Shop display stands: which unit works in which spot

What does a shop display stand do that a shelf bay does not?

Shelving holds stock where staff can find it. A shop display stand does a different job: it lifts one line out of the run of shelves and puts it where the customer actually walks, at an aisle end, inside the door, or alongside the till queue. The unit is narrow, it is often mobile, and it carries one product or a small group of related products.

That changes what you buy on. A stockroom bay is bought on load and depth. A display stand is bought on footprint, height and how quickly two members of staff can move it, fill it and face it up. A rack that holds 60 kg is plenty for crisps, bread or confectionery, so paying for a 250 kg frame on the shop floor is money spent on the wrong number.

Prices across the display units run from from £24 ex VAT, bulk price for a four tier wire rack up to from £64 ex VAT, bulk price for a waterproof table rated at 80 kg. The full set of units sits on the shelving and racking page.

Four shop display stands compared

The jump from the wire rack to the table is the jump from presenting a line to carrying a stacked pallet quantity of it. If the promotion is cases rather than facings, the table is the one that survives.

Open wire, angled tiers or a flat top: pick by what you are selling

Open wire suits packaged lines that people pick one at a time. Air moves through it, it does not collect dust the way a solid deck does, and the customer can see the second and third tiers from a few metres away. The four tier wire display rack is the lowest cost way to add a facing position, at from £24 ex VAT, bulk price.

Angled tiers suit bread, wrapped bakery and bagged snacks, because the product tips towards the customer and keeps facing itself as the tier empties. The rolling snack and bread stand is from £28 ex VAT, bulk price and runs on castors, so it can be pulled clear of the wall for cleaning and pushed back without a lift.

A removable deck is what you want for loose lines. The bulk food shelf is from £28 ex VAT, bulk price and the rack lifts out, which is the difference between wiping a unit down in two minutes and taking it out of service. For stacked cases, chilled displays or anything that may get wet, the waterproof promotion table at from £64 ex VAT, bulk price and 80 kg is the right call.

Where a stand earns its place on the shop floor

Four positions do most of the work in a UK convenience store, cash and carry or small supermarket:

• Aisle end. The highest traffic position in the shop. A narrow unit here keeps the aisle mouth clear while still showing three or four facings.
• Entrance zone. Keep it under about 1.2 m so staff at the till can still see the door. A mobile stand is worth the extra here because the entrance display changes most often.
• Queue line. Small, low value, high margin lines. The stand has to be stable, because it gets knocked by baskets and bags all day. Pair it with a basket stack from the shopping basket range so customers can pick up both.
• Back of a promotion run. A flat topped table takes the cases, and a wire rack beside it takes the singles.

Leave a clear route wide enough for a trolley to pass any stand you put out. A display that forces customers to turn sideways does not sell more, it just slows the aisle.

What to check before you buy a shop display stand

1. Footprint, measured in the shop. Chalk the base size on the floor before you order. The number that matters is what is left of the aisle, not what the unit occupies.
2. Overall height. Under about 1.5 m keeps sightlines open across the floor, which matters for both selling and for watching the shop.
3. Load per tier, not per unit. Ask for the per tier figure in writing. Four tiers rated for 15 kg each is a different unit from one rated 60 kg on the bottom tier only.
4. Castors or feet. Castors cost a little more and pay for themselves wherever you reset displays weekly. Fixed feet are steadier in a queue line.
5. How it cleans. Removable decks and powder coated or galvanised finishes handle spillage. A painted solid shelf under loose confectionery looks tired quickly.
6. Whether it knocks down. Units that flat pack store in a fraction of the space between seasonal resets, which matters if you are buying for several sites.
7. Colour and finish across sites. If you run more than one shop, order the finish once so later top ups match what is already on the floor.

Specification, finish and the price for your quantity are all confirmed on your written quote, which is valid for 30 days. The price guide explains how the guide prices on the site are set.

How many stands does a store need, and how do you price a run?

A single convenience store typically works with a handful: one or two at the aisle ends, one at the entrance, one at the queue. A cash and carry or a larger supermarket counts them by aisle end instead, so the figure follows the layout rather than the floor area. Buy for the positions you can actually fill and face up every day, because an empty display stand reads worse than no display at all.

If you are ordering for several sites, count the positions site by site and order them as one run in the same finish. Everything is made to order at our partner factories, inspected before dispatch with photos and video sent to you, then delivered anywhere in the UK. Any quantity is welcome, and the written quote confirms price, freight, duty, VAT and lead time.

Send the positions and the lines you want to display to sales@londonpallettrucks.co.uk or call 020 3576 6910, and you will get the units costed against the spots rather than a list of part numbers.