Massive Stores? Is this a trend?

I've noticed that several of my favorite stores have lately gone to these massive store designs that I just hate. I hate flying inside stores and it's like I'm being forced to in order to get where I want to go without it taking forever.

Is anyone else noticing this? It is a trend that will continue? I sure hope not!

I don't know if it's a new trend but I don't mind so much if it's a big rectangle. At least you can cam around and see what they are offering without getting lost. Stores that have a lot of merchandise displayed in many different rooms or spaces and floors may look much better, but when you try to cam back to the item you noticed only a few minutes ago, good luck finding it.

Big boxed stores = Ugly but often are easier to roam.
Multi rooms/levels = Esthetically pleasing to the eye, difficult to navigate.
Small boutiques surrounding a 'town square' are my favourite but owners can't display all their merchandise.

I guess they all have their advantages. Maybe I haven't been here long enough to compare, but most of the places I shop in aren't that big...

"Massive stores" is a sore point with me just now But, that aside, if a store has a lot of items on display, and they are all displayed within cam range, then it can be worse for the visitor (lag) than if the items are spaced apart in different areas.

I like the big stores personally. I can't stand when I am walking and get nothing but wall or ceiling in my view.then again most of the time I cam shop anyway..heh.

just be thankful they have fly turned on
I hate huge stores with no fly

or small stores in a rented mall type place, that doesn't have tp anywhere, and they are far from the tp location, and no fly

I leave instantly in those cases

i like that some raise their land to make a /hill and then create a "basement", their store sits more natural with alot of room and some cases have it extended as a level down with a one sided hill and a store front

I usually don't have a problem with large stores. It all depends on the layout, texturing, consideration of camera angles. I rather like strolling around, especially in the better set up stores that have store maps of some kind and store/department teleports. I appreciate the store owners who make the effort to mark or indicate the separate departments or categories of product.

And some creators just find themselves with growing numbers of stock that have to go somewhere. I much prefer a large store than a small one crammed so tight with stuff that my avatar gets stuck in something while walking around.

The one I was in last night had "just the right amount" of stuff per wall space in their old building, and now it's "not nearly enough" per wall space in the new building. While it's aesthetic...it's just a pain to me, and sadly, I'm just so busy that I don't stroll anywhere anymore. I need to get in, get what I need, and get out. *sigh*

Same here. Just get me somewhere near the area I want to look around and I'm good. Just need enough room and a clear view so I can focus, spin and zoom.

Crud... It's a RL trend too. WalMart anyone? (=_=)

I prefer the smaller shops. Michief Cove and ...shoot, I can't remember the other one...at the Zoo boardwalk. I find the big stores are so jam packed that you have to stand there forever waiting for things to rez in. The Hair shops are the worst imo. I love the village feel and I hate standing and waiting for the vendor boards to rez in each time I click. I have gotten to the point I just walk past them.

OK, you've been in my stores...*I* think they're ok, but what say you? (Other than the men's store which I know is small and difficult)

Massive stores are probably a way of dealing with the problem of "Adverse Selection" which can come up when people are distrustful of a market (as many in SL now are - thanks a bundle, freebie resellers. Thanks a bundle, content thieves.)

The idea of "adverse selection" is this. Suppose I have an item to sell that I made, and I think is worth L$400. But the buyers do not know that this item isn't a freebie I'm reselling. I can truthfully tell them that it isn't, but the freebie reseller can lie and do that too, so that doesn't help. From the buyer's point of view there is a (let's say) 50% chance of it being a resold freebie (and thus worth L$0), so the buyer might be prepared to offer only L$200 for the item. But since I know I'm not lying and the item really is worth L$400, I probably won't be prepared to accept that.

The only way out of this is for me to communicate to you that I can actually be trusted, and having a large store is one way of doing that (because it says "I'm doing something that I couldn't afford if customers didn't trust me, so since I'm doing it, you can see that customers do trust me". Unfortunately, it doesn't work so well in SL where even a large amount of land can be cheap and copied products can sell well, but customers are still ingrained to it from RL.

Someone posted a couple of weeks ago that if you turn on Client->View Admin Options, you can fly even in no-fly zones.

I have not tested it, but it's worth trying next time we're in a no-fly store.

it works aswell with teleport

disadvantage: you get admin buttons all over the place wich can be annoying, only toggle it on when needed and off after

Irene, it works! Very useful.

I like big stores. I like small stores. I have noticed a shift towards very large stores. It might just be that they have too much inventory and space is needed for displays and vendors. I think places might eventually become like 'sine wave' or 'freebie island' where there isn't even any attempt to make a large building and landscaping. The entire sim is the store.

I'd much rather shop in a "big boring rectangle" that is well organized and cleanly laid out. I absolutely LOATH the content creators who are intent in providing me with a "Shopping experience" in the form of some massive, labrynthine, immersive roleplaying "experience"... A themed store is one thing.. I've seen some really neat themed stores that didn't disorient the customer.

But the bottom line is: I came to your shop to buy a skin I liked.. not to spend 3 hours trying to FIND that skin "in a cave, in a rabbit hole, deep beneath the unlabelled patch of mushrooms, inside the dark and murky forest" or whatever.

I've seen some good things done with "rectangle" stores.. and while I fully appreciate that the artist wants to express themselves.. if I have to max out my gamma to see your walkways, or wear a special HUD just to FIND things in your store... You know what? there's a fair chance my money will go to someone else.

Most times it's more like "woooo we need more prims! we need more agents! I know, let's get our own sim!!!1!!" ....... "we got our own sim now, so let's build the BIGGEST STORE EVAH YAYYYYYY!"

I think they are perfect the size that they are.I can cam in there and walk around with no walls or ceilings going in my face.

/me nods....I think that's absolutely correct.

I just shouldn't have to spend 10 minutes camming around looking for one thing. Make it easier to find, not harder!

I hate large stores RL & SL and will shop in neither...period.

In order to have the available space at Fhelzgud's FREE PUBLIC YARD SALE & MALL, we have much land outside the store itself as rolling hills with just a few trees to decorate with.

We have a sim long store which in IMO is a work of art ( a Zigaroth, of sorts). we have rebuilt many times over the last couple years.

Tried using mega prims to reduce primage and found it reduced sales as well since many are not willing to shop where it takes 10 mins to rez. Now most large prims are eliminated or used sparingly.

We are somewhat eclectically themed with a train ride that runs the border of the store. Though definately a sales area, we try to break it up with a semi-park area, with many things like swings , seating area's, free flying butterfly demo's and other things to see or do than just items for sale.

Whew...good, cuz I was starting to get paranoid...lol

This is a timely discussion for me, because I recently moved to an island of my own and built a larger store for myself. The approach I (and my friend in the adjoining island) took was to put the store into one corner of the island and use the rest as a nature reserve.

What do people think of the layout? Is my store too big?

I don't like it either...I think SL business should better utilize the streaming data limitations, as well as the overwhelming feeling some people get when they are staring at hundreds of products all displayed in a sterile, mundane fashion...

I think, the first thing that needs to be implemented is a user-friendly TP area in the initial TP location of their stores. When people come into the store, or TP in...there should be an extremely simplistic (this doesn't mean boring) TP board, which will usher you off to key locations of your store.

If I TP into a large store, looking for something particular, and I find there isn't a clearly defined way to locate my item...I leave. Simple as that. I leave.

Also, another thing people should take note of is...DESIGN...omg...omg...I said it. DESIGN. Trust me it matters. I'm getting really tired of seeing a ton of side-by-side articles of clothing...you put all that work into your clothing (some of you), why don't you put some work into your presentation. Did you ever think about making that poster-board product into something interesting other than a prim with a picture on it? Ever thought of making it look 3d via texture work...anything is better than moo-moo poster-board products...rows and rows...boooooring.

I'm serious...I'm picky. I'm a bit of a content bastard...if I TP to a store, and it's ugly...I don't care what I needed there, I leave.