At Barnes & Noble, a Story of Fantastical Retail Growing
For readers old and young, there are perhaps two literary franchises more ubiquitous than Harry Potter and Star Wars. Up to now, the Harry Potter brand has generated almost $8 billion in book sales, while Star Wars novels have earned $1.8 billion--to say nothing of earnings from related merchandise, video games, and needless to say, the box office.
When new recognition reaches such a high degree, marketing might appear straightforward --but this is just an illusion.
Shoppers don't only want to purchase the most recent edition. They wish to go into the wizarding world or fight alongside the rebel alliance. But how is it possible to do this retail theater in-store, with no magic wand (and without imposing on other in-store merchandise screens )? The solution is retail transformation.
The advantages of a trusted team
Barnes & Noble confronted this question this past year. The Fortune 1000 bookseller wanted to make a permanent in-store destination, or"trend store," for all Harry Potter and Star Wars merchandise. To achieve this, they had an original, creative display that could catch attention, forcing shoppers to research and find new products. For help, they turned to their longtime advertising partner, Medallion Retail.
"We've got a working relationship with Barnes & Noble that goes back 25 years. We know their shops and brand thickly, which helps us implement creative signage professionally," said Therese Daves, President and Owner of Medallion Retail.
But there was one catch: Barnes & Nobles wanted to concentrate on the brands' literary components, not the cinematic ones. This implies no stills from iconic film scenes or pictures of the cast to lean on.
Taking design hints from the target market
"From the beginning, we knew that this screen could not have a commercial, Hollywood feel to it," said Nick Carozza, Director of Account Management in Medallion Retail. "But we did not see this as a roadblock. On the contrary, it was an opportunity to excel creatively. We were excited to create a one-of-a-kind new second that would resonate with the Barnes & Noble brand, and surprise and delight even the most fervent Harry Potter and Star Wars fans."
Medallion Retail's team understood the display would also have to harmonize with the present store environment. Barnes & Noble has a special, unique in-store look and feel--so the"trend store" needed to match, even as it stood out.
"Barnes & Noble is a standard-bearer from the literary world. Whenever we work together, we keep this in mind--the screen would have to feel authentic and engaging, without becoming cheesy or kitsch," said Daves.
These parameters gave the Medallion Retail group an idea. Rather than pushing in-store fixture and furniture aside, why not leverage existing components to change the distance? Barnes & Noble's bookshelves, known as bays, would take centre stage. Using corrugate, the Medallion Retail team made tall endcap signage to wrap around and alter the bay. All these endcaps were far more complicated than ordinary signage--in actuality, they functioned as a sort of gateway into another world. Using bay toppers, the theme wrapped around the fixture, continuing along with the shelving to make a really elevated experience.
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A transformative retail experience
Consider the Harry Potter screen. For this, the Medallion Retail team took inspiration from the vision of Diagon Alley, the cobblestoned shopping centre of J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World. The endcaps resemble the storefront of a noodle store or owl shop, rising up to exhibit an illustrated dormer window and the iconic Harry Potter font. Crossing the very top of the bays are corrugate toppers, illustrated to depict the angled roofs and brick chimneys of the book's setting. The aisle transports shoppers to Harry's world--no broomstick required.
"This needed to look and feel very accurate. The target market, die hard Harry Potter fans, would detect if the screens were missing details from the books. So we did our research to be certain that the last product stinks," said Michael Decker, Vice President of Marketing Strategy for Medallion Retail.
The Medallion Retail team took a similar strategy with the Star Wars screen. Only this timethey needed to get a little creative and create original illustrations to bring the literary dream world to life.Remember: B&N is all about books, movie stills wouldn't be in keeping with the literary connotations of this screen.
"We wanted to create the screen align with the Star Wars brand, but they also had to match with the identical corrugate layout," said JP Terlizzi, VP, Executive Creative Director in Medallion Retail. "So taking inspiration from spaceships, we made an engaging Star Wars environment."
Retail transformation permits these trend shops to fully immerse shoppers in a new experience--without needing the Barnes & Noble personnel to devote precious time assembling the screens. The corrugate pieces fit together easily and were inserted to the bays with just a couple of straightforward steps and pre-installed adhesive tabs. The packaging was user friendly: the whole display set-up fit in one box.
The Benefits of working with user friendly signage
"Easy delivery and assembly are always top priorities. Store staff shouldn't need to sort through multiple boxes--we do our best to maintain the shop employees in mind during design," said Daves.
The bays were essential to providing simplicity to the signage. By leveraging existing store fixtures in their layout, the Medallion Retail team successfully transformed the area into a memorable shopping destination.
Barnes & Noble's customers reacted to the screens immediately. In shops, the aisle turned into a destination for longtime fans and the newly curious equally. Even though it was originally scheduled to endure for three months, the trend store's ROI was so powerful that the merchant extended its run to 6 weeks. The durable displays held up superbly and fans kept coming back for more.
Additionally, the low-cost of the screen materials fostered Barnes & Noble's profitability. The bays made it possible to create an immersive environment without needing to invest in durable materials.
The latest chapter in a continuing story
"We care about our client's bottom line because we understand them--we know how they operate, which helps us provide them better solutions," stated Daves. "Whether it is a brand that we have collaborated with for decades or even one that is new to our firm, we dive in and immerse ourselves to truly understand the brand's and their shoppers' dynamics"
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