Branded Environments Design: Retail store design approaches in luxury brands
Design of retail stores, especially in the luxury segment, that rely heavily on communicating their brand values, their purpose and ethics, are going through a transformative phase. They are adapting and aligning to the worldviews of their new age target audiences that are increasingly demanding authenticity and responsibility while showcasing individuality. The focus is shifting from just appearing rare and exclusive to offering more meaningful associations and memories. This ongoing global shift is being recognized by the marketing and design experts, however, a thorough study and analysis of the evolving design approaches is required to enable designers with a toolkit to address the emerging design challenges.
The design approaches need to be analyzed from various perspectives. The study is required to look into aspects of materials and technology being adopted as well as storytelling and visual merchandizing aspects. This will have to be examined against the demographic and cultural context as the concept of luxury can vary significantly and be interpreted differently in different contexts. Indian luxury market is projected to grow
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significantly in coming years with international brands entering Indian market as well as Indian origin brands growing in the luxury segment, especially in the lifestyle category. The proposed study is hence aimed to provide insights on the emerging design approaches in Indian context on luxury lifestyle brands.
The study will be conducted by looking into various secondary data on the luxury brands and interviews of their projected target audiences as well as designers involved in retail store design. Methodology of case studies will be developed on the basis of the initial research. The primary aim will be to document various design approaches being practiced, which will serve as ready reference for practicing designers and strategists.
