Chapter
Part One Fighting the war at retail
01 Getting ready for battle
Visual merchandisers vs field visual merchandisers
The role of merchandising service organizations (MSOs)
Defining a field visual merchandising strategy
02 Skill set of your management team
Communicating in the field
Visual merchandising directives
Visual retailing software
Brainstorming and mind-mapping techniques
Real-world situation No 1
Tricks of the trade: ‘Keeping a bag of tricks’
03 Mastering the fundamentals of warfare
Merchandise presentations and visual merchandising skills
Developing a high taste level
Mannequin styling and clothing coordination
Mixing patterns in clothing coordination
Effects of colour in visual merchandising
Tricks of the trade: ‘From concept to installation’
Part Two Planning and initiating your battle strategy
04 Components of your strategy
The World Alliance for Retail Excellence and Standards (www.worldalliance-retail.org)
Structure of a merchandising service organization
Defining objectives and standards
Analysing the battlefield
Defining store visit requirements
Tricks of the trade: ‘How long will it take?’
Developing your strategy proposal
Request for proposal (RFP)
Tricks of the trade: ‘You gotta have options’
Training in the field merchandising environment
Product features and benefits
Merchandising standards manual
Understanding store visit guidelines
Understanding and using the task duration estimate
Understanding merchandising directives and planograms
Implementing and evaluating the training plan
Tricks of the trade: ‘The game of mix and match’
07 Planning your combat strategy
Defining retailer requirements
Developing the strategic plan
Real-world situation No 2
Tricks of the trade: ‘What’s your standard?’
Part Three Executing the strategy
08 Communicating and monitoring the strategic plan
Distribution of the strategic plan timeline
Communication with sponsors
Communicating with your MSO
Merchandising service reports
Monitoring field visual merchandisers’ performance
Real-world situation No 3
Tricks of the trade: Where’s Waldo?
09 Planning and executing tactics and special projects
Field visual merchandising tactics
Tricks of the trade: ‘The flawless floor set’
References and further reading
Field Visual Merchandising Strategy
：Developing a National In-store Strategy Using a Merchandising Service Organization
Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.
