Becoming a window display designer can be a very rewarding career, it's an opportunity to start your own business, it will allow you to use your creative skills as well as your organizational, networking, business and sales skills. You are in control of your destiny which gives freedom a regular 9-5 will not.

However, there is a lot to consider, for example, when starting out you won't have any customers so you will need to come up with some creative prospecting ideas, you will need a full arsenal of tactics from networking to beating the pavement at malls to observing ads in magazines and finding new business listings on the internet, also checking with convention centers to find out what shows are coming up, sometimes you can find plenty of work there because a lot of the exhibitors may come from out of town and would love to have someone there to setup exhibits before they arrive. You must master how to find business and find out who the decision makers are to setup appointments by phone or in person to discuss your ideas.

Remember  from our last blog we discussed which mannequins are best for window displays, it explained how important it is to understand what inventory you are trying to move and how it will determine what size and type of mannequin would be best to move the inventory in stock.

I have found that many times the stores I visited had sold out of the inventory displayed or had very little in stock and the windows and floor mannequins were still displaying this stuff. This knowledge will give you a good position to push for a new window display and close the sale.

I always offer to do the work/labor for free in exchange for referrals because if I can get the things I need for the displays at a good price, I can make a profit on the items needed to do the windows displays and include an additional 10% for profit, of course you will not show your invoices to the customer, you will make an invoice for your customer reflecting the overall cost which will include all materials needed plus your profit. offering free setup is attractive to most store owners as well as store appointed display artist, because they can always use a hand with setting up displays and coming up with ideas, plus they will recommend you to their friends and contacts once they have spent time with you and get to know you.

When I started I didn't have knowledge of where to get most of the things I needed to make my ideas a reality, basic things like lighting, mannequins, fabrics, and so on, this is important because if you come up with a great concept and the cost is too high you won't have any room for a profit to compensate you for your time, make sure to shop for some of your items at thrift shops like Goodwill and Salvation Army, look  for used chairs kiddie pools electrical cords lamps and tables these things can come in handy as props and you can make a good profit on you displays. 

Below I have put some things you must consider in the right order to insure not shooting yourself in the foot, I can't cover everything but I can give you some pointers that will get you going in the right direction.

Questions you need answers too:

The first thing you should ask is, what does the customer want to sell, remember from the last blog how to pick the right mannequins for the role.

Remember to question the quantity of sizes, if  the customer knows pick the mannequins according to sizes to attract the right customer to move the inventory.

What kind of budget are they working with this will help you come up with ideas that will be in line with what the customer needs and can afford. 

Approaching a window design project takes imagination. Many designers start out with no fashion training or experience, but to be successful in this field you need an eye for fashion and knowledge of what catches the eye. One of the best ways to get up and running with ideas is to read fashion magazines to get fashion ideas, use the magazines to help develop a sense of what catches the eye, pay attention to what background colors they are using and also the type of mannequin or model they are using to display the goods, if they are using models look for mannequins that resemble the model.

Last but not least when you come up with a concept pick out at least two or three of the same type of mannequin, for example, if you are thinking of using a mannequin that sits pick out two or three sitting mannequins to show your customer and make sure you explain the faster they give you the check will insure getting what you have agreed on, I have experienced selling an idea and by the time I get the o.k. the mannequin wanted is no longer available, check with your vendors before pitching the idea and explain what you need to your customer service rep some times with a deposit they can hold your order for two maybe three weeks, it will also help getting the customer to move quickly to insure availability.

Contact www.mannequinmode.com  your success is our success.

We offer special pricing for store display professionals based on quantity. We recommend you be there to setup the displays and report the condition of the display products once delivered. Our shipping department will work with you to make sure everything goes smoothly. We know most convention centers, hotels and malls, and we are familiar with their policies for deliveries make sure to give us this information when ordering.

Have questions? give us a call  347-453-2931 or email: info@mannequinmode.com

Stay tuned for more helpful display tips and ideas.