How Supermarket Refrigeration Layout Can Influence Customer Buying Behaviour

When you walk into a well-designed supermarket, you probably don't think about why certain products are positioned where they are or why you naturally find yourself following a particular route around the store.

But very little of a supermarket layout happens by accident.

From the position of the first chilled display you see to the way multidecks, freezers and service counters are arranged throughout the store, refrigeration can have a major influence on how customers move, what products they notice and ultimately what they buy.

For supermarket owners and retail operators, refrigeration is therefore much more than a way of keeping food at the correct temperature. The right equipment, positioned in the right place, can become an important part of the overall sales environment.

Making the Right First Impression

The entrance is one of the most important areas of any supermarket.

Retailers want customers to feel comfortable as soon as they walk through the doors, while also encouraging them to explore the store rather than heading straight towards the checkout.

Fresh produce is frequently used near the entrance because it creates an open, colourful and inviting environment. Unlike a tightly packed aisle, a fresh produce area gives customers space to browse and helps establish the beginning of their shopping journey.

Where refrigerated fresh food displays are used in this area, the equipment needs to complement the open feel of the entrance while providing effective product presentation and temperature control.

The first few metres of the customer journey can set the tone for the rest of the shopping experience.

Using the Walls to Guide Customer Flow

As shoppers move further into the supermarket, refrigeration often becomes a key part of the store's structure.

Long runs of multideck refrigeration are commonly positioned around the perimeter. Rather than taking up large amounts of valuable central floor space, these displays create a continuous retail area around the edge of the store.

This provides retailers with an efficient way to display a wide variety of chilled products while creating a natural route for customers to follow.

Different sections can be arranged in a logical sequence, helping customers move from one category to the next.

For example, a supermarket may use perimeter refrigeration for:

• Dairy products
• Fresh meat
• Deli foods
• Ready meals
• Fresh produce
• Desserts
• Chilled drinks

The result is a continuous shopping environment where customers are exposed to different product categories as they move around the store.

Bringing Products Into the Centre of the Store

While perimeter refrigeration can establish the main route through a supermarket, the centre of the sales floor provides another opportunity to influence customer movement.

This is where island refrigeration can be particularly useful.

Island freezers and other central displays allow retailers to bring products away from the walls and into areas with high customer traffic. Instead of customers simply walking past a product once, central units can provide additional viewing angles and create specific destinations within the store.

These displays are particularly useful for frozen foods, promotions and larger product ranges where retailers want to make a strong visual impact.

Semi-vertical displays can also be used to create smaller sections within a larger sales floor without completely closing off the surrounding space.

The result is a more dynamic layout, with customers moving between the perimeter displays and central product destinations.

Making Products Easy to See

Getting customers to the right part of the store is only half the challenge.

Once they are there, the products need to be easy to see.

The design of the refrigeration unit can have a significant impact on product visibility. Open-front displays provide customers with an immediate view of the products, while glass-door units can provide clear presentation while keeping the refrigerated environment enclosed.

Lighting, shelf positioning, display height and product arrangement can all contribute to how noticeable a product is.

For retailers, this means refrigeration should be considered alongside merchandising.

A unit with excellent refrigeration performance is important, but if the products inside are difficult to see, reach or compare, the display may not be working as effectively as it could.

Creating Reasons to Stop

Supermarkets are designed around movement, but not every part of the customer journey should encourage customers to keep walking.

Certain areas are deliberately designed to make shoppers stop and browse.

Central refrigeration islands, promotional displays and specialist counters can all create these natural stopping points.

A strategically positioned freezer can bring a particular product range into a customer's line of sight. A chilled promotional display can highlight seasonal products. A serve-over counter can encourage customers to interact directly with staff.

These stopping points break up the customer's journey and provide additional opportunities for products to be noticed.

The Role of Serve-Over Counters

Some supermarket departments rely on customer interaction rather than simple self-service.

Butcher counters, deli counters, fish counters and prepared food departments are examples where refrigeration and customer service need to work together.

Serve-over refrigeration allows products to be displayed prominently while keeping staff close enough to serve customers, prepare orders or answer questions.

The position of these counters is therefore important.

They need to be convenient for staff and connected to preparation areas, while also being visible and accessible to customers.

In these environments, the refrigeration becomes part of the presentation of the department, helping communicate freshness, quality and specialist service.

Refrigeration and Impulse Buying

Not every purchase is planned before a customer enters a supermarket.

Product placement can create opportunities for additional purchases, particularly when products are positioned in areas with high footfall or alongside complementary categories.

Cold drinks, desserts, convenience foods and promotional products are examples of items that can benefit from highly visible refrigeration.

A bottle cooler placed in a convenient location can make grabbing a cold drink an easy decision. Likewise, an island freezer positioned within a busy section of the store can bring promotional frozen products directly into the customer's path.

Good refrigeration planning can therefore support the retailer's wider merchandising strategy.

There Is No One-Size-Fits-All Layout

Every supermarket is different.

The best refrigeration layout for a large supermarket will not necessarily be appropriate for a convenience store or smaller independent retailer.

Available floor space, ceiling height, customer traffic, product range and individual departments all need to be considered.

The type of refrigeration required will also vary.

A retailer may need a combination of:

• Multideck chillers
• Upright display fridges
• Island freezers
• Glass-door freezers
• Bottle coolers
• Serve-over counters
• Chilled displays

The key is making sure each piece of equipment has a purpose within the overall store layout.

Don't Choose Refrigeration in Isolation

One of the biggest mistakes when planning a retail refrigeration project is looking at equipment purely in terms of capacity and price.

The refrigeration needs to work within the wider store.

Where will customers walk?

Which products need maximum visibility?

Where are the natural stopping points?

Which departments need staff interaction?

Where can promotional products make the biggest impact?

And how can the available floor space be used efficiently?

Answering these questions before selecting equipment can help create a supermarket that is easier to navigate, more attractive to customers and more effective as a retail environment.

Good Refrigeration Design Starts With the Customer

Ultimately, supermarket refrigeration should support the way customers shop.

The equipment needs to keep products at the correct temperature, but it should also help present those products effectively, create logical departments and make the shopping journey feel natural.

From a long run of multidecks around the perimeter to an island freezer positioned in the centre of a busy sales floor, every refrigeration unit contributes to the overall layout.

When equipment selection, merchandising and customer flow are considered together, refrigeration becomes an important part of the retail strategy rather than simply another piece of equipment.

Looking at Refrigeration for Your Supermarket?

At DS Refrigeration, we supply a wide range of commercial refrigeration equipment for supermarkets, convenience stores, independent retailers and hospitality businesses.

From multideck chillers and display refrigeration to island freezers, bottle coolers and commercial freezers, we can help you find equipment suited to your available space and product requirements.

If you're planning a new store, carrying out a refurbishment or replacing existing refrigeration, speak to the DS Refrigeration team on 028 3751 1425 or browse our chilled and frozen display range online.