Visual Merchandising

When you walk into a retail store, what do you notice? Neatly placed shoes and clothes? Or maybe an aesthetically pleasing decor? A substantial amount of money, time and energy is put into making the store look attractive so as to entice the customers. The visuals, promotional activities, arrangement of stock and the beautification of the store are some of the reasons why at times you want to visit a particular store again! To bring the store in such a form, well-structured planning, and creative thinking is needed and this is what a visual merchandiser is tasked with. Through this blog, we will provide you with an insight into what a career in visual merchandising can look like. 

What is Visual Merchandising?

Playing an essential role in the business development of a retail store, visual merchandising is the art of presentation wherein a merchandiser conceptualizes and executes their ideas to display their products in a visually appealing manner. Dressed mannequins, arrangement of shoes and dress, products placed as per their type, colour and sizes, lightings, window dressing and designing, etc are some of the key responsibilities a visual merchandiser is tasked with. The objective is to provide a visually pleasing environment so as to convince the buyers to purchase the products!.

Also Read: Fine Arts Courses

Types of Visual Merchandising

Following arde the popular types of Visual Merchandising-

1. POP (Point-of-Purchase)– This type of VM is used in retails store as it enhances the possibilities of impulse purchasing. 
2. Table Displays– Table display is an ideal option for those who own a smaller merchandise store and is aiming for displaying the products. 
3. Gondola– This method includes a two-sided free-standing object for displaying the merchandise. It is also considered as one of the most cost-effective types of visual merchandising. 
4. Peg Boards– Peg boards are small fibre based boards containing small holes in which you can display small merchandise. 
5. Grid Wall- The shopkeepers with conserve space can use this option for merchandising.

Job Responsibilities

As a visual merchandising fresher, you can start working as an assistant VM and can climb up to the senior managerial roles after gaining requisite experience which also depends on your performances and skills. As a professional, your day to day work might include the following job responsibilities: 

• Developing floor plans and creative ideas for display.
• For promoting a specific product or a promotional event, create exclusive displays.
• Make the best use out of the space and layout of the store or a room. Making sure the lighting of the room is perfect.
• Educating the sales staff or assistants on how to maintain the display of goods.
• Set up and dress the mannequins.
• Collaborate with the sales and marketing team to create theme designs.
• Decide and maintain the budget needed to set up various displays.
• Creating the window and in-store displays of the goods, taking care of their installation and dismantling them.

Eligibility Criteria for Visual Merchandising

• For UG courses: 10+2 formal education from a recognized institute
• For PG courses: A UG degree along with minimum required marks in entrance exams
• Minimum required marks in IELTS, TOEFL, etc along with LORs and SOP

Visual Merchandising Courses

• Diploma in Visual Merchandising Arts 
• BS in Apparel Merchandising and Arts
• Bachelor of Science in Fashion Merchandising and Design 
• BA in Apparel Merchandising, Design and Textiles 
• Merchandising Specialist and Point of Sale Terminal
• Course in Fashion Design & Merchandising – Milan
• Postgraduate Degree in Visual Merchandising
• Fashion Styling & Visual Merchandising
• Associate in Design- Fashion Design Merchandising
• MA in Apparel Merchandising, Design and Textiles
• PhD in Apparel Merchandising

Apart from the above-mentioned courses, you can also start your career in this field by pursuing a course in the following related fields- 

• Retail Management Courses
• Spatial Designing
• Interior Designing
• Fine Arts
• Graphic Design Courses
• Fashion Retail
• Fashion Merchandising
• Visual Arts

Top Universities for Visual Merchandising

Now that a lot of aspirants are pursuing a career in VM, an array of colleges and universities across the world have introduced courses in visual and fashion merchandising. Enlisted below are some of the top universities which not only provide a quality education through best-in-class infrastructure and experienced faculty but also provide the students with the necessary industrial exposure needed for their growth. 

• University of Arts London
• The University of Manchester
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University
• TAFE NSW
• RMIT University
• Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
• University of Kentucky
• Technological University Dublin
• Virginia Tech
• San Mateo College of Silicon Valley
• Washington University
• Connestoga College
• Univeristy of the Arts London

Also Read: Arts with Maths

Visual Merchandising Scope

In the current scenario, students are enrolling in various offbeat career options and VM is one of them. Responsible for maintaining the style and projected image of the store, the MNCs and corporates are on the constant lookout for trained professionals, the ideas of whom can impress the consumers and make them raise the sales bar of the company in a professional way!

Visual Merchandising Jobs

While many universities have a compulsory industrial training exercise during the course duration, some don’t. In order to work in the field of VM, you can work as a trainee or intern and gain a decent amount of work experience upon the completion of your degree program. Through this, you can develop a comprehensive portfolio of all the works and designs you have ever created. 

• Merchandiser
• Visual Merchandiser
• E-Commerce Visual Merchandiser
• Retail Merchandiser
• In-Store Stylist and Visual Merchandiser
• Regional Visual Merchandiser (Retail)

Emplpoyement Areas

Visual merchandising graduates are in demand in the following areas: 

• Shopping Malls
• Brand Retail Outlets
• High-street Retailers
• Hotel Lobbies and Rooms
• Restaurants
• Boutiques
• Theme Parties
• Theme Parks
• Museums
• Exhibitions/Galleries
• Film Sets

Top Recruiters of Visual Marchandising

• Godrej and Boyce Manufacturing
• Reliance Industries
• Puma
• Marks and Spencer
• Kohler
• H&M
• The Beer Cafe
• Penguin Random House
• Shoppers Stop
• Mahindra
• Aditya Birla Group
• Big Bazaar
• Forrest Essentials

Visual Merchandising Salary

As you enter the field, your starting salary can be around INR 4-5 Lakh. As you start gaining experience in the field of VM, your salary can go up to INR 9-10 Lakh.

Visual Merchandisimg Books

• Store Design and Visual Merchandising: Creating Store Space That Encourages Buying by Ebster (Buy Here)
• Online Visual Merchandising by Katrandjiev Hristo and Velinov Ivo (Buy Here)
• Window and Interior Display: The Principles of Visual Merchandising by Robert Kretschmer and Robert Kretschmer (Buy Here)
• Silent Selling: Best Practices and Effective Strategies in Visual Merchandising by Judy Bell and Kate Ternus (Buy Here)
• Visual Merchandising for Fashion (Basics Fashion Management)’ by Sarah Bailey and Jonathan Baker (Buy Here)
• Visual Merchandising, Third edition: Windows and in-store displays for retail by Tony Morgan (Buy Here)
• Visual Merchandising and Display by Martin M Pegler (Buy Here)

Visual merchandising is an extremely competitive field of design. Though the work can be challenging, yet it offers umpteen employment opportunities across retail and corporate industries. If you are looking to establish a successful career in this field but are unsure about which subject combination to pursue then take the assistance of Leverage Edu’s experts through our 30 minutes free career counselling session and take a step towards a fruitful career!