10 Merchandising and Design DO’s for Home Care Retail

The philosophy of designing a contemporary, successful home health care store is based on addres-sing the kind of image that today’s home medical equipment providers want to convey. Stores should communicate caring, warmth, convenience and information — all the things that customers are depending on you to provide. These attributes can be achieved through the effective use of store layout, product variety, decor and, of course, knowledgeable personnel.

Using these tools, HME dealers can successfully overcome the “identity crisis,” long associated with home health care products, that comes from consumers’ lack of awareness that these products exist — and the fact that people would rather not have to use them. The challenge for providers is to educate both the patient and the caregiver, and to merchandise home medical products in a way that demonstrates their use.

Although the term “showroom” has traditionally been used to describe HME stores, you should realize that you are really trying to create a successful retail space.

With the right design, the right displays and the right sales staff, your store will be well on its way to increased sales and success.

1. Choose Good Decor The color palette, flooring, soffits, lighting and signage all contribute to the image of your store. Certain colors, blue and green, for example, create a cool, soothing, comforting mood that is favorable for home health care. The flooring and soffit patterns also can help differentiate one department from another and highlight best-selling departments. A brightly-lit store will sell better than a dark store. In addition, as many of your customers may have poor vision, it is especially important to use signs that are easy to read to help them locate the products they want.
2. Show a Variety of Products It is important to carry a wide assortment of products to meet customer needs. If you notice that a particular item you’ve had in stock for some time has not been selling, put it on sale or on a closeout table to make room for new or more profitable items.
3. Locate Departments Correctly Put your demand departments in the interior or back of the store and your impulse items in the front or entry/exit aisles. Place related departments next to each other for additional sales. For example, put skin care near ostomy and incontinence.
4. Create Vignettes The best way to educate customers is to show them what the product does. Create a bathroom display with a tub and a commode, for example, and use the area to display bathroom safety items and show how they function.
5. Accessorize You are missing sales opportunities if all of the accessories that go with a particular item are not prominently displayed with that item. For example, wheelchairs should have cushions, baskets, trays, cup holders and all other items that you carry displayed along with the wheelchair on the sales floor.
6. Give Great Customer Service One of the best opportunities to set yourself apart from the competition is through superior customer service. Having a knowledgeable, courteous sales staff who ask questions and assess a customer’s needs will not only improve the customer’s quality of life but also your sales.
7. Stay In Stock If you are out-of-stock on one of your best-sellers for even one day, you are losing money, and possibly customers.
8. Price Everything Customers are hesitant to purchase an item if they don’t know how much it costs.
9. Move Products Periodically When customers come into your store to buy certain items, they get used to going to that area, getting what they need and then leaving the store. By moving new merchandise into their shopping route, they may see something else that they could use.
10. Make the Sales Floor Interactive Put rolling walkers on the floor so people can test them. Make sure scooter batteries are fully charged and lift chairs plugged in. Leave lift chairs in the 45-degree position so that shoppers see they are different than regular chairs (and to keep children from playing on them). People are more inclined to buy when they’re shown how products work.

Edward R. Lemar is vice president of design for Lisle, Ill.-based Gladson Store Design Group, which specializes in design services for home health care businesses and pharmacies. For more information, visit www.gladson.com, or call 630/435-2200.

Great Plains Health, Bismarck, N.D.

Some stores, like Great Plains Health Company in Bismarck, N.D., have taken these merchandising concepts to the next level. This store incorporates colorful murals, a modern media center with Internet access, unique displays and a full complement of alternative health services to attract customers to the retail format they have created. “Acupuncture,” “Massage Therapy,” “Aromatherapy,” “Mind and Body” and “Tranquility” are only a few of the departments in this modern and unique home health care store.