Remodeling Your Retail Business

Attract more buyers by remodeling your retail business
We know you want to attract more customers and more business to your retail store. While more and more people shop online, it’s important to make your business stand out. That means you need to make a good first impression. But how do you do that? The answer is simple: remodel. A remodel doesn’t have to be something huge, it can be just a few details that your customers will appreciate, like a paint renewal or space reorganization.
Here are some remodeling ideas for your business that will help you attract more buyers and impress them.

Pay special attention to your entrance

The entrance to your retail store is the first five to fifteen feet of space that your customers see when they walk in. This is an area of transition, where shoppers are taken from the chaos of the outside world and transported into your store. This area is known as a “decompression zone” that allows customers to decompress and focus on the shopping experience. It is crucial to pay special attention to this space if you want to get customers into your store.
Once your customer is in this space, they make critical judgments about your space based on what they see. They will judge your lighting, fixtures and colors and decide if they want to stay. This is why it’s important to make a great first impression and draw their eyes to a focal point. This can be a style mannequin or an organized display.
The biggest impacts in this space are colors and lighting, so pay attention to these. Choose colors that pop or that go with your brand but are not too in your face. Lighting should also be bright, but not blinding or “too white,” as this will make customers feel like they’re in a sterile and uninviting environment.

Use a “power wall”

Once you’ve paid attention to and decorated your entrance area, look to your right. Most people will look right immediately after they’ve seen your entrance because 90% of them are right-handed. The first wall your customers see on the right must have a high-impact feature of your merchandise.
Choose what you display here wisely. Put some different shelving or a furniture piece that makes a statement, where you can display your newest items or seasonal items that are of high demand. It will help draw customers further into your store.
power wall to attract customers

Create a path

It is important to create a path or layout that customers can follow and that will guide them to the focal points of your store. Placing focus points throughout the store will navigate customers around the store easily.
Depending on how big your space is, you might want to create different sizes of aisles, narrow and wide, depending on what you want your customers to do around the store. Wide aisles allow customers to walk quickly to a specific product that they see, while narrow aisles encourage buyers to buy impulsively. A great example of this is in convenience stores, where there are specific grab-and-go areas.

Add or Remove Walls

Sometimes, reducing visual barriers and creating an open floor plan space is better for a store. To do this, you might want to think about removing walls. This is a project you might not want to do yourself and should check with a renovations contractor before doing it. They can tell you if the walls you want to remove are load-bearing and will require professional help.
If, on the other hand, you want to create small areas to house different product lines, you may want to add small partition walls. To do this, you can put up drywall or, if you don’t want to do something so permanent, find a rolling partition wall to create a temporary space.

Reduce Clutter

When you are remodeling your retail store, it is important to keep it cohesive. Narrow aisles, mismatched product racks and different signage can overwhelm a customer. You can match your hangers to display shelves to make it more cohesive and make easy-to-read signs.
Make sure you also don’t have too many fixtures and too many products on the floor, as this can overwhelm customers, thinking they don’t have enough time to shop. If, on the other hand, you don’t have enough product on the floor, you’re conveying an image of not being a strong brand. Make sure you have a “critical mass” of products on the floor to make your customers feel safe about shopping there.

What renovations should I focus on?

Now that you know these facts, let’s get to what renovations will make the greatest impact with your shoppers and keep them coming back.

Freshen up your walls with a new paint job

Putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls can make a huge difference. Going with a neutral color is a good idea because it will make your products stand out. But, as stated before, creating an accent wall helps catch the shoppers’ attention and help highlight certain products. This can be done by adding a bold color that matches your brand or using textured panels, wallpaper or peel-off wall stickers. You can even come up with a custom pattern that includes your brand and logo
paint your walls

Upgrade your lighting

Having good lighting is key to having the mood you want in your store. Having some track lighting or floor lamps can change the mood completely. But, the type of lighting that you use also matters. Fluorescents are not a good idea because they are not flattering, and incandescent lighting can create too much heat and make your customers uncomfortable.
A good idea is to use LEDs because they are energy-efficient, don’t generate heat and last much longer. Make sure you change your outdated lighting and lamps, and this will surely make a big difference in your space. You can try starting with a small section of the space or a display wall and take it in strides.
update your lighting

Change your flooring

Replacing your old flooring is important, especially if they are showing signs of wear and tear. You do not want your flooring to look dingy or uneven. Replace the flooring with a material that can handle high traffic and also fits your brand well. A good idea is using wood vinyl plank flooring because it is on-trend and lasts a long time.
change your flooring to attract customers
We hope these ideas have helped you make sense of what to renovate in your retail store and help you attract more buyers. Ready to get remodeling?

Need help with your retail store remodel? re:fab can help! We have 30 years of experience doing retail renovations. We know how to get the job done fast and done right. Contact our excellent customer service team at 1-800-690-2539 for inquiries and click here for a FREE Estimate!