Barcelona-based window display designer Lisardo Mendo, who has been designing windows for 30 years offers retailers advice on making great window display lightings in a recent GE Lighting Europe blog entry. Mendo has created window displays for prestigious brands including Levi’s, Dockers, Tommy Hilfger, Nike, Montblanc and others. Below is the full GE Lighting Europe blog entry:

Lisardo Mendo standing in front of a shop. (Photo Courtesy of Lisadro Mendo)

"You never get a second chance to make a first impression". For this reason, shop window displays have become an essential tool for catching the attention of potential customers. Here are some recommendations that can make all the difference.

The famous French fashion designer, Coco CHANEL used to say "you never get a second chance to make a first impression". For this reason, shop window displays have become an essential tool for catching the attention of potential customers. Both technically and artistically, 50% of a shop window display's success depends on its lighting. Therefore, this Christmas season when the competition for sales is so great, here are some recommendations that can make all the difference.

Plan a space where the lighting is flexible.

Most stores do not take the lighting into account when designing the spaces. Fixed lighting does not allow any room for working with lighting effects and often homogeneous ceiling lighting is overused. It is very important to design a shop window display where the spotlights are mobile and allow both the type of light and its direction to be adapted in terms of which area is to be emphasised.

Analyze your setting

Before designing the shop window display, analyse your setting: the light from the street, the neighbouring shop window displays, what customers will see at eye level. All of these elements will enable you to catch the customer's attention in seconds. If you are in a street where your competitors are using too much light, you should play with shadows and darkness. Surprise is an essential element.

Show your best product

Do not dazzle your customers. At times trying to spotlight too many elements in a shop window display leads to over lighting. Try not to generate confusion and spotlight a few things, showing your best product. Any spotlight pointing towards the outside will direct light into potential customers' eyes, causing discomfort.

Use light to create dramatic effects

A shop window must thrill and transmit feelings. Light is the perfect ally for designing dramatic effects. A horizontal light or side lighting can cause effects in the shop window that make customers believe that it is much bigger or that it has much greater depth. The master of shadows is undeniably Karou Mende, the prestigious Japanese lighting designer: For Mende, the eyes do not see light, but rather they see different intensities of shadow, therefore the light must be adapted to each material and each space to experience different feelings.

Combine technologies

At present efficient lights using any technology may be found. It is true that LED lighting has minimum energy consumption, but there are also extremely cost effective CMH solutions on the market. Combining technologies allows us to create warmer or colder settings for specific applications or products.

To attract attention and differentiate the window from our rivals' window displays, it is essential to surprise and to thrill. If we do not manage this, the window becomes just another one amongst the hundreds that we are bombarded with at this time of year.