Sneaky Retailer tricks

I was once working on a brand of men's shirts. To do some quick, cheap research, we went to the neighborhood Macy's and wandered around, following people as secretly as we could, while they shopped. The very interesting thing that happened was that we quickly realized that we were being followed, by a rather large dude who seemed to be speaking into a sunglasses case. The store detective! We decided to cut this research project off rather quickly.

Anyhow: I happened upon a list of the tactics that store designers use to increase the effectiveness of their space. I've often thought that web designers should learn from store designers. Not necessarily to copy their actual tactics, but the way they thing about the space is key. Store designers think in terms of revenue per square foot. That forces them to not only be efficient, but to carefully consider what to put in which space, to get the most value out of the area.