Visual Merchandising
Long before Madonna began designing clothes for fashion brand H&M and retail turnaround cycles shrank to a matter of weeks, visual merchandisers were working quietly behind the scenes of couture houses and regular clothing stores honing brand recognition.
Decades later, they are still at it, tightly guarding the ethos of their brands, although it would seem that their moment has finally come as retailers are waking up to the fact that the role of a visual merchandiser is an indispensable part of the value chain and the power of the eye is increasingly used as a competitive tool.
'We are continuing to see increased demand for visual merchandising professionals in Hong Kong and China. The demand is driven by the expansion of the retail sector across a diverse range of product categories,' said Anthony Thompson, Michael Page International managing director for Hong Kong and southern China.
'Candidates with high levels of creativity and the ability to contribute to the further development of the brand are highly sought in the market.'
Richard Hand, the new international creative director for Hong Kong-based fashion group Global Retail, who hails from a visual merchandising background, agreed that the role was gaining ground as never before.
The company, which counts among its in-house brands EQ:IQ and Joan & David, as well as a range of licensee brands, is on the lookout for visual merchandisers to boost its competitive edge.