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Technology & Innovation

Holiday Shopper Psychology

As anyone who has walked through an Ikea knows, stores are increasingly designed to draw your interest into the depths of an ecstatic shopping experience.

At the Kitson store here, the $98 Jonathan Adler zodiac pillows in the window and the $4.95 Silly Bandz rubber jewelry in bins at the door have one thing in common: They are bread crumbs on a carefully designed trail into the depths of the store. Owner Fraser Ross strategically plans his stores’ layout to lure in shoppers with quick-hit gifts and guide them to the more expensive fashions and jewelry at the back. “No one wants to buy anything for themselves anymore,” says Mr. Ross, adding that “you’ve got to get them through the door.”


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