Milano Fashion&Jewels
22-25 February 2025
fieramilano, Rho
What are the strategies for a perfect Christmas visual merchandising? The opinion of retailers at Milano Fashion&Jewels
As well as being a shop's business card, shop windows are the starting point of any customer experience worthy of its name. Their responsibility in retail is great: in a matter of seconds, they need to convey a set of messages about the shop - what it sells, its target customers and its concept - and in doing so, with a certain appeal, they have to entice the customer to step inside. This is especially true at commercial events or festivities such as Christmas.
After all, real Christmas in the shops depends on fittings and décor, whose coefficient of attraction must be managed as carefully as possible to make the difference. However, in order to know what can't be missed, where to find inspiration for the fitting, and how much it affects the attractiveness, we questioned the retailers of Milano Fashion&Jewels to find out their point of view on such delicate issues. What emerged from this research is that, while it goes without saying that shop windows should feature products with high Christmas coefficient enclosed in an ad hoc fitting - as pointed out by Stefania Marzufero of Maitre Parfumeur - it is essential for the visual aspect to be eye-catching and to follow every year a different inspiration.
There must be no lack of lights, bright colours, especially red, special Christmas decorations, and it should also include the incipit of a story that continues inside the shop and of which the window offers only a foretaste, explained Elisabetta Cuccovillo of Cuccovillo Preziosi. Furthermore, regardless of whether the customer is loyal or not, the aim is always to guide them in their choice and arouse their curiosity - with new and trendy products and innovative items, underlined Patricia Bloczynski of Aternum Shop. To do this, the shop window is not enough: Ignazio D'Alia of Gioie Angela talked about the importance of the human factor, the advice of the shopkeeper, which is fundamental in accompanying the buying experience. It goes without saying that shop windows are the exceptional container of what retailers chose as the top products of the period and the selection that best expresses their business' DNA. It is always important to experiment without distorting, to follow traditions with unprecedented flashes, to propose new products with an eye to versatility - also in terms of price – by ensuring a wide choice.
This is the secret of Christmas visual merchandising that can become a real sales booster.