Mannequins. How to use them for the greatest benefit for the brand?

Attractive product presentation is a way to get customer attention. In an industry like fashion, visualizing the benefits of buying product is a key issue. For this purpose you can use mannequins. We suggest you what issues are worth to consider before designing your exposure with the participation of mannequins.

As we previously wrote on the Ergo Store blog, if your eyes are the windows of your soul, then shop windows are the eyes of our store. The shop window is a perfect space for telling stories. People and situations create stories. Living shop windows might be impressive, but of course extremely expensive and arranged only for special occasions. In return, suggestive involvement of the human imagination might be sufficient. With the assistance of visual merchandising we can create an attractive story in the shop window that will encourage you to enter inside. Mannequins, available in many shapes and sizes today, will play a key part in that story.

Example? By promoting the summer collection of beachwear, we want to emphasize the joy of holiday and good weather. Sand, sunbathing, background presenting immensity of the sea, beach towels are the easiest way for holiday arrangement of a shop window. But it will not be complete without mannequins presenting summer creations. What questions should be answered before choosing them for exhibition?

• Men’s, women’s or children’s clothing? This is a seemingly obvious issue, but we cannot forget who is the target group of our collection and whose attention our exposure should attract.

• Is the age of the target group important for us? If so, you should consider what our exposure should be: muted or more unconventional?

• Classic white or contemporary black and chrome? The color of the mannequins can be important regarding the color and the character of the clothes

• Do we need character mannequins or embossed mannequins? Will it be enough to have torso, head, legs or better to show the whole silhouette?

• Mat or flash? Metal, plastic or fiberglass? Let’s remember that the material from which the mannequin is made can emphasize the character of our collection.

• Do we want to revive the heads of the mannequins by giving them facial features or wigs, or do we choose mannequins without underlined features or without a head?

You should also consider the dynamics and layout of the presentation (whether the mannequins are supposed to sit, stand, or give the impression of movement). And most importantly: the mannequins must exactly match the size of the presented clothes – they just have to fit perfectly.

Sometimes incomplete mannequins are enough. Traditionally, torsos and extruded mannequins are used for presentation of sportswear. For the presentation of pantyhose or stockings, the legs and thighs are the best to use and jewelery can be presented on the palm. The convention can be broken, but it is always a good idea to consult it with a visual merchandising expert.