Every retailer wants to stand out from the competition, and often that means creating store designs complete with unique layouts, visual merchandising, and fixtures. Some retailers take the process one step further-they want a fixture that is not only unique to their chain, but a "one-off," or one-of-a-kind fixture unique to a single store.

Building one-offs is not easy or inexpensive. It's important for store planners to assess whether the store image is worth the investment. Here are some important considerations to keep in mind when deciding whether to make one custom fixture:

1. You will pay more... sometimes a lot more.

The amount of time it takes to design and engineer a one-off is the same as the time required to build a fixture
prototype, and the experts must be paid for their time. Unfortunately, with a one-off there is no potential for economies of scale to bring down the cost. "You lose the ability to amortize tooling and other set-up costs over multiple pieces," says Bill Naidenovich, president of Pacific Coast Showcase Inc. In addition, a one-off will generally be built by a higher-paid craftsman, rather than by a less skilled production worker. And to make a one-time statement with a fixture, small quantities of specialized materials are often required at substantial cost.

2. Lead time is much longer

Just like prototypes, one-of-a-kind fixtures, or "snowflakes," as Naidenovich calls them, require longer up-front development time. "Quoting the job accurately is more difficult, so estimating takes longer," he says. It's challenging for manufacturers to engineer and procure materials concurrently, and any new fixture design requires a learning curve for the builders. As Ken Albright, president and sales director of seven continents, points out, "What looks the simplest is often the most difficult."

The original design must often be re-engineered several times in order to meet everyone's objectives, adding additional approval time to the process.

3. Not every plant can or will build it for you

Go with a store fixture vendor you know. Most fixture manufacturers avoid one-offs unless they are asked to build one for a longstanding customer or the fixture is for a high-profile project. Albright does about 10 one-offs a year. He likes them because they stretch his manufacturing team and add to the company's menu of capabilities. However, it is often difficult to combine the one-off design mentality with a high-production rollout mentality. Brian Viger, vice president-marketing at Trinity Engineering Inc., says, "We work hard to balance the art of keeping large productions on schedule while ensuring that this one piece comes out perfect." Some manufacturers like Trinity Engineering build one-offs in a separate department, where highly skilled craftsmen can focus on the project. Others, like seven continents and Pacific Coast Showcase, keep the projects in the main production line, except for specific steps that require skilled labor.

Knowing what's involved, if you're positive that your store's image will benefit from the extra cost and time of creating a one-off, and you've identified a store fixture manufacturer that will build one for you, then have at it. A fruitful partnership between a retailer and a manufacturer committed to turning a one-of-a-kind idea into reality can result in a unique presentation for a special location. You might even find that your "snowflake" fixture becomes the prototype for a new roll-out for your stores.