How retailers use floor design to lure you to spend more

From carefully chosen floor tiles to the familiar click-clack of trolley wheels, retailers can design their stores to influence how quickly shoppers move and how long they spend looking at products.

Prof Roland Goldberg, an expert in consumer behaviour, retail and place marketing at North West University (NWU), says shoppers often believe they are completely in control of their decisions when entering a store.

But, he warns, the shopping environment is carefully designed to influence those decisions.

“We always think we are in full control of our free will when we walk through those doors with a trolley, but in reality, we are entering a highly calculated, scientific obstacle course,” says Goldberg.

The trolley wheels click more quickly, the brain concludes that you are moving too fast, and you unconsciously slow down—  Prof Roland Goldberg, an expert in consumer behaviour, retail and place marketing at North West University

Goldberg says shoppers may notice a change in flooring when they move into sections selling more expensive products, such as wine or beauty products. “Near expensive wines or beauty products, the floor tiles may become smaller,” he says.

This seemingly innocent change can affect the sound made by the trolley. “The trolley wheels click more quickly, the brain concludes that you are moving too fast, and you unconsciously slow down.”

In other words, that sudden click-click-click under the trolley may encourage shoppers to take their time in an aisle where retailers want them to browse.

“Very few shoppers realise that something as ordinary as a floor can influence how long they remain in an aisle,” Goldberg says.

The trick is not necessarily about forcing shoppers to buy a particular product. Rather, slowing them down gives them more opportunity to look, compare and, potentially, put something extra into the trolley, he explains.

He says detailed visual maps called planograms determine where items appear on shelves, with the most valuable positions generally being directly in an adult shopper’s line of sight.

“People generally follow the path of least resistance and grab what is directly in front of them,” Goldberg explains.

This means shoppers looking only at eye level could miss cheaper alternatives at the bottom.

“Bargains, bulk packs and the store’s own cheaper house brands are often placed closer to ankle height, while premium niche products tend to sit above eye level,” he says.

His advice is simple − just bend down and look around. “Looking beyond the most convenient shelf can save you money.”

If they were placed at the entrance, customers could be in and out within two minutes, and the retailer would earn very little from that visit

Everyday essentials such as bread and milk are often placed towards the back of the store because shoppers specifically enter the shop looking for them.

“If they were placed at the entrance, customers could be in and out within two minutes, and the retailer would earn very little from that visit,” Goldberg says.

Instead, shoppers must walk past numerous other products before reaching what they originally came for.

And the bigger trolley does not necessarily help. “An almost empty trolley can make us feel that we have not bought enough,” Goldberg says.

Children are another important part of the retail equation. Colourful cereals, sweets and other profitable products are positioned lower down, where children can easily see them.

Cartoon characters on cereal boxes may even appear to look directly at children. “That eye contact creates an emotional connection,” Goldberg says.

By the time shoppers reach the till, they may already have made hundreds of small purchasing decisions. This can leave them mentally tired and more vulnerable to impulse purchases.

That is where chocolates, sweets, chewing gum and other last-minute items come in.

The best defence, Goldberg says, is awareness. “Eat before shopping, take a list and follow it, compare unit prices and look beyond the shelves at eye level.”

For cash-strapped households, the lesson is clear: do not just watch your trolley − watch where it is taking you.

“Every tactic works because it operates below our conscious awareness,” Goldberg says. “The moment you can recognise it and name it, much of its power disappears.”