The role of merchandising

Abstract

Within fashion retailing there is often a misconception about the role of the merchandiser, partly because the term ‘merchandising’ is used in various ways by different industries and countries. For example, ‘football merchandising’ refers to the wide range of products sold by football clubs to its supporters. An American store manager when changing the department layout will often refer to having ‘re-merchandised’ the floor. Additionally the term ‘merchandising’ is further confused, in fashion retailing, with ‘visual merchandising’, which is the function specifically concerned with the aesthetics of window and store presentation.