When a customer walks into Goleta Valley Paint in Goleta, California, they are greeted with colorful displays that show off the paint tools and accessories the store sells. Owner Steve Ozab believes ordinary white pegboards actually draw customers’ attention away from the products, making their eyes gravitate to the empty space instead of the merchandise on display, so he painted all the displays in his store.
Ozab chose a juniper gray-blue color for all the shelves, pegboards and eye-level surfaces. He picked that color because none of the goods he sells are packaged in the same color, so merchandise stands out.
Displays are important to selling because they provide a way to demonstrate the product, Ozab says. On the store’s header boards, he hung a distressed rustic metallic wallpaper that complements the juniper-colored pegboard and showcases one of the wallpaper patterns the store sells.
“Every paint store can demonstrate wallpaper, faux finishes, metallic coatings, wood graining techniques, textures and other exotic finishes on displays,” Ozab says. “One place overlooked by most paint and hardware stores to demonstrate products is their store’s bathroom. We’re in the middle of remodeling ours and have installed wallpaper we sell there for customers to see.”
Ozab spends the time and money on his displays because they are crucial to sales.
“Store displays introduce new items, show sale items, guide customers in a certain direction, reinforce a store’s image and remind customers what items a store carries,” he says. “They are incredibly important to sell products.”
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