Visual Merchantiser Window Dresser - Career Advice - Retail and Hospitality

Visual merchandisers [or Window Dressers] design and set up products or services for display in retail settings. They design, develop and implement creative floor plans, as well as window, wall and point of sale displays. Future Growth Strong

Visual merchandisers work in collaboration with retail buyers, store managers, and marketing and promotion staff to attract customers. They may market a store or brand's identity and maximise sales opportunities through the selection, layout and visual presentation of products.

Working
(Source: PlanIt)

ANZSCO Description & ID: 6395: Plans and installs internal, window and fixed displays to show goods to their best advantage.

Alternative names: Window Dresser

Knowledge, skills and attributes

A visual merchandiser needs:

creative talent and a sense of style
a keen eye for current consumer/fashion trends
to be organised and have good time management skills
strong attention to detail
good eye-hand coordination
good communication and customer service skills.

Working
(Source: Your Career)

Duties & Tasks

Visual merchandisers:

communicate with managers of department stores to determine the floor layout, traffic flow and display points, as well as what items are to be displayed and how
design window or internal displays based on a theme, style or trend of promotion
obtain props and accessories for constructing displays
make and paint props and signs
dress mannequins and use appropriate lighting to display merchandise for the best possible presentation
arrange ticketing and signage
maintain, store and dismantle displays after promotion periods.
determining goods for display in accordance with prospective seasonal and promotional events
developing overall promotional and display plans for approval
preparing sketches and models showing layout, colour and other features for approval
obtaining props and other accessories, and building displays
setting up fabricated displays in store windows and other areas
organising the setting out of goods to be shown as part of permanent displays
arranging ticketing and signage
arranging lighting to highlight fixtures, displays and goods

Working conditions

Visual merchandisers will spend part of their time working based in an office, creating visual plans and layout guidelines and researching current and future trends. They will also spend time travelling between suppliers, sourcing props and negotiating costs and budgeting.

Visual merchandisers will also work based within the retail space, building and disassembling displays, and arranging lighting and signage. They may need to work odd hours or weekends to set up displays outside of trading hours.

Luxury store
(Source: Practical Adult Insights)

Tools and technologies

Visual merchandisers work with a range of materials to construct displays, including art and craft supplies, as well as equipment for lighting. Visual merchandisers may also use drawing boards, and computer-aided design (CAD) software packages to help generate their merchandising concepts. They may also use word processing and spreadsheet software.

Education and training/entrance requirements

You can work as a visual merchandiser without any formal qualifications and get training on the job. However, you are more likely to improve your prospects in the industry if you have completed a formal qualification in retail.

The Certificate III in Retail Operations and the Certificate IV in Retail Management are offered at registered training organisations throughout Western Australia.

Clothing Store Display

Did You Know?

Visual merchandisers will need to work closely with merchandise managers to ensure that everything that is available for sale is properly positioned in the store. He or she also needs to move the products to places in the store where the product will have maximum effect on the mind and hearts of the shopper.

Another responsibility of a visual merchandiser is when he or she has to make a decision regarding a particular product that is not selling well. The VM must move that product or brand from wall units to become a detached fixture, putting it firmly in front of customers in an inviting way. Secondly, the visual merchandiser must also learn that there is much more to dressing mannequins than dressing them in attractive outfits. His or her day starts with the creation of a story that uses colour as the beginning of the tale and to which the visual merchandiser adds texture and various accessories. This has to be done well because most buyers look at the visual display and the mannequin styling and use these as references when buying entire outfits.

It’s not just the stock that needs to be optimised to attract customers. The visual merchandiser may also need to take responsibility for the correct selection of fixtures and carpets, as well as furniture for their stores. They may even have to go as far as getting out their paintbrush to paint the walls and to move furniture to the correct place in the store.

Typically, a visual merchandiser will need an eye for detail when it comes to colour matching and the psychology of display. A visual merchandiser does not always work in the store itself. They will often meet with representatives of various suppliers and find out from them when an upcoming collection is being introduced and how they want their products to look in a store.
(Source: Australian Women Online)