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While breezing past the frozen food section at our local Target, a rambunctious five-year-old boy in tow, motion-activated refrigerator cases lit up one by one, like old-timey circus barkers enticing us to check out a magic act. The boy was mesmerized. And the lighting triumphed in its mission – to sell, sell, sell – because, wouldn’t you know it, we ended up buying the overpriced, bedazzled SpongeBob frozen confections.

The role and impact of lighting in retail has never been greater. Its visual wizardry and power to grab consumers’ limited attention while showcasing merchandise is evidenced by lightning-quick advancements in technology, offering designers seemingly endless options. And the applications go far beyond general, task and ambient illumination, opening up a world of possibilities encompassing fixtures and millwork and flooring and just about any store design element one can fit a miniscule beacon, thanks largely to the wonders of LED design.

Meanwhile, the lighting market is changing so rapidly, with prices dropping dramatically on LEDs, for example, that it’s tough for retail designers and specifiers to commit to product(s) at the outset of a project’s design; designs and pricing can change in as little as six months, a designer told us. It’s practically a given that a store prototype’s lighting scheme will change with the subsequent rollout of multiple stores – surely a challenge to the designer’s patience, if not sanity.

Lighting technology and product offerings have evolved at the speed of, well, light over the past 15 years, especially since the advent of LEDs. (We saw this prevalence at EuroShop earlier this year, which for the first time devoted an entire hall to lighting.)

But lighting applications are not so different than they were 50 years ago, suggests Tim Raberding, vp, engineering, Interbrand Design Forum (Dayton, Ohio). “I don’t think [lighting design] philosophies have changed much; it’s always been about the layers of light and contrast levels. What’s changed are the sources and technologies used to create those same effects.”

The rise of the LED has done two big things for store design: It has dramatically decreased the energy usage required to achieve desired light levels while increasing fixture options and layout configurations. “In ceilings, we’re so accustomed to thinking in terms of 2-by-4-foot lay-in fluorescent light runs or 6- and 8-inch can downlights, which are still probably used in 90 percent of ceiling layouts,” Raberding says. “They’re common, useful and fit the lamps of the past. With LEDs, we’re not constrained by those dimensions anymore. The shapes of those fixtures can be whatever we want them to be.”

But Raberding is quick to defend the maligned fluorescent bulb, eclipsed by its flashier LED cousin. “I’m a big fan of fluorescent light,” he says. “It’s very efficient and very inexpensive, and new [developments] in phosphorous fluorescents have not only warmed up the light source but improved color rendering.” However, he adds that LEDs are now his only choice for track lighting and downlights.

OFF THE RAIL
Another challenge for today’s lighting designer is that the lifespan of a given retail brand will likely be much shorter than its long-lasting light sources, which means design flexibility is critical. “That’s why you still see so much track lighting in retail,” says Amy Laughead-Riese, president and principal designer for 37 Volts Light Studio (Cincinnati). Laughead-Riese has created lighting designs for a variety of retailers, including Luxottica Retail, Lord & Taylor, Liverpool Department Stores and Macy’s. “If you want to keep the ceiling relatively clean and uncluttered and allow flexibility in the store design, consider recessed adjustable multiples, sometimes called ‘track in a box.’”

And while the ceiling is still key in lighting design, fixtures and millwork are rapidly rising in popularity as alternative light carriers. “In just the last two to three years, I’ve seen so many more options to go to the client retailer with solutions that incorporate the tiniest light sources into fixtures with sleek, modern shelving and more opportunities to be creative with millwork designs,” Laughead-Riese says. “In an ideal situation, I work with the retail designer and the fixture manufacturer.”

SECTOR SPOTLIGHT
Department stores: Caution: Lighting overload is a concern, especially as high-impact, digital signage increasingly dominates the department store landscape. Meanwhile, fitting room lighting that lets the customer control her light level “is all the rage,” says Laughead-Riese, with many high-end retailers adopting it and lower-end retailers “trying to figure out the right cost equation to afford it.”

Auto dealerships: Car showrooms demonstrate some of the best lighting applications available today, says Raberding, whose firm has done extensive work with them, including Kia, pictured on page 46. “They’re big showplaces and they’ve got lots of windows with daylighting options,” he says. High ceilings are a challenge but the good news is that affordable LED products that provide adequate lighting from a distance of 20-25 feet, a typical showroom ceiling height, are now available, Raberding says. And outdoor lots are ideal candidates for switching out traditional metal halide high intensity discharge (HID) fixtures for energy-efficient, low-maintenance LEDs.

Jewelry and accessories stores: These specialty retailers are tasked with lighting product so that it doesn’t drastically change appearance from the display case to the store’s general environment. Case in point: That sparkly diamond, typically lit by a very cool light to best showcase its features may look considerably duller when removed from the case. Light case tops accordingly.

Grocery stores: More grocery stores are incorporating LEDs in their ceilings in place of high bay metal halides or long runs of fluorescent fixtures, notes Laughead-Riese. Again, they offer good color rendering and ease of maintenance.  And LED “performs ideally in cold storage environments,” she adds.

Furniture stores:  A furniture store should create a residential atmosphere, so specify lights that yield homey warm yellow and pink tones. And maintenance is critical. “Stores that move merchandise a lot don’t always adjust the lights to accommodate the merchandise,” says Raberding. “Store staff need to know how to aim the lights. I don’t know the answer but I bet there’s an opportunity out there for a business to [meet this maintenance need].”

LIGHTING RESOURCES
Retailers and designers must do their homework to stay on top of the latest lighting trends and technologies. Keep in mind, “You’re not just buying a light anymore, you’re buying a whole system,” one supplier told us. “You need the proper optics, bulb, heat sink and electronics, all wrapped up in the right aesthetic package.” Looking for help? Check out these resources:

International Association of Lighting Designers: iald.org
Illumination Engineering Society of North America: iesna.org
National Association of Independent Lighting Distributors: naild.org
Lighting Research Council: lrc.rpi.edu
National Lighting Bureau: nlb.org
International Association of Lighting Management Companies: nalmco.org

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