New Trier’s Fashion Merchandising class recently built a visual merchandising display at Old Orchard Mall. The class, which was reopened to students last year, experienced first-hand the process of visual merchandising and display making.
“The class worked with Old Orchard last year so this was just a continuation of this collaboration,” said Melissa Duffy, Fashion Merchandising teacher.
A visual merchandising display is a type of advertisement. What sets a visual merchandising display apart from the common ads on TV is that the consumer is not just being told about the product, but can actually see it in real life.
The most common type of visual merchandising display is the window display. Not only do window displays allow the consumer to see the product, but they also can be eye-catching, which helps advertise and bring business into the store. The displays are typically made out of industrial supplies, such as wood, plastic, and clay. However, visual merchants must get creative and use a range of supplies in order to have their display stand out. This year’s fashion merchandising display was not created for a specific store at Old Orchard, but for the mall as a whole.
According to Duffy, this year’s display theme for Old Orchard Mall was “Light Up the Season.” Students were given free rein to create a display that fit the mall’s theme. The class created a large garden display that involved one focal Christmas tree along with three others surrounding it. The trees were covered with fake snowflakes and lights. Along with each tree, there were six mannequins dressed in winter clothes, includingsweaters and scarves. Accenting the entire display were wrapped presents and other hanging lanterns.
Rachel Palmer, a junior student in the class, said, “We made wood presents and then we put vinyl around them.” Julia Levin, another junior in the class, also explained that the class bought “Shepard hooks, lanterns, and snowflakes that the class scattered across the landscape of their display.” Junior Leah Bariff said, “We used staple guns, scissors, and hammers to nail Shepard hooks down, and we used spray paint. The staple gun was really fun. It’s not every day that you can just go nuts with a staple gun.”
These were only some of the materials the class was able to use. The class was also offered mannequins this year and used clothes from Forever 21 to dress them to the nines. According to Barrif, the class got six mannequins total, five girls and one boy. Duffy added, “Each group actually got to incorporate mannequins into the displays so each tree had a mannequin nearby. For each mannequin there were two to three girls partnered up and they were able to shop for clothes for the mannequins with a budget of $100 each.”
Bariff described what one of their mannequins looked like. “My favorite outfit had to be my group’s, which had white worn in jeans and this army green jacket with zippers that was really cool. Then we accessorized it with a black knit hat.”
The class bought the supplies they needed for the display from IKEA, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Amazon. All supplies were paid for using New Trier’s Business Department’s class budget. Old Orchard paid for the class’s mannequins, along with the trees.
However, the class did not just experience the process of building a visual merchandising display. According to Duffy, “Old Orchard came in like a client, like they would in real life, and gave us a request for a proposal. They asked us if we would like to do a design for the season that matched their overall theme. Students then brainstormed and came up with ideas through researching other stores’ holiday displays and Old Orchard’s past displays.” Duffy stressed that the class really did everything from beginning to end. “Old Orchard came, and the students put together a presentation, researched materials, came up with the cost of the products, and figured out where to order everything from,” said Duffy.
Barrif also commented, “Working in a real life setting gives you a real feeling of what a profession is like, better than sitting in a classroom and having people tell you what a profession is like.” Overall, Duffy hopes that the class learned just how labor intensive this job truly is. “The students have to go through the process of brainstorming, idea generation, the researching, getting the materials, and then the assembly of the whole thing. I think they realized how much work and effort and energy goes into something like that,” said Duffy.
Duffy hopes to continue the partnership with Old Orchard next year. “It just makes sense to have the class get that hands-on, real world experience in visual merchandising. Old Orchard is so close to the school and they have been great to work with in the class, so I see no reason not to work with them again,” said Duffy. Barrif also said that she would recommend the class to students next year. “The class is really fun for people who are interested in the fashion industry.”
The class’s project will be displayed until the beginning of January 2014 in the garden near the Gap and The North Face at Old Orchard Mall in Skokie, Illinois.