At its zenith, WalkerGroup (New York) was one of the industry’s leading architectural firms specializing in retail design. During my tenure there, each senior designer was asked to write a philosophy statement so clients would understand each designer’s individual approach to store design. Being a writer, my colleagues expected a long treatise from me explaining my personal design philosophy. A look of consternation crossed our chair’s face as I handed over what seemed a blank page. On closer inspection he saw one single word carefully positioned in the center of the page. The word was “balance.”
As designers we clearly must understand balance, proportion, rhythm and flow. We also must understand human behavior. And while psychology is a vital factor in the design equation, it is clear to me that human nature often takes us too far in one direction or another. As the world turns, I see some retailers moving away from the physical and totally embracing the digital. I also see some institutions of higher education abandoning the hands-on for the clicks-on.
Of course logic tells us that both physical and digital must work together. However, to reach the appropriate level of synchronization, there is another element of human behavior that we must embrace: we are social animals, we want to be around other people. To succeed, today’s retailer must be willing to make a fundamental shift from selling to inviting participation. As the dialogue and discourse continues to flow feverishly, relative to branding and technology, it must be understood that consumers want to be part of the brand, and they want to engage in any manner from a compelling window display to a well-designed, interactive website.
There is a significant shift in retail, and it isn't merely about brick-and-mortar and e-commerce. Rather, it’s about moving from transaction to interaction and further to transformation. People want to belong to something; why not have them belong to your brand? People want to participate; why not have them participate with you? Soul Cycle is wildly successful; one can ride a stationary bike alone at home, or participate in a group sweat-fest.
Great design promotes desire. The challenge today is to design an environment, both physical and digital, that inspires participation. Online offerings alone devalue human experience; brick-and-mortar alone limits connectivity. Retailers must foster a group experience where consumers and retailers work together, play together and learn together.
The paradigm must shift. ROI is no longer “return on investment,” but rather “return on involvement.” When crossing the threshold of a well-designed cafe, restaurant or bar, we are taken someplace; to another time, or perhaps another location, or another state of mind. This is a transformative social experience. Moving forward, it must be understood that experience precedes products. And, here too, there is a fine balance. Don’t let the scale tip too far in one direction or the other, and don’t seek a solution that is simply symmetrical.
I tell my design students that symmetry is merely OK – it’s balance that matters. Balance adds kinetic energy and it’s this energy that brings an idea or concept to life. So moving forward, retailers must go to any length to not only, as media theorist Tony Schwartz says, “strike the responsive chord,” but also strike the right balance.
Eric Feigenbaum is a recognized leader in the visual merchandising and store design industries with both domestic and international design experience. He served as corporate director of visual merchandising for Stern’s Department Store, a division of Federated Department Stores, from 1986 to 1995. After Stern’s, he assumed the position of director of visual merchandising for WalkerGroup/CNI, an architectural design firm in New York City. Feigenbaum was also an adjunct professor of Store Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology and formerly served as the chair of the Visual Merchandising Department at LIM College (New York) from 2000 to 2015. In addition to being the Editorial Advisor/New York Editor of VMSD magazine, Eric is also a founding member of PAVE (A Partnership for Planning and Visual Education). Currently, he is also president and director of creative services for his own retail design company, Embrace Design.