Jewellery

Deviant Displays - New Trend in Window Fashion

Window display is one of the most exiting aspects of visual merchandising. Windows may communicate style, content, and price. They can be seductive, exciting or based on emotional stimulus through stimulation, or evocation of all five senses. The best store windows can generate great excitement and are a talking point. They contribute to the shopping experience by entertaining pedestrians, while simultaneously communicating the products and services on offer (Gupta, Swati; 2010). 

Window displays are always centred on themes that convey current mood of the season.  The themes are generally based on the seasons, colours, holidays or just informing about new product features. Window display have conventionally being very pleasant, traditional (not offending to public sensibilities) and exact in their message delivery. 

Humans are mostly conventional in their approach but they also have an eye for "out of ordinary". Anything that doesn't "fit in" is spotted instantaneously. This trait of human nature is being successfully in-cashed by the retailers. For some time now, a new trend has started, where the deviant window displays are created to look creepy so as to grab instant attention. They convey message that are open to interpretations.     

Deviant Windows: What?

 Deviance is doing things those are out of ordinary and are new to human society. Such non- traditional window displays can be termed as deviant window displays. They not only broken the old and conventional way of display but have also created a new sub-section in designing of a window display.

 Human mind have a tendency to be attracted towards the darker side of human existence. Often people dress in a certain manner to show their non-conformance with the prevalent culture of the society. One such subculture follows Gothic fashion, where the members wear dark, sometimes morbid, eroticized fashion and style of dress. Typical gothic fashion includes black dyed hair, dark eyeliner, dark fingernails, and black clothes. Styles are often borrowed from the Elizabeth and Victorian eras. Many retailers and fashion designers use this as a theme to design their displays.

 Many old cultures around the world are known to have a day where they worship and remember the dead people. Such festivals provide great opportunity for designing deviant windows. Festivals such as Halloween, which is celebrated on October 31, or Day of the Dead, which is celebrated on November 2, are some examples where people indulge in buying goods that signify death. For such occasions, window displays are designed in such a manner that "the scarier they are the better it is". They are mostly hard hitting, distasteful and horrendous.

 Deviant Windows: Why?

 Deviant window displays provides a different medium to communicate with. Such windows are created by the retailers so that they can -

 1. Grab attention- Whether it is a traditional window or deviant, the main focus always remains on grabbing attention. Such displays automatically attract the focus of the shoppers even if they have just glanced at the window.

2. Message- Traditional window displays make the message clear. If the shop is offering sale then the window conveys this message, but deviant windows make consumer stop and read and then interpret and understand the message. The problem with these windows is that the message is often lost in the translation. 

3. Show-case different product line- Often such windows display showcases different product line meant for different consumers.  A store selling gothic designs will have window showing gothic designs containing black garments and accessories.

4. Celebrating a holiday – Halloween is often the time when scary, deviant windows displays come up. It is estimated that Halloween is gaining so much importance that it is worth an estimated £235m to the retail sector in 2005 in U.K.

Deviant window displays make a wonderful change in routine displays, but it should be cautioned that they should represent the current mood, the image and the merchandise present in the store.

 Deviant Displays: How?-

 The most important aspect in any window display (including deviant window displays) is that it should not be overly or shabbily done. The window should convey the message that store wants to. It is necessary that the display is well thought-out.  Designing such window displays require different type of approach. Retailers must understand that traditional elements of window designing have to be manipulated to create a sense of mystery.

 The artist should consider what one wants to accomplish, then chalk out a budget and determine a central theme. One can develop a shadow box or one can sketch out the display on paper. The display should correctly show location of tables, windows, racks, mannequins considering their dimension to the window display. The lighting and the angle of the display should well thought off. To create an effective deviant display the retailer needs to keep in mind-

 1. Getting creative - Hiring an artist to create a display is a good option. The display has to be done in a manner that it generates a sense of deja-vu in the minds of onlooker. While creating such displays it is necessary that the theme of the display is clearly communicated. Often such displays get too creative for consumers to interpret their meaning.

2. Lighting - Lighting plays an important role in creating an ambience with in the display. In a deviant display the lightings are generally kept muted with sharp but not focussing lights interspersed in between, to create a sense of mystery, foreboding and unexplainable. Often such lighting complements the background colour selected.

3. Colour- The colour selection can be from muted browns, neutral greys, blacks and cold blues to hot reds. The kind colour of merchandise effects the colour of the background generally the merchandise colour should stand out from background colour.

4.  Placement of props. - In a deviant display the mannequins can be placed haphazardly or in a cluttered manner to create a chaotic look.  Often such a display attracts the attention of the passer-by by creating a sense of frenzy.

5. Unbalanced display - Asymmetrical placement of props inside the display brings a balance into the display, whereas, Symmetrical placements makes display look heavy. Deviant displays are meant to look chaotic and disorganised; in such a display balance should be avoided.

6. Change display quickly- It is important that such displays should be placed for certain period of time only. If the display coincides with a festival then it should not be extended beyond it as it may start looking out of season.

7. Keep windows clean. Nothing ruins a retail window display faster than a filthy window. The windows should be cleaned to maximize the effectiveness of one's window displays.   

Deviant Windows: Don'ts-

 Window displays is a tool which acts as the first communicator with the consumers. If the display is not understandable then they can create a sense of distrust amongst the consumers. In a desire to create maximum impact through a deviant window display, at times retailers overdo it.

 1. Ill thought-out display- An ill thought-out display can ruin the image of the shop completely. Often such displays show the non serious attitude of the retailer and get linked with the clothes and services that the shop provides.

2.  An ambiguous theme- Often the displays created are so vague that it gets difficult to understand them. They require great deal of effort from the side of consumers to understand them.   

3.  Too dressed up display- In yearning to create a spectacular display, retailers make the biggest mistake of "overdoing it". Such displays are not able to convey the message clearly creating a sense of vagueness in the consumers.                                          

 4.  Distasteful displays- Any form of human nakedness is considered distasteful. Retailers often try to convey their message through such displays as they create instant scandal.

 Since time immemorial, humans have used differing fashion to mark mourning, non conformance or to assume different personality. The deviating side of human nature has always created instant outrage in the society, but, equally attracting its focus too.  A deviant display uses this nature of humans to create displays which evokes varied feelings in the onlookers. The retailer needs to plan a deviant window display with great caution and if designed correctly, such window displays become an instant talk of the town. 

About the Author

 Gupta, Swati; Visiting Faculty in Department of Fabric and Apparel Science,  Institute of Home Economics, D.U; Amity University.

REFERENCES-

 

1   Gupta, Swati ; "Window Display- A World Full of Opportunity";  Fibre2Fashion online   journal;  published on 5thMay'10.

1. BBC NEWS  Business  Who makes a killing at Halloween.mht
2. Designing a Window Display Using Effective Store
3. Gothic fashion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.mht
4. Gothic fashion Summary.mht
5. Merchandising to Increase Sales.mht
6. Retail Hell Underground Creepy Window Displays.mht
7. Tips for Creating Winning Store Window Displays Retail Retailers from AllBusiness_com.mht
8. Visual Displays - Create an Attractive Display - Store Display Designs.mht
9. Window display spring 2010 - a Mom Entrepreneur.mht 
10. Window Displays « I Do Windows.mht

                                                     

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