While you may think that the proof of the pudding lies in eating at your café, sometimes customers need something to entice them into choosing your café for food and drink. Window displays do not just have to be for shops. You can utilise your windows to attract passers-by and make sure they stop and take notice and call in to sample your treats.
So, how can you best attract customers with visual merchandising for cafes?
Top café visual merchandising tips
For cafes, there are a few fundamental tips that can help you to keep your visual merchandising fresh, attractive, and relevant.
- Use visual merchandising equipment that can be updated quickly such as chalkboards.
- Keep your display in the style of your café; if you produce hearty, home cooking then opts for rustic branding. If your food is modern and funky, choose modern, contemporary designs such as a flex board.
- Like your produce, you should stay seasonal and make sure your visual merchandising promotes current offers to make sure people always have a reason to visit.
Innovative visual merchandising ideas for cafes
Capture current affairs
Theming your window to current affairs is a great way to give your window displays a talking point. For example, during the Olympics, you can have the Olympic rings made out of foodstuffs such as doughnuts, bagels, or any other items you sell. You can also create compelling titles for your dishes too which you can display in windows such as ‘runner’ bean salad, ‘curling’ kale crisps, and gold medal cookies.
There are so many great ways to be inventive with events that get people talking, and your café could be the hub of conversation.
Invite with lights
When daylight shines on windows, it can make your café look dark, so it doesn’t seem open. With string lights, light boxes, or lanterns in the window you can showcase that you open and use the lights to draw attention to menus, special boards as well as offers, discounts, and promotions. Strategically placing lights not only gets your message across and makes you look open, but it also gives your café a cozy, warm atmosphere.
Edible displays
Make sure your café displays ‘look good enough to eat’ by making them edible. Thought is required in this as you don’t want to lead to food wastage by using perishable products. However fresh pies, cakes, and quiches of the day can be used in displays as clocks, and whenever someone orders a piece, you take away 10 minutes on the clock, without damaging the display.
By using food as props, you can showcase what you sell while also being incredibly inventive with your displays to really capture your brand and what your café is all about. One such café that always catches interest with its windows is the famous Betty’s tea room. If you want your café to draw a crowd, have a look at how they have designed their window displays.
Improve your displays today
If you need help to make your displays stand out, then visit Valentino’s Displays, your one-stop shop for shops, where you can find an array of visual merchandising equipment to put your café on the map. From bread baskets to chalkboards to display showcases, Valentino’s Displays have all you need to make your visual merchandising attract and engage your customers.