In good economic times and bad, retailers struggle to attract customers into their stores and, once inside, to present their goods in an irresistible manner, enticing them to buy. While some retailers strive for eye-catching, trendy designs, others opt for a look of timeless elegance. But whatever the image being created, it is the store fixture manufacturer who has the fun of making it happen, with the challenge of doing so profitably at a competitive price and with killer deadlines.

The following section presents three companies that successfully compete in the store fixtures marketplace, sharing their "survival" strategies and some of their spectacular projects. Also featured are the Grand Prize winners in the 1997 Retail Design competition, sponsored by the National Association of Store Fixture Manufacturers. Although store fixtures may be a difficult industry to serve, the end products can be stunning, as the following articles show.

• NASFM Award Program Recognizes Outstanding Retail Designs: A total of 29 store fixture manufacturers were honored during the association's annual awards competition.
• Fetzers' Meets the Challenges of the Store Fixtures Industry: Supplying an industry that has fierce competition, immovable deadlines and requires expertise in multiple materials has been the forte for Salt Lake City-based Fetzers' Inc. for the past 87 years. By Helen Kuhl
• Bringing Fantasy to Life: Giant toys devised by Watson Construction's custom craftsmen enliven a stay-and-play retail store. By Barbara Garet

   

A third case history, "Store Fixtures are Part of Complete Millwork Package," can be found in the May 1997 issue of CWB.