as the products’ price is right. That said, the Euro success story of the year has to be Primark (Dublin). The value fashion retailer made its first bold statement in the U.S. with the opening of a high-profile store in Boston (shown), and has made giant leaps across the European landmass with new stores in diverse places like Madrid and Brussels.
And its arrival has been characterized by a mix of winsome store design and cheap, up-to-the-minute fashion. It’s a winning combination, and there is much to commend about the design strategy, localizing each of its stores and deploying digital elements. Practically, this has translated into large screens and digital projections that make shoppers feel less like they are in a cut-price emporium and more like they are in the vanguard of the tech-design revolution.
As the year comes to a close, it is pertinent to note that some uncertainty remains about the outlook for 2016. Large-scale immigration from nearby war-torn and economically ravaged countries across the Mediterranean and Near East have left governments and their people wondering what will happen next. One thing is clear, however: Change is on the agenda across Europe and the retail design industry is responding with vigor.
John Ryan is a journalist covering the retail sector, a role he has fulfilled for more than a decade. As well as being the European Editor of VMSD magazine, he writes for a broad range of publications in the U.K., the U.S. and Germany with a focus on in-store marketing, display and layout, as well as the business of store architecture and design. In a previous life, he was a buyer for C&A, based in London and then Düsseldorf, Germany. He lives and works in London.