What to Know About Sales Floor Allocation
When it comes to having an effective retail space, planning and allocation in a retail space is the key to maximizing sales productivity and increasing traffic flow.
However, creating an effective space plan for your retail floor isn’t just placing products by category, size and type. In a retail setting, a space plan is a combination of strategically planned techniques and product layouts that lead to an increase in customer retention. The right space plan will also guide customers more easily around the store through product placement, floor plans and constructive layouts.
One often overlooked aspect is Sales Floor Allocation—the proportion of space dedicated to each category. Traditionally, this is influenced by inventory volume and spatial limitations. But what if we approached it differently?
The amount of space that each category of your store takes over is often driven by the amount of inventory that we have and space constraints. But let’s think of a new idea…
Instead of basing allocation solely on inventory, what if we prioritized each category based on its sales productivity?
In a perfect world, sales productivity and inventory would be aligned. However, retailers across all industries understand the challenge of deciding when to focus on sales and when to increase inventory. To optimize your retail space, it's always wise to consider the productivity of each area, similar to how we prioritize our time in business activities.
So, where should you start? How can you create a space plan with sales productivity in mind? How can you determine what works best for your store layout and customer patterns?
Thankfully, you don’t have to navigate this process alone! Our visual merchandising experts have developed DIY Tools specifically designed to help retailers at all levels evaluate and optimize their floor plans. Our Sales Floor Allocation tool includes a calculator to assess the current status of each category’s space allocation, comparing it to sales results and inventory. A decision matrix will guide you on actionable steps, and a comprehensive presentation will walk you through the entire process.
With years of experience in visual merchandising and business ownership, we know that practice makes perfect. As you implement more strategies and skills, they become second nature, requiring less time while delivering better results.
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