Having read the article about the half-mile-long beaver dam in Alberta, Canada, it occurred to me that those beavers exemplify something frequently overlooked in the retail design business, the idea that it’s okay to fail.

You would have to imagine that over the reported 2800 linear feet of dam in what is basically a flat terrain, there’s the likelihood that sometimes it just doesn’t work the way they intended.  The colony has to react quickly to failure to ensure the safety of their habitat. If any of you beavers are reading this post and would like to broaden your portfolio, by all means, give us a call. Failure is an option in design as long as it’s smart failure and failing for the right reason. If it helps the idea move forward, then it might just net out the absolute best result.

In today’s market, retail brands developing a new design concept rarely have the luxury of time. Business pressure demands short design-and-build timeframes, followed by testing and refining. The original concept gets implemented across a variety of locations and architectures the offer the opportunity to engineer a new experience. In some cases,  the opportunities never get the proper amount of attention.  But when they do, the brand benefits. Much good comes from exploring various options, thoroughly test them with consumers and then using the insights to build something even more engaging at the next location. Failing forward.

My experience tells me that some of the most successful projects that I have had the opportunity to be involved with ended up that way because they continue to improve long after the first location is opened. Those brands realize the customer is a moving target whose expectations increase daily. To satisfy them and to keep them coming back, it takes a strong resolve to continuously improve.   

I am always inspired by my surroundings and the story of the beavers is a great case study on design. If and when beavers learn CAD and Photoshop, the design community at large might have some serious competition.

Ok, I have spent the last five years convinced that the marketing hype was just that—hype. Mostly from reading countless advertisements for LED lighting products that play on unsuspecting readers with questionable claims, such as Long life! Excellent color! High efficiency!  Brighter!

Well, what were previously exaggerated claims are now coming to be real. LED lighting products are here to stay. And the bubbling pot is about to explode. After years of refinements, and new industry regulation, the products are consistently better performers than the previous generation.

The US Department of Energy has developed a labeling program (I think it is voluntary) that provides a means of consistency for describing LED performance. It addresses Light Output, Watts, Efficacy, Color Rendering Index and Correlated Color Temperature. Or Brightness, Energy, Efficiency, Color Accuracy and Light Color.

It is a little like the nutrition labels on food products. And now I have confidence that the participating manufacturers have accurately represented performance of their LEDs.

Yes, they are here to stay, even in retail architecture. Smart engineers will find the proper application. LEDs are green and fit the sustainability profile—part of a surefire way to promote a green building effort.

Still a little costly in broad application, but they have some ideal applications. Check this one out from Evluma.

http://evluma.com/news/news-gsa_contract.html

For years, the majority of cash at quick service restaurants has gone “through the window.”  The growing car culture has dictated a focus on drive-thru efficiency to the point where the dining room has become an afterthought to operators and subsequently a barrier to customers.

The cost of updating and maintaining a dining room has seemed cost prohibitive to many QSR chains and their franchisees, especially in light of the high drive-thru ratio. But by not offering a unique, pleasant dining experience, they have let the brand image wither on the vine. And it’s now coming back to haunt them. I contend that the high drive-thru ratio is in large part due to customers avoiding the “ick” factor of enduring outdated, smelly, deteriorating environments with no sense of place or brand personality.

The dining room is the brand.
Most customers will, at some point, come inside and that is the greatest opportunity to make a connection. Panera and Starbucks understood this a long time ago and snagged loads of customers that wanted a clean and cozy place to enjoy the product. McDonalds and Burger King have seen the light and announced major remodeling and prototype initiatives that appear to be paying off.

So to my friends in the QSR and Fast Casual game: differentiated, branded and engaging experiences win with customers; there is only so much connection you can make at the pay window. So elevate your brand with every possible touchpoint including the most important and substantial asset you have—your dining room.

So I’m sitting in a Starbucks in Sacramento CA waiting to meet with the city planner regarding a new building design and notice the building across the street has an HVAC unit mounted at the peak of a bowstring truss roof. You’ve got to be kidding me! As they say on “Modern Family,” What the face! Where is the enforcement?

You would think they were trying to make a mechanical engineering cupola statement as part of the design concept or something. Wow, who does that and what city planner or inspector approved that?

As design professionals, we go through great pains to design buildings that screen ugly mechanical equipment to improve the look of the street scape at every juncture. We work with the cities and their planners to provide multiple renderings and diagrams to show that this type of equipment won’t be visible from the street level.

I would love to know how contractors and owners get by with this stuff and get it approved. Bottles of Scotch maybe? Who are the inspectors? Did they not notice this? Sometimes it seems that there is a double standard when it comes to design and approvals. Take heed, fellow retail architects. With all the cuts within the city departments, it tells me that structures are getting built without any review or inspection. It’s all on you.

When I see this type of debacle it reinforces to me why we are so critical of our designs, and why we look at the project in its entirety from a big picture view. It helps me sleep at night knowing that we care when we deliver our work.

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
November 17, 2009

Media Contact:
Beth Ling
Director of Public Relations
Interbrand Design Forum
(937) 312-8803
bling@designforum.com

Homemakers Renovation sets new benchmarkin furniture industry
Interbrand Design Forum redesigns all 400,000 square feet of the space to create a state-of-the art destination store

dayton, ohio— Retail brand consultancy, Interbrand Design Forum worked with Homemakers Furniture to transform its existing store into a best-in-class retail and service experience.

The newly redesigned 400,000-square-foot location in Des Moines, Iowa opened July 31, 2009. The project resulted in every square foot of the building being either remodeled or redesigned and includes a 215,000 square-foot showroom and an expanded warehouse.

The company selected Interbrand Design Forum to design its new store, which included a complicated series of existing buildings with varied ceiling heights and column spacing. While it presented challenges, Homemakers was committed to staying in the same location and worked with the design team to optimize the use of its awkward pie-shaped land by reorienting entrances, parking and circulation.

“With a space of this size, it was essential to make it easy for the customer to understand and use the store,” said Scott Smith, senior vice president, executive consultant, Interbrand Design Forum. “The new design focuses on ease of access, visibility, vertical circulation, traffic flow, merchandise displays and check out.”

To improve navigation, the team punctuated the store with feature areas that bring to life each destination category, while weaving in small accessories and showing total room solutions. Sightlines were a critical aspect of this and the team had to find the right balance of open space and backdrops, making it manageable to shop while showcasing the impressive selection and clearly identifying high-end options as well as value room packages.
The new design provides flexibility for varying levels of stock capacity, seasonal requirements and floor sets and maximizes the space while creating a disciplined merchandising approach.

To avoid over-merchandising with too many room settings, the team helped Homemakers optimize the presentation, and provide more open space. The design minimized the investment in theme rooms, instead using oversized graphics to convey a style. This approach allows Homemakers to easily freshen the vignettes and stay on trend.

In an effort to attract interest in the previously under-performing mezzanine level, the team moved two destination categories, bedroom and mattresses, upstairs and opened the architecture to add escalators, which enhanced circulation. A satellite bedroom at the bottom of the escalators also increased interest and added to the dramatic improvement.

Driving choice through a clearly articulated brand proposition
“As a family-run business, Homemakers had a clear idea of who they were, but their story wasn’t being brought to life in way that differentiated them, said Smith. “Homemakers needed to be positioned as an authority on the home, so we focused on that idea as we created a strategic brand positioning and translated it into an image and personality that provides consistency throughout all the visual elements of the shopping experience, including the new logo.”

The idea of home is central to the brand that has a tradition of serving customers freshly baked cookies, and is reinforced with the signature fireplace tower. The 16-foot square hearth provides a warm welcome inside the 50-foot tall grand entrance, while serving the practical purpose of disguising an immovable mechanical room.

This area also provides the backdrop for the new accessories marketplace, which presents all of the merchandise in one central area. Since accessories offer an opportunity to drive traffic, additional displays were incorporated throughout the store, in addition to being featured in room vignettes.

Building on customer service
Customers can pay for purchases in the front checkout area or at any of the 79 point-of-sale stations, which are located throughout the store. These strategic towers play dual roles, carrying the brand message and serving as work stations where customers can find assistance, obtain information or place an order.

Service is at the heart of the Homemakers brand, so back-end improvements were a key element of the project. The distribution center and pick-up department were significantly expanded which improved efficiency and reduced wait time for the 50% of customers who pick up their merchandise.

The new space is also energy efficient. By using a number of energy conservation strategies, Homemakers is projected to save $95,996 in energy cost per year. These measures qualified Homemakers to take advantage of incentive programs which offset 50% of the incremental costs associated with the energy conservation investments, and expert payback analysis shows the effort will pay for itself after one year.

“Homemakers has set a new standard with this store. This is the new benchmark for furniture retailing,” said Ron Blumkin, President of Nebraska Furniture Mart, a Berkshire Hathaway company who owns Homemakers.

About Interbrand Design Forum
Since 1978, we have been creating retail brand experiences for companies around the world. Interbrand Design Forum’s talent for game-changing innovation led us to create a business model that integrates analytics-based strategy—the first and only company with such a comprehensive offering.
In 2008, we added Interbrand to our Design Forum name to reflect our place in the world’s largest branding consultancy. We have been part of Interbrand since 2002, which makes us part of a network of 1,200 associates in almost 40 offices around the globe. For more information, please contact Beth Ling (937) 312-8803 or visit www.interbranddesignforum.com.

About Homemakers
Homemakers Furniture was started in 1974 by Carl & Ina Merschman and their family. With the recent renovation and expansion, Homemakers has become one of the top ten largest furniture showrooms in the country with nearly 300 employees. Recently celebrating 35 years of business, Homemakers has cultivated a strong tradition and is one of the premier Home Furnishings Stores in America. To find more information about Homemakers, go to the newly redesigned website www.shopHomemakers.com or contact Kimberly at kimberly.r@shophomemakers.com or call (515)309-4635.