Catriona Woodgate, Director
Catriona’s enthusiasm and enjoyment of Visual Merchandising and the business of retailing has not waned throughout a career of almost 30 years.
Her depth of experience ranges from large chain environments with great retail brands such as OPSM, Sunglass Hut, Sussan, Rockmans, Suzanne Grae, Rebel Sport and Australian Geographic, to numerous small chain and specialty retailers while working with the Westfield team.
Working from strategic down to detailed projects, she gains the knowledge and insight to produce the optimum results for each retail client.
Catriona makes a conscious effort to ensure she doesn’t become “store blind” herself and to remain in touch with the way customers respond to retail experiences. In delivering results for clients she draws on her experience along with her awareness of what is relevant to customers and retailers today.
Catriona’s career as a Visual Merchandising Manager began with Sussan Corporation at a very exciting period in the company’s growth which included the launch of the highly successful “This Goes With That” advertising campaigns. Later working with Suzanne Grae and then Rockmans, Catriona attributes her success to the expert retailers in all three organisations who contributed to her knowledge.
The accumulation of a wealth of experience led to Catriona establishing her retail consulting business, Catriona Woodgate Visual Merchandising Management, 10 years ago. During this time she has been working with well-known national and global retail brands as well as smaller retailers.
Working with a wide range of specialty retail businesses, she has gained insight into diverse retail categories and depth of experience in all facets of Visual Merchandising.
Our Visual Merchandising Philosophy
Our Visual Merchandising philosophy is simple …
- always see a retail store through the customer’s eyes.
- visual merchandising is about making sales.
Empathy and insight enable us to see retail stores from the customer’s point of view. We are fascinated by the psychology of shopping and gaining insight into how customers interact with the store environment by observing customer behaviour.
Successful Visual Merchandising balances business considerations with creativity and provides flexible solutions for a changing retail environment.
When working with our clients, we encourage and foster a culture that recognises the significance and value of Visual Merchandising in successful retail stores.
With the proliferation of so much choice in retail stores and online retail, retailers need to stand out from the crowd. Retailers who recognise the benefits of superior Visual Merchandising and store presentation standards will strengthen their brand equity and maximise their sales.
Testimonials
I have had the pleasure of working with Catriona Woodgate extensively over the past 4 years through her Visual Merchandising consultancy role within Luxottica.
Within that time, Catriona has been involved in a variety of projects across our four retail brands – OPSM, Budget Eyewear, Laubman & Pank and Sunglass Hut – working across the key business areas of Visual Merchandising, Product & Property.
Project managing a broad variety of store refurbishment programs as well as a number of merchandise and visual enhancement programs, Catriona has demonstrated an ability to move from small, detail oriented projects through to large scale roll outs with equal skill and expertise.
Through her involvement with Luxottica, Catriona has also played an integral role in assisting with an important culture shift within the business – from that of little understanding, to an appreciation of the invaluable role of a superior retail environment.
Contributing across all levels within the organisation, Catriona can move seamlessly from corporate strategy to tactical execution and would be a valuable asset to any organisation with a desire to strengthen brand equity within the marketplace.
Mary-Jane Hayes
Group Visual Merchandising Manager
Luxottica
8th December, 2008
I have worked with Catriona Woodgate for over 6 years in my roles of Visual Merchandising Manager, National Marketing Manager and finally Group Merchandising Manager of Luxottica Retail (formerly OPSM).
Over the last 6 years Catriona has been an important contributor to the growth of OPSM visually from a quasi-medical brand to that of a fashion retailer. Over that time the organisation has grown from 300 stores to over 800 stores as did the scope of Catriona’s work.
I initially contracted Catriona to develop and execute the visual merchandising strategies for OPSM. As the organisation grew, Catriona was contracted to execute numerous programmes and projects that included merchandise display solutions, store upgrades & makeovers, store rebranding strategies, signage changeovers and project managing large capital programmes involving million dollar budgets. Her experience with Luxottica touched on all retail brands including OPSM, Sunglass Hut, Budget Eyewear and Laubman & Pank.
Catriona will always deliver a solution that balances both the creative and the business’ need to deliver a practical profitable solution. I would thoroughly recommend her work to any retailer that needs to improve their visual presentation whether it is a small product display or a large network wide capital programme.
Ian Whelan
Group Merchandising Manager
Luxottica
17th August 2008
Catriona was brought into Rebel Sport to complete a full overhaul of the Visual Merchandising Department. This included a re-structure of the department, creation of the new print and graphics package, creation of the minimum standards manual and the re-training of all of the VM’s to the new standards. This was completed ahead of the planned time and contributed to a reduction in the overall cost of the department whilst dramatically improving the in-store presentation and therefore sales.
On top of this, Catriona created a new standard for apparel presentation, created the look for the successful swimwear store at Rebel Warringah Mall and contributed to the new store formats in layout and design.
Catriona’s ability to take a broad brief and create a detailed project plan and then implement to above expectation is outstanding.
Phil Allison
Director
Corporate Edge Coaching
(Formerly GM Operations, Rebel Sport)
January 2009
I have been working with Catriona Woodgate for over 7 years in both an online and offline capacity. As a Strategic Marketing Agency – Evolve Group requires a team of strategic contributors to realise paradigm shifting strategies across media platforms. Catriona’s insight facilitates the effective and efficient showcasing of product for the consumer – from the consumer perspective delivering a heightened communication effect within the forum in which she consults. She is a positive, inspired talent – which I will continue to work with for years to come
Tonia Port
Managing Director
Evolve Group Pty Limited
I am lucky in my job to work with people that I enjoy working with, sometimes in situations that puts all involved under a little bit of pressure.
I have worked with Catriona Woodgate on countless varied retail projects including Rebel Sport, OPSM, Australian Geographic and Luxottica. Everything from new store roll outs to intricate refresh projects with a large level of store customisation.
As a retail consultant Catriona makes Brand bibles and guide lines into store reality using her vast retail experience. Catriona’s eye for detail in conjunction with store testing prior to roll out always guarantees successful projects. It also makes every project a team experience with a predictable outcome for everyone and as a supplier we do really appreciate that!
I enjoy working with Catriona and she is a real asset to the Australian retailing industry. We are looking forward to working with her again, on the next great project.
Fredrik Uden
Director Flash Photobition
January 2009
