Montclair Business Owners: Changing Window Displays and Adding Plants helps!!

I have a plea to business owners along the Bloomfield Corridor to improve business immediately.

Changing your window displays on a more frequent basis, adding color and adding low interior lighting in the evening will improve your business!

Stale window displays mean your business will be overlooked by customers who have seen the same thing for along period of time, even if you're inventory has changed inside. While we struggle to get through the economic downturn, I am offering ideas that will have little cost to each business owner.

Suggestions:
1) Change window displays at least once a month, even if you rearrange what you already have (cost $0)

2) ADD COLOR to your windows! Its spring time and people love to see color (cost $0)

3) Add flowing fabric backgrounds, especially in corners, to add a feeling of a filled window. Its a psychological metaphor for having a "full shop". (cost $100 max, depending on qualify of fabric and amount)

4) If you can't afford adding fabric, try colored tissue paper to use as a base to place your products on. (cost $5)

5) Add a planter with hardy and colorful plants. Cheap plastic planters are not suggested. Spend the extra money to buy something that will look classy and last for several years. Ceramic, cedar and metal planters are highly suggested. Your business represents the Bloomfield Corridor collectively - upgrade your planters to upgrade your business. (Cost $200 -500, including planter box and plants)

Overfilling a planter looks terrific: adding both plants the hang downward and grow upward in the same planter add visual excitement.

If you happen to add fragrant flowers, your business will do better. Sense of smell is the most powerful memory humans have. People will always remember that walking into your store "smelled good". Try adding Lavender plants, hyacinths, jasmine, mint, Sage, gardenias, etc.)

Check out this website for some great ideas: The Helpful Gardener

Ideally, adding a bench with planters on either side of the bench will dramatically help your business, and will invite people to stay longer.

6) Statically, businesses on the North side of any street will automatically do better than businesses on the south side of the street. The reason is because the sun shines on them longer throughout the day, making them more visible.

For instance, Hip Chic (at the corner of Park and Bloomfield) is on the North Side of the Street. Dunkin Donuts is on the South Side of the street

Consider this before you select plants for your planter. If you are on the south side, select plants that will do well with little sunlight. If your business is on the North, select hardy plants that can withstand long periods of sunlight.

7) Add low interior lighting at night so people can see what your store offers after they're done eating dinner at a local restaurant. The best example of this is Creative Endeavors, at 575 Bloomfield Avenue. 

8) Visual aesthetics are proven to calm traffic, which means people driving by will spend more time seeing your business. It also improves safety along Bloomfield Avenue.

Let make Bloomfield Avenue BLOOM this spring!