CHAPTER - I
CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW

In modern retailing, attaining leadership and building an image in the customer's mind requires a great deal of skill and planning. Al Ries and Jack Trout long ago talked about positioning as being a 'battle of the mind'. Even today this holds true: a store brand has to break through the clutter and make an impression on the customer's mind to eventually convert the coordinated entity of the store that's in the customer's mind into a particular image.
Image can be described as the overall look of a store and the series of mental pictures and feelings it evokes in the beholder. For the retailer, developing a powerful image provides the opportunity to embody a single message, stand out from the competition and be remembered. Image is the foundation of all retailing efforts. While store layout, presentation, signage, displays and events can all change to reflect newness and excitement from one season to the next, they must always remain true to the underlying store image.

Studies indicate that a retailer has roughly seven seconds to capture the attention of a passing customer. The following elements combine to form a distinctive image that not only reaches out and grabs the customer's attention, but also makes a positive impression in those precious few seconds.

MERCHANDISING
Merchandising, also known as the 'silent salesman', is the science and art of suggestive selling by display and presentation. Visual merchandising focal points are located strategically to circulate the customer in the store, and communicate the features and benefits of the merchandise besides the in-store promotion in vogue. This is done by converting a passerby to a browser with an effective window display, a browser to a spender through the process of 'conversion', a spender to a big spender by increasing the 'ticket size'