It is good to be back at GlobalShop! After spending most of the day in sessions, I could feel the energy building as I headed up the escalators to the show floor. Where to go, what to look at first…I followed my senses and found my top 5 interesting things for the day.

Mad for Mannequins

I don’t know what it is, but ever since my first GlobalShop I have been intrigued by the mannequin manufacturers and their booth displays. The shapes, colors, sizes, and vignettes…I love, love, love looking at them. Check out a few of my favorites.

(Almax Mannequins – Patina V – CNL International)

Simple & Functional – Everyone Needs a Hanger

As I walked by Hangerlogic, I was struck by the product variety and the thought of how important this simple, functional item can be in the shopping experience. Continue reading →

Do you need help training shoppers how to buy? During the GlobalShop keynote session on Monday, April 16^th, Herb Sorensen, Ph.D. said that training shoppers is not the problem.  “The reality is there are problems with the way people try to sell.”

Continue reading →

The Retail Design Diva is officially in Chicago for GlobalShop 2013, taking place this week April 16-18! Woo hoo! The Diva and her friends at DDI Magazine will be roaming the show floor—from conference sessions to exhibitor booths to parties and everywhere else in between. We’ll be blogging LIVE from the show all three days about the latest retail design musings, hottest products and attendee opinions. No detail shall go uncovered as we scour the show for interesting and exciting speakers, products and conference sessions.

If you’ll be at GlobalShop too, check back here for live updates and get the inside scoop of must-sees! Continue reading →

Pardon us, but the Retail Design Diva is on a bit of a customer care tear these days, so file this under “How Not to Treat Customers.” This one comes to us from the Land Down Under, where an Aussie specialty food shopkeep, who was clearly frustrated with showrooming, posted this sign on the on the front door.

“Dear Customers, As of the first of February, this store will be charging people a $5 fee per person for ‘just looking.’ The $5 fee will be deducted when goods are purchased.”

The sign continued:

“Why has this come about? There has been high volume of people who use this store as a reference and then purchase goods elsewhere. Continue reading →

As much as I love the experience of shopping in physical retail stores, the thrill of online shopping is undeniable. The ability to browse nearly limitless selections, styles, colors, brands and trends all from the comfort of your couch is enough to satiate your inner shopaholic. And the ability to buy products with just a few taps or clicks? Effortless pleasure. But alluring as e-commerce is, there are a few reasons why I don’t believe it will ever replace bricks and mortar. Here is just one simple reason why:

Stuck indoors feeling under the weather (burdened with a cold and a rainy weekend), I opened my laptop to check some emails. Continue reading →