More Mannequins, Less Clutter

is to ‘make Penney look like an upscale specialty store that still offers inexpensive wares, not a bazaar overflowing with ordinary merchandise and discount signs.’ The plan is to introduce 100 boutiques into their stores to help stem the sales slide. The boutiques will offer brand name fashion and home merchandise such as Levi’s and Martha Stewart. That’s where the mannequins come in. “Customers don’t know what to buy. They love a mannequin that shows you how to put the outfit together,” said Fisher, 55, as he gave Reuters a tour of Penney’s Manhattan store last week. “We find anything we put on a mannequin sells out.” It may be Retail 101, but this shows how vital mannequins can be within your retail store. Customers can instantly see how an outfit is put together, and it encourages customer to purchase more than one item. Using this same idea when merchandising your store will make it easier for your customers to mix and match themselves and this trick is something Penney’s is also looking to bring to their retail stores. Displaying tops and bottoms beside each other suggest the whole outfit to a customer. You can read more on this story on our blog, or by reading the Reuters article here.]]>