DDi - August 2011 - (Page 8)

8 | From the Editor Mannequin tales isual merchandising has a storied history in my family. Not because I have any particular tie to the industry—I had never heard the term before starting with this magazine 10 years ago—but because I have a mother who was quite precocious. Read on. Growing up, I remember story after story of my mother’s famous “disappearing acts,” as my grandmother called them, at the local department store during her childhood. Saturdays meant a trip to either Hecht’s or Woodward & Lothrup (known as “Woodies” back then)—two favorites from the D.C. area where we are from—to spend a day at the store. At some point while my grandparents were sifting between departments, my mother would make her grand escape, disappearing into the abyss of abundant merchandise. Once the discovery had been made that little Janice had wandered off again, my poor grandparents were resigned to yet again visit the customer service desk (henceforth known as “the lost and found”). This was the early 1960s, and back then, losing your child in a three-story department store was—to put it bluntly—a big deal. No smart phones. No iPads. No child-locating devices. According to my grandparents’ tales, this disappearing act happened no less than 10 times in her childhood, and each time, a store staff search party would have to chip in to locate the missing child. This was compounded by the fact that when one of the staff did locate her and ask for her name, my mother was known to intentionally give a fake. Store intercom: “Will the parents of a little girl named Molly wearing a white top and blue shorts please collect your child at the customer service desk?” My grandmother: “That’s Janice. Let’s go get her.” But, what I haven’t gotten to is how this is tied in to visual merchandising. You see, the reason my mother would pull a Houdini and run amuck in the store aisles is because she was on a mission to become the world’s first professional live mannequin. Once she found a busy spot in the store with enough distance away from her parents, the show would begin. My mother would V climb up onto the 2-ft.-high pedestals, purse her lips, strike a pose, and fit herself right in to the display of fashion-frocked mannequins around her. I’m told she was even known to grab a hat, tie a scarf and sport a handbag to add to the effect (color coordinated, mind you). A little girl impersonating a mannequin serious as can be was, as you can imagine, quite entertaining. To my grandparents, it was worrisome and troubling (what was wrong with this child?!). And to my aunts, it was plain annoying. But to the customers in the store, it was pretty dang amusing. Little Janice became so good at standing perfectly still, sometimes two or three people would pass by without noticing, before someone would ultimately catch on to the little girl’s act and stop to watch what she did next. She was known to draw a small crowd in the store, even. This was her stage. And I wouldn’t be surprised if they sold a few more scarves and handbags that day either. Visual can have that effect on the in-store experience, whether through a well-executed mannequin display, a properly placed graphic or artistic merchandise presentation—or an 8-year-old looking to fill her Saturday with a bit of glamour. Live mannequins (and children, at that!) might not be right for your brand, but head to our Visual Super Section on page 28 for some ideas that might fit. If not, my mother may be available for hire. Alison Embrey Medina Executive Editor alison.medina@ddionline.com | August 2011 www.ddionline.com http://www.ddionline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DDi - August 2011

DDi - August 2011
Contents
From the Editor
From the Show Director
Newsworthy
Shopper Insights
Visual Perspectives
Editor’s Choice
Design Snapshot
Channel Focus: Green
Express
Visual Trends
Big-impact visualShopping with Paco
Store Windows Showcase
Visual Products
Right Light
In-Store Technology
Product Spotlight
Calendar
Advertisers
Classifieds
Shopping with Paco

DDi - August 2011