“You can have a wonderfully designed store, but if the products are not visible or highlighted well, then it’s of no use, and that’s where lighting plays such a crucial role,” says Sarbajit Dhar, Principal Designer, of Kolkata based design house, Look Design Hub, echoing the words of most retail designers. After all, as most of them would agree, lighting can make or break a store. 

But the question is, do their clients - the retailers - understand this? And, are they convinced enough to invest in the right lighting solution? Well, from the series of conversations that Retail4Growth has had with architects and store designers, the answer is both a ‘yes’ and a ‘no’. While national or corporate bands understand the value of lighting and do invest in the right lighting solution and also invest in R&D on how lighting impacts customer behaviour, many local and regional retailers do need more persuasion in terms of using the right lighting for their stores. 

As Sarbajit says, expressing the challenge involved in convincing local retailers on the role of lighting, “Local clients, at least the ones in Kolkata, tend to be more rigid and often don’t understand how a difference in Kelvin and make a difference to how their products look in the store or to the store ambience. The issue is that most of them go by local or familiar benchmarks. They don’t believe in consulting a lighting consultant or designer and don’t realise that even if one light beam, an angle or the luminosity is not correct, then it can impact the whole product visibility and store experience. Very often, they realise it much later, after installation.”  

Sarbajit, however, adds that things are slowly changing with rising awareness. “We also try to explain to them the importance of lighting and why it is essential to highlight their products and store ambience.”

The other challenge that Sarbajit points out is finding local manufacturers of lighting products. “While in Delhi, Mumbai or Bangalore there are enough number of lighting manufacturers, in Kolkata it’s difficult to find one. There are only traders of lighting products. But there is a big difference between traders and manufacturers. Manufacturers can customise and supply what we need, but traders cannot do that. When we look for a lighting solution for our project, we always prefer a supplier who manufactures his own lighting.” 

Further, sharing details of one of his recent projects where lighting played a key role, Sarbajit says, “We recently completed a theme restaurant in Kolkata called Babylon. In keeping with the theme of the place and the ambience, we played a lot with lighting, in terms of the angles and the kind of lights used to enhance the interiors.”

Named after the 7^th Wonder of the World, the restaurant tries to recreate the magic of the famed Hanging Gardens, and lighting plays a crucial role in delivering the impact required - a testimony to its significant position in the hierarchy of elements that contribute to spatial experience. 

https://www.gardlerlighting.com/

Pictures of the Babylon restaurant designed by Look Design Hub, courtesy Look Design Hub.