Deck 16: Store Layout, Design, and Visual Merchandising

Question 1

Star Tax Services opens many offices around the country to accommodate the tax season. The company has the ability to piece together new offices, expand existing offices, or alter the design for a unique space in a matter of hours. Which of the following design considerations related to controlling costs can be seen in this example?

A) Inventory shrinkage
B) Flexibility
C) Utilitarian benefits
D) Atmospherics
E) Vertical merchandising

Answer 1

B
A design consideration related to controlling cost is flexibility. As the merchandise mix changes, so must the space allocated to merchandise categories and the layout of the store. Thus, store designers attempt to design stores with maximum flexibility.

Question 2

Impulse products are products that are purchased without prior plans, like fragrances and cosmetics in department stores and magazines in supermarkets.

Answer 2

True
Impulse products, or products that are purchased without planning, such as fragrances and cosmetics in department stores and magazines in supermarkets, are almost always located near the front of the store, where they're seen by everyone and may actually draw people into the store.

Question 3

Stores design provides hedonic benefits by enabling customers to locate and purchase products in an efficient and timely manner with minimum hassle.

Answer 3

False
Store design provides hedonic benefits by offering customers an entertaining and enjoyable shopping experience. They then want to spend more time in the store or on the website because the visit itself is rewarding.

Question 4

Which of the following is not an objective for store design?

A) Implement the retailer's strategy.
B) Build loyalty by providing a rewarding shopping experience.
C) Increase sales on a visit.
D) Meet legal requirements.
E) Cut costs.

Question 5

The two benefits customers seek when shopping are customer satisfaction and customer service.

Question 6

Apparel retailers mostly utilize gondola fixtures.

Question 7

Atmospherics refers to the design of an environment via visual communications, lighting, colors, music, and scent to stimulate customers' perceptual and emotional responses that affect their purchase behavior.

Question 8

Retailers are required to provide all of the following for disabled customers except

A) accessible dressing rooms.
B) accessible checkout aisles.
C) fully accessible bathrooms.
D) a lower checkout station.
E) a courtesy discount.

Question 9

A retailer considering LED lighting versus florescent lighting, solar power versus standard electricity, and local grasses versus typical grasses for landscaping would mostly be considering ________ as the objective for store design.

A) legal requirements
B) retail strategy
C) controlling costs
D) flexibility
E) buying behavior

Question 10

The best place for store planners to position a "destination" department or item is the front right-hand side of the store.

Question 11

Tonnage merchandising is a display technique in which large quantities of merchandise are displayed together.

Question 12

Why is it important for stores to be designed with flexibility in mind?

A) It is less expensive for retailers to build several different types of flexible fixtures than to build one inflexible fixture.
B) Retailing is a dynamic business, and retailers need to keep changing the merchandise mix offered.
C) Customers find it hard to locate merchandise if fixtures are rigid.
D) Department managers never know what to expect from the planner's allocations and require the ability to display more merchandise at a moment's notice.
E) Environmental legalities require stores to have flexible designs to reduce waste.

Question 13

The grid layout is well suited for customers who are primarily interested in the hedonic benefits offered by a store.

Question 14

The primary objective of a store design is in implementing the retailer's strategy.

Question 15

The store design that provides a major aisle to facilitate customer traffic with access to the store's multiple entrances is called the racetrack layout.

Question 16

The ________ is the phenomenon that occurs when a store is extremely cramped.

A) closing time effect
B) bystander effect
C) butt-brush effect
D) boomerang effect
E) conspicuous consumption effect

Question 17

Store design provides ________ by offering customers an entertaining and enjoyable shopping experience.

A) altruistic experiences
B) emotional stability
C) tonnage merchandise
D) hedonic benefits
E) utilitarian benefits

Question 18

The Americans with Disabilities Act

A) states that stores built before 1990 must be fully accessible for the disabled.
B) states that it is illegal to discriminate in hiring and termination decisions concerning people between the ages of 40 and 70.
C) prohibits unequal pay for men and women who perform equal work or work of comparable worth.
D) protects people with disabilities from discrimination in employment, transportation, public accommodations, telecommunications, and the activities of government.

Question 19

The trade-off between ease of finding merchandise and providing a varied and interesting layout is determined by

A) how often there is a shipment from the distribution center.
B) the simplicity of the merchandise.
C) well-trained, design-oriented managers.
D) the needs of the customers shopping at the store.
E) legal requirements.

Question 20

Since a store design cannot achieve all objectives, managers need to make trade-offs among them. Which of the following does not describes such trade-offs?

A) A supermarket's traditional design can efficiently store and display a lot of merchandise with long rows of floor-to-ceiling racks; however, this design is not good for a pleasant shopping experience.
B) Retailers often make trade-offs between stimulating impulse purchases and making it easy to buy products.
C) The trade-off between the ease of finding merchandise and providing an interesting shopping experience is determined by the customer's shopping needs.
D) Specialty store retailers encourage the ease of finding merchandise rather than exploration.
E) Giving customers adequate space in which to shop has to be balanced with the use of scarce resource for merchandise.

Question 21

Which of the following retailers is likely to use a grid store layout?

A) Essentials Supermarket
B) Janet's Boutique
C) Radiant Shoe Store
D) Linda's Beauty Salon
E) Zen's Coffee Shop

Question 22

Which of the following is not an element considered in the design of a store?

A) Layout
B) Signage
C) Graphics
D) Attention getting feature areas
E) Recruitment

Question 23

William is always looking for a bargain and frequently visits the meat department to see the markdowns for meat dated to be sold that day. He finds a signage stating a half-price sale. This signage is an example of a

A) promotional signage.
B) category signage.
C) locational signage.
D) point-of-sale signage.
E) lifestyle signage.

Question 24

Willa is the manager of a pet store and wants to display an advertisement for dog food on sale in the store window. What type of signage should she use?

A) Promotional signage
B) Category signage
C) Locational signage
D) Point-of-sale signage
E) Lifestyle signage

Question 25

Which of the following retail stores is most likely to have a racetrack layout?

A) Star Tax Service
B) Essential supermarket
C) Ted's department store
D) Claire's Boutique
E) Linda's Beauty Salon

Question 26

Which of the following statements is True about the racetrack layout?

A) It is also called the free-form layout.
B) It cannot be used in department stores because it makes large stores look cluttered.
C) It encourages unplanned purchasing.
D) It is not as aesthetically pleasing as the grid layout.
E) It is very cost-efficient.

Question 27

Reese designed his gift shop specializing in teen room decoration in a free-form layout. He used music, lighting, and color to suit the teen tastes. What could Reese add to help customers locate specific products and departments?

A) Discounts
B) Signage
C) Longer hours
D) Frequent sales
E) Advertisement in local teen hangouts

Question 28

The ________ arranges fixtures and aisles asymmetrically.

A) racetrack layout
B) gondola layout
C) grid layout
D) loop layout
E) free-form layout

Question 29

Which of the following store designs has a point-of-sale terminal in each department?

A) Racetrack layout
B) Gondola layout
C) Grid layout
D) Boutique layout
E) Horsetrack layout

Question 30

When Raisa walked into the local convenience store, she saw it had parallel aisles with shelves on either side. Immediately, she knew the retailer had used a ________ as a design for its store.

A) racetrack layout
B) grid layout
C) loop
D) free-form layout
E) boutique layout

Question 31

Which of the following statements about a grid store layout is not True?

A) The amount of merchandise on the floor with a grid layout can be significantly greater than with other types of layouts.
B) The grid layout is suitable for customers with hedonic needs.
C) There is little wasted space with a grid layout.
D) The grid layout is very cost-efficient.
E) The grid layout satisfies utilitarian needs of customers.

Question 32

A racetrack layout is also called a

A) loop layout.
B) fixture layout.
C) boutique layout.
D) gondola layout.
E) free-form layout.

Question 33

What is the advantage of the free-form layout to the consumer?

A) Customers are exposed to a large quantity of merchandise.
B) Customers can easily find merchandise in the store with this type of layout.
C) Customers feel they are in an intimate and relaxed environment and are more likely to buy.
D) The layout guides the customer through the store.
E) Customers can purchase merchandise at a lower price in this type of layout.

Question 34

Which of the following store designs contains parallel aisles with merchandise on shelves on both sides of the aisles?

A) Boutique layout
B) Free-form layout
C) Loop
D) Racetrack
E) Grid layout

Question 35

Which store layout is used primarily by supermarkets and full-line discount stores?

A) Race track layout
B) Grid layout
C) Free form layout
D) Boutique layout
E) Gondola layout

Question 36

Which of the following is a disadvantage to the grid layout?

A) It is costly to design.
B) Shrinkage is more likely to occur.
C) Customers typically aren't exposed to merchandise in the center store.
D) Wide aisles utilize expensive merchandise space.
E) Products are difficult for customers to find.

Question 37

Which of the following statements does not describes the features of a grid layout?

A) It provides a visually exciting design.
B) It is well suited for shopping trips in which customers need to move throughout the entire store and quickly locate products they want to buy.
C) It is well suited for grocery retailers.
D) It is cost efficient.
E) It efficiently utilizes vertical space.

Question 38

Which of the following best describes the free-form layout?

A) It is very cost-efficient.
B) It uses repetitive, symmetrical patterns.
C) It enhances the utility of a store's selling space by its tight arrangements.
D) It is the least aesthetically pleasing of all the store layouts.
E) It is an aesthetically pleasing design and displays limited merchandise.

Question 39

Grid store layouts

A) encourage impulse purchasing.
B) are cost-efficient.
C) are also called loop layouts.
D) are one of the most aesthetically pleasing designs.
E) are used by specialty stores.

Question 40

The free-form layout is also known as the

A) specialty layout.
B) boutique layout.
C) freedom layout.
D) loop layout.
E) format layout.

Question 41

In Sid's Surf Shop, there is a 10-foot-long surf board on legs with swimwear on it near the entrance to the department where surfing merchandise is sold. The surfboard attracts many customers into that department. This is an example of a(n)

A) bulk fixture.
B) gondola display.
C) freestanding display.
D) cash wrap.
E) end cap.

Question 42

When Joe visited Decors, he was surprised to see tea cups displayed up a wall almost to the ceiling. The wall is an example of a

A) feature area.
B) digital signage.
C) planogram.
D) bulk fixture.
E) point-of-purchase.

Question 43

Bonnie wanted to buy a wreath for her home for Christmas. She found the wreaths at the back of the local department store with other holiday cards, candy, and decorations. This special section at the store is an example of a

A) bulk fixture.
B) freestanding fixture.
C) gondola display.
D) feature fixture.
E) promotional area.

Question 44

While shopping in the electronics department in Giantz, Sasha noticed an advertisement about lay-away on the Giantz network broadcasted on a nearby television. Therefore, the store is using ________ to deliver visual content.

A) digital imagery
B) digital signage
C) point-of-sale signage
D) sampling
E) corporate display advertising

Question 45

________ refers to products that customers decided to buy before entering the store.

A) Impulse merchandise
B) Demand/destination merchandise
C) Special merchandise
D) Complementary merchandise
E) Promotion merchandise

Question 46

Donna entered Bob's department store and went directly to the children's apparel department. Therefore, the merchandise to be bought by Donna in the children's department is referred to as

A) promotional merchandise.
B) impulse merchandise.
C) special merchandise.
D) destination merchandise.
E) complementary merchandise.

Question 47

Which of the following is not recommended as a merchandise location practice?

A) Retailers should strategically place impulse and demand/destination merchandise throughout the store, so they can increase the chances that a customer will shop the entire store and focus on the merchandise with a high GMROI.
B) Retailers should place merchandise with a high GMROI at or close to the store entrance to attract customers' attentions and sell fast.
C) Retailers should display some of their most compelling merchandise in the strike zone to create a desirable first impression of the store.
D) Retailers should display high GMROI products at the right-hand side of the store.
E) A retailer should strategically cluster complementary products together to facilitate multiple purchases.

Question 48

Which of the following does not describe an end cap?

A) They are displays located at the end of an aisle.
B) They have high visibility.
C) Product sales increase dramatically when merchandise is featured on an end cap.
D) Retailers use end caps for higher-margin, impulse, and sale merchandise.
E) They are most often used with a free-form layout.

Question 49

End caps are used for

A) higher-margin, impulse, and sale merchandise.
B) displaying merchandise that is being promoted.
C) housing mannequins to display apparel.
D) supporting freestanding displays that attract customers.
E) supporting shelves and racks to be mounted on walls.

Question 50

Apparel retailers that display most of their merchandise on freestanding fixtures typically measure space productivity in terms of

A) sales per linear foot.
B) sales per square foot.
C) inventory turnover.
D) retained earnings.
E) asset turnover.

Question 51

As Garry was waiting to pay for a bottle of aspirin at a pharmacy, he added a copy of Us Weekly, a Snickers bar, and a pack of cheese crackers to his purchases. The area where Garry made his Us Weekly and Snickers selections is called a(n)

A) end cap.
B) cash wrap.
C) gondola display.
D) promotional area.
E) freestanding fixture.

Question 52

At the home improvement store Home Fits, there is an area at the back that has one of three categories of merchandise throughout the year. From January through March, the area has organization and garage storage merchandise; from April through September, it has lawn, garden, and patio merchandise; and from October through December, it has Christmas merchandise. This special section at the store is an example of a(n)

A) consumer motivator.
B) freestanding fixture.
C) gondola display.
D) impulse product center.
E) promotional area.

Question 53

________ is a measure of space productivity used by retailers.

A) Price lining
B) Sales per square foot
C) Inventory turnover
D) Tonnage merchandising
E) Asset turnover

Question 54

Which of the following locations is the most appropriate to place impulse products?

A) Near the front of the store
B) Center aisles
C) Left-hand size of the store
D) Right-hand side of the store
E) Strike zone

Question 55

A(n) ________ creates the customer's first impression of the store's offering and is the area where retailers place their most compelling merchandise.

A) strike zone
B) decompression zone
C) end cap
D) planogram
E) gondola

Question 56

Which of the following has the least consideration when a retailer is deciding how much floor or shelf space to allocate to merchandise categories and brands?

A) The productivity of the allocated space
B) The impact on overall store sales
C) The display needs for the merchandise
D) The merchandise's inventory turnover
E) The color of the merchandise

Question 57

Which of the following statements on the location of departments within retail department and discount stores is True?

A) Most customers are drawn into the center of a store by the use of a free-form design.
B) In a multilevel store, a space's value increases the farther it is from the entry-level floor.
C) Impulse products are mostly located at the back of the store.
D) Because many customers turn left when entering a store, the left side is especially desirable floor space.
E) The best locations on any floor are those that are closest to the store's entrances, main aisles, escalators, and elevators.

Question 58

Which of the following does not describe appropriate space management?

A) Merchandise categories with high GMROI merit more space than merchandise categories with lower GMROI do.
B) Less space is allocated to fast-selling merchandise to allow more shelf space to encourage sales of slower-moving items.
C) A retailer overallocates space to categories purchased by their platinum customers, the customers with the highest lifetime value.
D) A retailer overallocates space to some low-productivity categories such as milk because an extensive assortment in these categories attracts customers to the store and positively affects the sales of categories with higher GMROIs.
E) High turnover items need to be restocked more frequently to avoid stockouts.

Question 59

Digital signage is visual content that is displayed on a monitor delivering video clips or price of merchandise. Which of the following is not a benefit of digital signage?

A) The enhancement of the store environment
B) The displays of complex graphics and videos
C) The atmosphere it provides
D) The time to message hurdle
E) The cost of the display and devices

Question 60

Which of the following locations in a store is the most appropriate to place high-margin products?

A) The store entrance
B) Center aisles
C) End caps
D) Right-hand side
E) Left-hand side

Question 61

________ is used to present products when retailers offer a limited number of predetermined price points within a product classification category.

A) Flexible pricing
B) Competitive pricing
C) Price presentation
D) Price lining
E) Vertical merchandising

Question 62

________ is in the middle of each aisle of a grid layout where less compelling or exciting products are displayed.

A) Tonnage merchandising
B) Vertical merchandising
C) Mass marketing
D) Product visibility
E) The center store

Question 63

Which of the following statements about the use of scent to change or augment the atmospherics in a store is True?

A) The methods used to introduce scent into a store are relatively expensive.
B) Scents can improve customers' subjective shopping experience.
C) The age of the target market does not affect the way scents are received and decoded.
D) There are no ethnic differences in the way scents are received and decoded.
E) Scents can make customers think they spent a longer time in a store.

Question 64

Dana is planning on renovating her kitchen. When she went into a home improvement store, she admired the various model kitchens the store had set up. Each kitchen used a different style and color scheme and allowed Dana to consider the possible themes she could use. Which merchandise presentation technique is the store utilizing?

A) Store-oriented presentation
B) Vertical merchandising
C) Idea-oriented presentation
D) Tonnage merchandizing
E) Item and size presentation

Question 65

A diagram that shows how and where specific products should be placed on retail shelves or displays to increase customer purchases is called a(n)

A) hologram.
B) allocation plan.
C) placement plan.
D) planogram.
E) assortment plan.

Question 66

On the basis of the analysis of historical sales, gross margins, turnover, the sizes of product packaging for each SKU, and the retailer's design criteria, a software can determine the optimal shelf space and location for each SKU. This describes the process of creating an effective

A) merchandise plan.
B) allocation plan.
C) placement plan.
D) planogram.
E) assortment plan.

Question 67

Which colors would be best suited to produce emotional, vibrant, hot, and active responses from customers?

A) Blue and green tones
B) All the colors of the rainbow
C) White, eggshell, ecru, and other white hues
D) Red, gold, and yellow tones
E) Pink, red, and magenta tones

Question 68

A(n) ________ has two crossbars that sit perpendicularly on a pedestal.

A) end cap
B) rounder
C) straight rack
D) feature fixture
E) gondola

Question 69

In which of the following stores would you be most likely to encounter a rounder as a common fixture?

A) Penny's, an off-price clothing retailer
B) Sherlock, a store for mystery-book lovers
C) The Beer House, a store that sells everything you need to brew your own beer
D) Simon's drugstores
E) Rose Antique Mall

Question 70

In which of the following stores would you be most likely to encounter a straight rack?

A) Fresh Ones, a florist
B) Ted's department store
C) Dream Toys
D) Dailies supermarkets
E) Jenny's Hair Salon

Question 71

Which of the following statements is True of lighting when creating an appealing store atmosphere?

A) It captures a mood or feeling that enhances the store's image.
B) Good lighting is limited to illumination of a store's space.
C) A store's lighting generally does not have an impact on customers.
D) Focusing lights on the store's architecture strategically draws customers through the store.
E) All of these.

Question 72

By using ________, stores can effectively organize merchandise to follow the eye's natural movement.

A) vertical merchandising
B) diagonal organization
C) purchase visibility
D) rounder displays
E) a page format

Question 73

When Lena went to buy walking shorts, she first noticed the store had three racks of shorts. Then, she noticed all the shorts on one rack were $14.99, all the shorts on the second rack were priced at $19.99, and all the shorts on the third rack were priced at $24.99. What type of merchandise presentation did Lena see?

A) Price lining
B) Idea-oriented presentation
C) Tonnage merchandising
D) Frontal presentation
E) Gondola presentation

Question 74

Sam's merchandise is sold in large quantities and stacked high on metal shelving. This merchandising gives the customer a message of low prices. Which of the following merchandising techniques is Sam's using?

A) Tonnage merchandising
B) Price lining
C) Color presentation
D) Frontage presentation
E) Atmospherics

Question 75

What are the basic shopping goals of a customer that depend on a store's environment?

A) Task completion and recreation
B) Sale shopping and bargain hunting
C) Customer satisfaction and customer service
D) Bulk purchasing and bulk breaking
E) Entertainment and exercise

Question 76

________ refers to the design of an environment by stimulation of the five senses.

A) Atmospherics
B) Ecoscaping
C) Terraforming
D) Arboriculture
E) Showrooming

Question 77

Customers shopping in a scented store

A) feel no significance difference in the shopping experience.
B) tend to spend less time in the store.
C) think they spent less time in shopping.
D) feel they wait a long time for checking out.
E) always make impulsive purchases.

Question 78

In which of the following stores would you be most likely to encounter a four-way fixture?

A) Dazzle, a fashion apparel store
B) Pet Mall, a pet store
C) Farm Foods, an organic produce store
D) Harris Music Store, retailer of musical instruments
E) Globes, a retailer of antique atlases, maps, and globes

Question 79

As you enter Yesteryear, a vintage clothing boutique, you're aware of how inviting the store is for browsers. The entire lighting is from floor and table lamps. The music plays Benny Goodman serenades, and the air smells like powder. The walls are covered in vintage floral wallpaper. This design that stimulates customers' senses is called

A) ecoscaping.
B) terraforming.
C) arboriculture.
D) atmospherics.
E) showrooming.

Question 80

________ is a display technique in which large quantities of merchandise are displayed together.

A) Price lining
B) Merchandise highlighting
C) Frontal presentation
D) Tonnage merchandising
E) Style/item presentation