Decor of your Store | see paragraph 5

Dropping off suits at the cleaners. Not my favorite of tasks. Decked in Diors, I head to the cleaners. DRIVING might I add even though it is right up the street. Now Im a fan of outdoor sports, really, I bike & run daily -- But I live in a very towny town. Where housewives fill the streets with strollers and themselves - And I don't exactly feel comfortable walking through town lugging suits. Besides the point.

So I get to the cleaners and as I walk in my first two thoughts were, "Why does that picture look so familiar on the wall?" and "they still make shag carpet?". I completely noticed the trend called nothing. It literally was this quaint hometown store with decor from the local thrift shop (How do I know this? The picture I commented on above was one that I remember having when I was young -- when asking about the picture, she said it might have been mine cause she got it from the thrift shop). But after being in there for less than a minute, the lady's smiling face as the homy decor honestly made me feel like I was in my laundry room putting in a much needed load of wash.

AND TO THE POINT: In a world full of the "trendiness" trend, does it really matter? Is having the new hipster-chic adorning a store walls really make it more appealing? Does white walled simplicity of a new protien-natural-organic-love drink shop make it the smoothies better?

As an art person. There is significant meaning in art and decor. You are basically creating an atmosphere and fostering that energy into your products (ex: the outdoor/laying in a field of flowers feel of anthropologie). But can a store foster a feeling without decor? I have to say, just from the store owners smiles and from the thrift-store/makeshift decor I did have a feeling - of home. Not my home but some kind of "home". But is that a decor on its own?

It's interesting to think about what decor (or lack of) can do to a customer. I for one cherished the home-town feel of the "nothing but what you'd find in your basement utility room" . (Cause really, you don't need chic-decor to get your clothes cleaned...you just need your clothes cleaned) But Im also completely attracted to the funky-artsy decor of local boutique. Either way, decor or decorless -- I think we can all agree that no matter what you sell - a cleaning service, a hot new designer - the decor of your store (hi, that rhymes) can make a huge difference in not just selling your product, but if a customer comes back. If your target market loves hipster-chic - hipsterchic it out from door to door. Country loves? I suggest a touch of plaid. Making your consumer feel your trend (instead of just wearing it) will make your trend, trendier.