Friday
FGW Collaborates with Photographer Philip Harvey
As some of you may know, Focus Group West just relaunched our website with all-new creative direction by the FGW team and imagery from their 2009 collaboration with photographer Philip Harvey. Here are some of the great images from our site:
About Philip Harvey:
After completing his degree in literature and psychology at the University of Oregon, Philip Harvey studied photography at Brooks Institute of Photography. After graduating with honors, he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and began shooting editorial, catalog, and advertising campaigns for local and national clients; some of which include: Adobe, Kohl's, L.L. Bean, Nestle, Restoration Hardware, Better Homes and Gardens, and San Francisco Magazine.
He just completed a project for Guess? Inc in Los Angeles that is set to release at the end of February.
With Phil's great attention to detail and clean aesthetic eye, a collaboration with him was only natural. Shot in just one day in a residence designed by FGW's John Lum, the Focus Group West team pulled together the great efforts of stylist Deborah Dapalito and hair and makeup artist Veronica Sjoen.
Be sure to check out Phil's website: www.philipharvey.com
Also, follow our great models Greg Peralta and Khyrstyna from San Fancisco's Look Model Agency.
We hope this is the first of many collaborations with Phil and just the beginning of our original content for the FGW blog THE AESTHETIC OMNIVORE
March 3, 2010 - UPDATE: Be sure to check out additional coverage about Philip Harvey on our design blog - The Aesthetic Omnivore
Thursday
FGW Hits the Runway
Some of the most recent designs from the John Varvatos sunglass collection were recently seen on the runway in NYC and Milan. Check out these great images from the Spring 2010 and Fall 2010 collection:
Be sure to check out more of the John Varvatos collection: www.basecurveeyewear.com
FGW on The Optical Vision Site
Our friends over at The Optical Vision Site have once again featured news about FGW on their blog. Check out their coverage of the upcoming episode of Thomas Ferguson on the Style Network's "What I Hate About Me"!!
Monday
What I Hate About Me - Style Network
As mentioned in November, FGW's very own Thomas Ferguson taped a segment for an upcoming Style Network show. We can now divulge the details:
About the show - Women identify the ten things they dislike most about themselves, such as relationship issues, vices, physical flaws, or out-of-control finances, and then a rotating panel of experts (including boxer Laila Ali, nutritionist Rachel Beller and radio host Emily Morse) offers advice about how to makeover their lives and directly deal with these issues. (source: TVTango)
With the help of Thomas Ferguson as the "eyewear expert" and product from Dan Deutsch Optical Outlook, the segment is a guide to teach women how to find their perfect pair of shades.
Be sure to check out the episode on Janauary 30th @ 9pm
Check your local listings.
Visit www.MyStyle.com for more information about the show.
About the show - Women identify the ten things they dislike most about themselves, such as relationship issues, vices, physical flaws, or out-of-control finances, and then a rotating panel of experts (including boxer Laila Ali, nutritionist Rachel Beller and radio host Emily Morse) offers advice about how to makeover their lives and directly deal with these issues. (source: TVTango)
With the help of Thomas Ferguson as the "eyewear expert" and product from Dan Deutsch Optical Outlook, the segment is a guide to teach women how to find their perfect pair of shades.
Be sure to check out the episode on Janauary 30th @ 9pm
Check your local listings.
Visit www.MyStyle.com for more information about the show.
Happy Holidays!
All of us at Focus Group West wish you the best during this holiday season.
Here's to a safe, successful, and happy 2010.
We will be spending the next few weeks with our family and friends and will resume blog updates in January. Happy Holidays!!
Window Displays; John Lum featured on TotallyOptical.com
FIRST IMPRESSIONS DO COUNT: Window Displays
by Ana Montoya
by Ana Montoya
Drawing lots of customers into the store is something every shopkeeper wants and sunglass retailers are no exception. There’s no better way to do this than with enticing window displays. Here are some tips from a few merchandising experts on how to do this.
Various studies have shown that about one in four people who stop to look at a window display go into the store, and often buy some-thing. And something that is showcased in a window is three times more likely to be sold than one on display inside the store. The odds are with you—the better your display, the more you’ll sell.
FIGURE IT OUT
The first step is to decide on a theme or concept and stay true to it. This can be built around, for example, a season or brand, geo-metric or color idea, or announce-ment of a sale. John Lum, Architect of Focus Group West, an eyewear branding and design company, offers some advice: “You can decide to emphasize the modernity of the sunwear and follow up by using simple cubes to display it. Super-cute window displays don’t give seriousness to the shop—it’s better to err on the professional side.”
“A window should always be eye-catching and inspirational,” says Brian Wolcovitch, Director of Design of Modular Design Systems, Inc., a company that specializes in optical office and dispensary design.
Photo Courtesy of Focus Group West
LESS IS MORE
“Keep it simple,” says Wolcovitch. “Put out the best of the best of whatever product line(s) you’re promoting,” he adds. Interior de-signer Barbara Wright of Barbara Wright Design, a specialist in optometric offices, also speaks to the idea of “less is more.” “Having space around the frame helps attract attention. It shows that the item has a lot of value,” says Wright. “I like to use floating boxes with only one or two frames floating on cables that can be adjusted up or down.”
CHOOSING PROPS
To set off the sunglasses, use materials that contrast with the frames. “Shopping bags are perfect props—they have color and a brand name on them,” asserts Wright. Manufacturer posters and countercards also offer a good background. Lum suggests using intense lighting that focuses on the sunwear while Wolcovitch says that halogen lights have the best color-rendering properties.
CREATE YOUR OWN
You can either hire an interior design specialist or choose someone on your staff who has a design sensibility to match the product with the window display. Encourage her to look at great displays in your area for ideas and to also think about what kind of display would attract her to a store. In addition, sunglass manufacturers offer P-O-P materials that you can use; ask the reps to recommend what has worked for others. Wolcovitch suggests photographing each window you do so you have a portfolio of what has achieved results for you.
CHANGE IT UP
When to put up a new display depends on your success rate with the existing one—it can be weekly, monthly, or seasonally—and on how heavily trafficked your store is. What you want to do is to show off what you have to give potential buyers—a reason to come in for a look. Sunglasses are often an impulse buy, so you want to be sure and have a display that will grab your potential customers’ attention.
Lum sums it up: “If a display is carefully put together, it means that the store cares about their customers, it exudes quality.”
Check out more great articles on TotallyOptical.com
“Keep it simple,” says Wolcovitch. “Put out the best of the best of whatever product line(s) you’re promoting,” he adds. Interior de-signer Barbara Wright of Barbara Wright Design, a specialist in optometric offices, also speaks to the idea of “less is more.” “Having space around the frame helps attract attention. It shows that the item has a lot of value,” says Wright. “I like to use floating boxes with only one or two frames floating on cables that can be adjusted up or down.”
CHOOSING PROPS
To set off the sunglasses, use materials that contrast with the frames. “Shopping bags are perfect props—they have color and a brand name on them,” asserts Wright. Manufacturer posters and countercards also offer a good background. Lum suggests using intense lighting that focuses on the sunwear while Wolcovitch says that halogen lights have the best color-rendering properties.
CREATE YOUR OWN
You can either hire an interior design specialist or choose someone on your staff who has a design sensibility to match the product with the window display. Encourage her to look at great displays in your area for ideas and to also think about what kind of display would attract her to a store. In addition, sunglass manufacturers offer P-O-P materials that you can use; ask the reps to recommend what has worked for others. Wolcovitch suggests photographing each window you do so you have a portfolio of what has achieved results for you.
CHANGE IT UP
When to put up a new display depends on your success rate with the existing one—it can be weekly, monthly, or seasonally—and on how heavily trafficked your store is. What you want to do is to show off what you have to give potential buyers—a reason to come in for a look. Sunglasses are often an impulse buy, so you want to be sure and have a display that will grab your potential customers’ attention.
Lum sums it up: “If a display is carefully put together, it means that the store cares about their customers, it exudes quality.”
Check out more great articles on TotallyOptical.com
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