Retail Analysis

1.  What store did you observe? Who do they market to?

            I observed the store Banana Republic, a higher-end clothing retailer. Banana Republic markets to both men and women. Given the more refined, professional style of clothing that they sell, as well as the high prices, I assume that they market to adults over the age of 25 – particularly those with white collar jobs who would need “business casual” clothing.

2.  Briefly describe the following:

a. appearance of store entrance (from outside)

Even from just the outside, Banana Republic had a very clean, refined, and almost “preppy” appearance. The store’s name was displayed prominently above the entrance in clear, polished font. The entranceway itself was flanked by two large window displays. The display on the left showed an entire men’s outfit on a mannequin, perfect for fall and complete with a tan sweater vest, khaki slacks, and a tie. The display on the right showed an entire women’s outfit, also befitting the season, with clothing in shades of orange, cream, and brown. In both window displays, dark wooden shelves hung from the ceiling with old school books, messenger bags, and knit hats neatly arranged on them.

b. sounds (inside the store)

            Upon entering the store, I expected to hear some sort of cultured, classical music. Instead, the music playing throughout the store was fun, peppy, and almost pop. I feel like this kind of music would be to make the atmosphere of the store more inviting and to keep customers happy and alert. Also, it is worth mentioning that the volume of the music was just right – not too loud and not too quiet.

c. how merchandise is displayed

            I have to say – I absolutely loved the way in which Banana Republic displayed its merchandise. The entire store looked extremely neat, clean, and pleasant. To begin with, the clothing displayed closest to the store’s entrance were laid out on large tables. The shelving on the walls was in clever cubic and rectangular shapes. Certain products were displayed in some of the shelves, and the larger, more square-shaped units held simplistic paintings, old books, large vintage-looking hourglasses, and coils of rope. The clothes themselves were hung using shiny wooden hangers, and organized by color, style, or type – and then, within those categories, unfailingly by size. Even the sale racks, which are usually a big mess in clothing stores, wonderfully organized, with all of the clothing in order by size and all of the same styles placed together. Men’s clothing was on the left side of the store, with all of the women’s clothing on the right. I noticed that, as compared to the women’s side, more of the men’s clothing was displayed on tables. Furthermore, much of the men’s clothing was consciously displayed together. For example, one large round table displayed a wide variety of men’s dress shirts in different colors, with matching ties laid out right next to their respective shirts, and slacks and sweater vests folded neatly on another table nearby.

d. floors

            The floors throughout Banana Republic were an attractive type of wood flooring. The floor was extremely clean, without any sort of trash or, god forbid, merchandise cluttering it up.

e. signs

            The large signs on the walls of the store were a pleasant, dark red with large, easy-to-read white text. The smaller signs that were attached to racks of clothing and shelves and displayed on tables had the same clear, white text and a soothing tan background. To the contrary, signs depicting sale items were a bold, bright red.

f. cashier area

            The cashier area consisted of two long, sturdy-looking wooden counters, with one up against the wall the other out in front of it. The counter against the wall was for the stores’ associates to use, and the counter in front held the cash registers and was where transactions were to take place. Most likely due to this, that particular counter had a darker, sleek looking countertop than the other. Three simple advertisements for the store with bold, minimalistic black frames hung at equally spaced distances on the wall behind the cashier area.

3.  What image does this business try to project?

            The image that Banana Republic tries to project is luxurious, sophisticated, and refined. As I already mentioned, most of the clothes is what would be considered “business casual” – such as slacks, skirts, dresses, dress shirts, ties, blazers, and sweater vests. Furthermore, the paintings on the walls and the decorations in the shelves and window displays portray a slightly preppy, vintage image.

4. How did customers interact with various elements of the store’s design?

            As they entered the store, customers tended to gravitate first toward the large table displays straight ahead of them before then heading either to the left or the right, depending on their gender or who they were shopping for. While I was observing the store, there were not many men present, but on the women’s side, customers tended to begin at the sale racks. This was probably due to the much brighter signs that were displayed there, as well as the more enticing lower prices.

5. What did you find interesting about the design of this store?

            What I found most interesting about the design of this Banana Republic store was just the incredibly polished and refined air that it exuded. Every single aspect of the store contributed to creating this environment – even right down to the sales associates, all of whom were incredibly friendly and incredibly well-dressed.