From extravagant displays to simple techniques, bedding companies are getting creative with their market spaces to entice buyers.
Manufacturers’ booths and showrooms at industry trade showsare multitaskers. They need to draw in potential buyers, create excitement about new products and give retailers ideas for displaying items in their own stores.
Then there are the practical aspects, like making sure there’s adequate space for private meetings with customers and picking a floor plan that feels neither too crowded (especially when the space is full of buyers eager to learn about those product introductions) nor too vacuous, which can make visitors feel self-conscious.
Some sleep products companies are investing heavily in their spaces — and it shows. But there are also lower-cost ways to meet your market goals, like arranging beds in more interesting ways and giving showroom visitors an opportunity to touch and feel components.
Here we look at some best practices for showroom designs.
Clarity and Conciseness in Showroom Design
Princeton, New Jersey-based Therapedic International used short, clear taglines and crisp, readable fonts on the walls of its Las Vegas showroom in January to market to visitors and draw attention to products. “Locally Made Globally Loved” served as a branding message for the licensing group, which produces mattresses in factories around the world, and gave buyers a compelling reason to purchase from the company. “Split Head Mattresses” drew visitors to that section of the showroom, where they could rest-test the popular bedding category.
Highlighting Product Features Through Effective Display
If mattresses are hard to display in a unique way, standard bed frames are even harder. While not creating the sexiest or most dramatic presentation, Cleveland-based Rize Home showed off its boxed bed frames in an effective way in its Las Vegas showroom in January, by displaying them in a variety of ways: boxed, assembled and in use. The technique gave buyers a more complete sense of the product and allowed them to touch a bedding item that can be an afterthought, even for retailers. Buns of foams and samples of other materials have the same effect when you sprinkle them throughout a showroom so buyers can better feel internal mattress components.
Establishing a Showroom Focal Point
A well-set table needs a centerpiece — and so do bedding showrooms. At a dinner party, they help to create atmosphere; in a showroom, they provide a focal point and, when used well, convey key messages to buyers. Santa Barbara, California-based Ergomotion prides itself on being a forward-thinking producer of adjustable bases. At its Las Vegas showroom during this year’s winter market, Ergomotion elevated an articulated flagship model on a well-lit platform and backed it with a simple “Designing the Future of Sleep” message. Anyone visiting the space knew exactly what Ergomotion offered.
Innovative Layouts for Mattress Displays
Their bulk and rectangular shape predispose mattresses to being displayed in long, flat rows. Practical, yes, but also dull. Bedding producer Customatic Sleep Technologies employed a spoke layout at its Las Vegas showroom in January to add a sense of movement and create a focal point in the space. The Natick, Massachusetts-based company then used the space in the center of the spokes to add much-needed height to the display and draw more attention to its CoolSense line.
Optimizing Showroom Ambiance with Lighting
The standard track lighting in most furniture market showrooms leaves something to be desired. King Koil, a bedding producer and licensing group based in Avondale, Arizona, dressed up its winter market Las Vegas showroom with sculptural, contemporary lighting fixtures that added sparkle to the space and drew attention away from the more utilitarian tracks. Lighted signage did triple duty: pulling attention toward products, adding drama and brightening the space.
Making a Statement with Daring Displays
Bedgear has become known for its extravagant, dare we say, showstopping displays and it did not disappoint during the Las Vegas Market in January where it highlighted a “The Future Is Now” theme. Irreverent signage encouraged buyers to learn more about the Farmingdale, New York-based bedding company’s M series of cooling mattresses with better airflow, improved breathability and more temperature control. A cheeky astronaut-themed display invited people to place themselves in the scene, snap a picture — and then, of course, share those photos on social media to further promote the brand. The showroom also included displays of cover textiles, fabric technologies and sheet options that demanded to be touched.
Crafting an Inviting Showroom Atmosphere
New York-based Saatva positions itself as a luxury direct-to-consumer brand and this display at its showroom in High Point in April exudes that luxe. The stylish, sophisticated accessories, nightstands and side chair give the feel of an upscale bedroom or hotel room, reinforcing the brand identity — and giving retailers an idea for how to create inviting homelike displays in their own stores.
Read more features at BedTimesMagazine.com.
