So Christmas is over, your Christmas decorations have been taken down. What next? Well with a bit of luck you will now have received the wedding gowns and new veils, tiaras, jewellery, shoes and petticoats that you ordered in the Autumn/Winter months. So it’s time for a refresh!
The key thing to remember is to start from scratch. Empty your entire shop window, clean every nook and cranny and perhaps give it a fresh coat of paint if the walls or window frame are looking a bit tired. It is really important that you are strict with yourself and start with a blank canvas. Even if you don’t think so, anything that you have had in your shop for more than six months will be looking tired and outdated. But don’t worry you don’t have to go out and buy hundreds of new styles, you don’t need much to fill a shop window. Think less is more. Note: if you have some of our veils that you think need a bit of a perk up then our refresh offer is still running and definitely worth taking advantage of. Click here for details.
Now comes the fun bit – decoration. Depending on your shop size, one or two dresses should be enough. make this the centre piece for every day shop windows (i.e. ones when there are no special offers on, no special events etc.) as it is probably the largest item you sell and so can be seen from a distance. Then you can add the attendants’ outfits, if you have them, and accessories. A little staged wedding party is popular and can be quite cute.
These old pictures are from a BBEH that we attended a few years ago!
Using boxes covered in fabric or wrapping paper to raise some items is also effective and relatively inexpensive. Symmetry is also pleasing to the eye, so try balancing the tall and small items through the window. For example have your wedding gown in the centre of the window, with two bridesmaids’ mannequins each side, and then a tall thin cupboard on the far left and far right hand sides for balance. Ikea have very affordable cupboards like this one which are good for displaying tiaras and jewellery and other smaller items.
Creating cohesion in your shop window is also important. You are the experts on which of your gowns goes with which accessories, so put those together as you would if you were dressing a bride. This way not only is the whole shop window more show-stopping, but a bride is more likely to walk in a buy the entire ensemble! Also try and keep it cohesive in terms of style, rather than trying to cater to everyone’s tastes. So if you are going to do vintage, for example, do it well and make sure that everything falls into that category. You’re never going to be able to cover everyone’s tastes and a stunning shop window with traditional style ‘white wedding’ bridal wear will look much better than a mix of items, even if that person likes everything pink!
Once you’ve got all of your products in place, then you can add the finishing touches. large bows, sparkling crystals hung by invisible thread, lots of lights (spotlights which you change the direction of are great), flowers, or whatever else takes your fancy! The same rules apply though – keep it cohesive and balanced and remember less is more. A general rule is that garments should be centre stage, but you can put out lots of tiaras, shoes, veils and jewellery around them – you are not just restricted to one set. Also, don’t forget to pin a veil to your bride mannequin as this will finish off the bridal look.
If you look carefully in this old picture you can see the headdresses hanging from the top of the stand above the table!
Click here to see more advice on spring cleaning your shop. If you need any other help with your shop window display then please call or email us and we’ll be happy to help.
This week we continue to celebrate the past 25 years of Richard Designs by looking at how the company transformed from local bridal florists to a national bridal wear accessories supplier. I caught up with founder and Managing Director Elaine Dicks to find out more.
How did you go about changing the focus of the business?
What was your inspiration?
Style-wise it was big fluffy dresses, puffy sleeves and 3 tier, heavily embroidered veils. Hats were great and we pressed 100 – 150 a week in the mid 1990s. When they started to go out of fashion, that’s when tiaras started to come in. They were all gold – no one wanted silver, not like today. Gold with clear or AB crystals, white or ivory pearls was what people wanted.
