Box/Rectangle Shape Stores... Boring, Efficient, or both?

So, I'm curious what you all think about store layouts. Do you a prefer a wide open store with lots of space to move around and see everything, or a more convoluted place with maybe a unique shape and different rooms?

I tend to be a more boxy person myself and my store reflects that, but now that it's undergoing yet another expansion I'm considering leaving the wide open spaces for a more distinctive look.

Does anyone have any favorite builds or structures in SL, places they love to shop not just because of the products, but because of the store build? And how about places you HATE to go because you despise the layout?

Lots of little rooms and places to explore are fun, but they are not efficient.

If one is a famous designer, attracting customers from far and wide who will be prepared to spend ages in a location searching for hidden treasures, by all means. But even famous designers will get fewer sales if somebody cannot just teleport in and see, at the very least, where they need to go to find what they want, and at best see what they want right in front of them.

A big boxy warehouse I think is the most efficient, and doesn't have to be boring. You can always have extra places to visit in your sim, as well, if you want to entertain customers with a bit more time on their hands.

I don't like rectangular anything.. at least not if it is just a rectangle (My House's outline is, but the whole build is not)

I like stores to be unique, but effecient and organized. For instance, I love Calla's layout, as well as the Lost furest area.

Also, prefabs used as shops make me want to offer the owner my services.. but I don't cause that might be rude.

Make it unique, organize it, and I'm happy ^^

Open rectangles seem to work best but you can do a lot of different things with them to make it unique and interesting.

Actually I find I don't care about the shape of the shop so much. The only thing that makes me run from stores is hugeness combined with a lack of signposting. I really appreciate shops that have a kinda clean design to them. Some shops are so hard to navigate, I tend to just leave.

Just my 2c, IMHO and YMMV

There are advantages to big boxy stores. You have more room to deal with the kind of lag where you tap the keys and nothing happens, so you tap them again and nothing happens, then you're halfway across the sim. Big places help me avoid running over people.

On the other hand it encourages lots and lots of product on display which causes multiple texture lag to begin with.

How about a big open area, but with little niches to explore? --KC

What I like:

Open enough to cam around in easily, and to view vendor walls from a great enough distance to see at least 25 items at a time.

Well-organized, meaning items are grouped in some easy to understand fashion.

Simple, useful, highly visible signage. Within 10 seconds of entering a store, I should know exactly how to get to everything there. This could be a map with corresponding wall signs, or arrows pointing, or a floor directory (3rd floor, ladies lingerie).


Basically it comes down to this: I want to find the desired merchandise quickly and easily. If it feels like a scavenger hunt, I will not go back.

Stores big enough to fly in, with the display stands made so as to provide things to fly around, over and under.

This may not increase sales but it does make for fun flying.

I have always liked shopping in your store Sera, because it is a wide open space. You are one of my favorites.

/me waves at Rosie : welcome ... again.....

As long as there is a buffer zone, it’s all good

I love open spaces - love em'

There is nothing worse than someone building with 0.001 meters clearance and your neighbor is facing a wall.

if that’s what you need, then put it in a skybox.

Just MHO

I do not practice shapeism....Except when it comes to pie are squared, NO pies are round!

/me waves back... ty

I also forgot to mention how much I like Sera's stuff! Another reason I like shopping at her place!

I like a creative well appointed store but if it is too difficult to find what I'm looking for, then I'm gone and probably not coming back.

I dislike having Merchandise stacked Three or four stories high in a building with only One floor. It makes it more convenient for Camera movement if the Merchandise is on Tiers and i can stand closer to it.

Also, i avoid Stored with Full bright white textures on the Floor or walls, it's hard on the eyes, and i never spend much time in a shop like that.

Angel.

I hate maze-like store layouts on three levels sitting on a sky platform at 500m where it's impossible to fly.

I like open stores ... Sera, I like your store in fact. However, you're right, if you expand much you'll have to provide more organization/signage.

If a store has several sections, I love to see an obvious TP board at the TP point and in every "department". Then I don't care so much how it's laid out.

If it has multiple floors, I like them to have clearly different product lines on each floor.

I hate rezzing in and having to cam around for 10 minutes just to figure out what kind of stuff is where. Then I bring the camera back to my position and lose track of where I wanted to go. grr.

I hate stores that have fly turned off, and they are huge
and have stuff stacked up 5 or 6 high

whyyy do ppl take away fly?

As for shape, don't care as long as it rezes fast

slow rez, fast teleport

my store is small, cosy and fun with the arcade hehe

I do not have a ton of stuff so easy to put it all in one room and have the arcade in the other room

wow, thanks for all the responses!! have a lot to digest, hehehe.

TYVM Rosie and Nika, I am blushing! ^_^

Sounds like I need to add some more info to my TP pads and possibly add a map or signpost... large area organization has never been my strong point.

Another thing I wonder, and have seen discussed in the forums before, is whether people prefer Hovertext or Textured Signage. My store is pretty hovertext heavy, but it doesn't have to rez and so that's why I use it so much. I have texture signage as well, but I hate thinking that people don't pay attention to the signage because they don't want to wait for it to rez... So in important places I try to provide both, but at some point that hovertext *really* drives me insane!!

Lots of helpful info here, hope to receive a lot more responses

And re: no fly, I don't understand it either!

Hovertext. Plus the hovering text script can be deleted.

And as for no-fly.... I can see it if you want people to actually see what they are passing. I don't like it, but I understand it.

Jez, do you need the Flight Feather so you can fly as high as you want? If so, feel free to IM me inworld and I will send you one.

Personally, I prefer Textured Signage, but I can imagine that people for whom the world appears less quickly could think otherwise. I'm usually happy to wait for signs to appear and if a store is well organised you don't even have to wait for everything to show.
I suppose it depends on how _much_ hovertext you've got. If the hovertext starts overlapping it can be very confusing and annoying.

Rectangles are for squares!

Functional yes, efficient maybe, inspirational rarely.

/me sends hugs Sally and Sera's way...

I like a healthy combo of textured and hovertext. If it is a long message, in a store like Sera's I don' mind waiting for textures to rez. But if the items are so closely placed, long hover text messages are annoying because of the camera work you have to do to get clarity...

/me sends Rosie a hug back

/me takes note to check Sera's shop out