Let’s just repeat: 82% of the buying decisions are made in front of shelves and retail space organization is a crucial variable of success.Īs retailers and vendors are physically absent at the moment of truth, they’ve found a substitute.

It doesn’t really matter if the same product is available a few metres away. In other words: more than 1/2 of buying decision for the top top top brand is triggered only by direct encounter with the product. Still, when a really top top top brand was located out of the most frequently visited shopping path, the sales of that top top top brand fell sharply. As here in Central Europe these are usually around 100 square metres big, all the products are within reach of a shopper. A few years ago, I’ve encountered another strongly validated research prepared for convenience stores (gas stations). This makes a clear confirmation: retail space organization is a crucial variable of every retailers’ success. The remaining 18% are made before entering the store but that doesn’t mean the assortments and layouts at retailers’ stores don’t have an impact on future buyers’ behaviour! It’s a crucial touchpoint, the moment of truth for all the included – retailers, vendors, and shoppers.Īccording to widely quoted POPAI in-store research up to 82% shopping decisions in grocery & convenience stores are made at that precise moment.

Here, in front of shelves, the customers make buying decisions. Now, back to the store where we have products and product categories organized in the retail space. By this, we can easier understand the basic mechanics and channel our efforts to the right places without losing organizational and personal energy all over the place.

Next question: Why do we set such simple almost stupid questions?īecause physical retail – especially as experienced in store chains – is such a complex discipline that we need simple frames that help us grasp its core. Sure, these categories are gaining momentum, but for the sake of clarity, we’ll leave them out of the equation for now. How about virtual products, like a lottery, betting, money transfers, and other retail services? How do they fit in the definition above? Well, t hanks for asking. Let’s start with the most basic question.Ī possible answer: a place where an assortment of select product categories is arranged in space so that it provides value for many customers.

Visual retail tour planogram