Lighting for retail

Retail lighting has to accomplish a great deal but its chief function should be increase profitability. A well-designed retail lighting scheme is built around the brand, the market, the site, the product and – crucially – the customer. As bricks and mortar retailers look for better ways to bring buyers in-store, lighting’s role in creating an atmosphere and enabling customers to make choices has come to the fore.

Retail environments provide the lighting designer with a variety of challenges. They include balancing general lighting with the need to focus attention on specific items or areas, and creating sparkle and excitement but avoiding glare. From changing room to cash desk, a well-designed scheme will change browsers to buyers, bring customers back and also cut costs by using energy efficiently.

“Always fast track, the images below are from the fastest ever retail project we have undertaken; Rangnam Centre, Downtown Bangkok. Briefing February; lighting tests May; soft opening November – all in the same year –amazing interior and lighting ideas from the design solution for us to implement and truly impressive management and construction from the King Power team”

 

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Design-led exterior lighting

Exterior lighting has a number of functions. It enables us to move from A to B at night. It can also be used to enhance architecture, to make public places safer and more attractive, improve way-finding and to provide task lighting. This does not mean that more lighting is better lighting. Allowing for some shadow and variation of light levels is an important part of creating an holistic night time experience. And a  balanced lighting scheme will also avoid invasive light spill and other forms of light pollution.

Developing exterior lighting usually flows through several stages:-

Understanding the project, concept and client brief

The reasons why exterior lighting is being enhanced or instigated often provides a framework for developing ideas. Sometimes the need is purely commercial, such as adding signage and feature lighting to make a building more noticeable; sometimes the priority is to enhance a work of art – or a building/space that is perceived as a work of art.

Understanding the site

It is essential to understand the existing conditions and limitations of a site in order  co-ordinate exterior lighting with buildings and hard and soft infrastructure. This usually involves a site survey and access to any “as installed” information. In the case of listed or prominent buildings, planning applications may be necessary and for this it is vital to understand how to comply with the relevant guidelines.

Developing ideas

A master plan is created, taking into account the client’s brief, product/business brand and site conditions.

The plan will include techniques for the following:

Ease of way-finding–vehicular and pedestrian – putting the right amount of glare-free light in the right place.

Minimising light pollution – considering the environmental impact on existing wildlife and surrounding built environment.

Emphasis on and highlighting of architecture and/or landscape features.

Signs; location and integration with exterior lighting scheme

Balancing of light in different areas.

Control – hours of operation.

Different lighting scenes according to the time of year and hours of operation of the space.

Modelling and testing out ideas

Once all these different aspects have been agreed in principle it may be necessary to prove the effects using 3D modelling or actual lighting tests.

Bringing the scheme to fruition

Finally, once the building or environment is completed we can supervise the aiming, focussing and creation of lighting scenes so that a new night time vista can emerge.

Below: lighting tests for established landscapes