Merchandise Display and Visual Merchandising
What the exam tests
You will be asked to arrange a fixture, read a planogram, place price tags and spot display faults. Marks go to candidates who can justify placement by customer eye-level and margin, not by decoration.
Objectives and principles
Display must attract attention, inform, inspire and make the product easy to pick up. Apply balance (visual weight on both sides), contrast (colour blocking), repetition and rhythm (repeating a colour block along a shelf), proportion, harmony and a single focal point.
Fixtures and tools
Gondola (double-sided shelving), end cap (aisle-end display, high impulse), four-way and straight racks for apparel, dump bins for promotions, shelf talkers, wobblers, hang tags, price strips, mannequins.
Placement rules
- Planogram - a diagram fixing each SKU to a shelf position; follow it so stock matches the layout.
- Eye level (roughly 130–160 cm) holds high-margin and impulse lines; the bottom shelf holds bulky or low-margin items, and the top shelf holds light, low-weight items.
- Facing up, front-facing, colour and size blocked, no gaps. Fill from the back so the oldest stock sells first.
- Vertical blocking of a brand keeps the shopper's eye from moving sideways to a competitor.
- Never block aisles, fire exits, extinguishers or safety signage; respect stack limits.
Worked example
A four-shelf personal-care gondola. Reason: shelf 3 (eye level) gets the high-margin face wash and serum; shelf 2 gets shampoo and body lotion (considered purchase); shelf 1 gets large value packs; shelf 4 (floor level) gets bulk refill packs and children's items, which attract attention at child height.
Traps that cost marks
Price tag not matching the shelf position; overfilling so stock hides the brand name; blocking the fire exit for a festival display; designing a pretty window with no price or product information.