My Career: 500 mannequins to dress... and amazing props!
Lisa McCarthy Spectrum Display
Name: Lisa McCarthy
Age: 47
Lives: County Cork
Job title: Visual Merchandiser, Spectrum Display
Salary bracket: (€30-70k) - but there are opportunities to earn more.
Education background: Diploma in Fine Art: Painting in LSAD (Limerick School of Art and Design).
Hobbies: Going to gigs and the odd festival, reading, cooking, and all types of art and crafts. I like to keep trying new skills and techniques.
Describe your job in five words: Creative, Fun, Commercial, Collaborative, Physical.
Describe yourself in five words: Creative, Patient, Sociable, Fair, Hard-working.
Personality needed for this kind of work? Visual Merchandising (VM) tends to attract imaginative and innovative types - people that can react quickly and problem- solve in a variety of ways.
How long are you doing this job? I have worked for 21 years in VM, thankfully I love it more each year.
How did you get this job? My first glimpse at Visual Merchandising came when I was working in French Connection’s flagship store in London. I was a sales assistant, but the role piqued my interest, I loved that they were intentionally shaping the customer experience and everything they did looked cool!
When I returned home, I started working as an Area Visual Manager for Dunnes Stores. At that time a diploma in some form of art was the requirement. I did a lot of merchandising in homewares and fashion, and while I had a background in design, I learned a lot of the basics through trial and error.
After moving to Cork, I worked for Pendrix Display with John Riordan, I learned about selling display products for different scale jobs and the practicalities of implementing designs. I still collaborate with him to this day.
My next move was to Debenhams, starting just before they opened their doors in Mahon Point. It was a wonderful experience to open a store with so many different brand identities and a big budget – we had 500 mannequins to dress and gorgeous props. It was a fabulous endeavour and a wonderful team. That store was a major success, smashing forecasts and drawing huge crowds. A lot of very talented people worked in that business and I learnt lots both creatively and managerially.
Retail is renowned for promoting from within, and I soon found myself in the role of Regional Visual Presentation Manager for Debenhams Ireland. I travelled Ireland, England occasionally internationally in this role - opening stores, setting up centres of excellence, and training. I have always enjoyed the variety that traveling around for work provides.
When redundancy happened in 2016, that (and good friends) opened the door to freelance work and setting up Spectrum Display (then Visual Retail Solutions).
Now I work with a mix of small and large retailers, mostly independant and Irish owned. There’s huge passion and personality in the independent retail sector and my favourite part of my work is finding and amplifying that unique spark in their business and getting them seen in busy marketplaces.
Training and mentoring are also a part of my business. I am a mentor with the Cork Local Enterprise Offices, helping small businesses design stores, set up exhibition spaces and learn product display.
Training and VM have always gone hand in hand for me, and right now I am lecturing part time on Visual Merchandising BA at Technical University Dublin.
Do you need particular qualifications or experience? It depends on the company - there are opportunities to train on the job within some companies. A lot require a VM qualification, such as the BA in Visual Merchandising in TU Dublin. The experience and skillset these graduates develop is very impressive.
Visual Merchandising is evolving and growing constantly, with innovative materials and technology creating exciting new opportunities.
Describe a day at work: I could describe the week and no two days would be the same.
On Mondays, I focus on running the business and administrative tasks.
For the rest of the week my days can include: Designing new window schemes and store lay- outs. Installing window displays. Product merchandising. Designing colour schemes. Sourcing props and fixtures, making props. Mentoring Clients. Writing and delivering training.
When working on Christmas installations or large retail merchandising project, intensive 12 hour shifts overnight are often required. Minimising disruption and avoiding closures are priority.
Each month, I attend a couple of networking events, this has become really important to me. I’m a latecomer to it, but it’s been a really positive experience. I go to events held by the Cork Local Enterprise Offices, The Club Women’s Network, Cork Business Association, and The Women’s Network Cork. For me these events are not about selling, they are a great opportunity to meet and connect, build a support network and support each other.
How many hours do you work a week? 35-45 for normal weeks, but during peak times that can double.
As a small business owner, it can be hard to turn away work, especially during the Christmas rush. The hours are changeable too, I often work overnight to install schemes while shops are empty.
Long days are not unusual in VM, and each person has to find their own balance.
What do you wear to work? Mostly jeans, boots and some colour. I keep it casual on display jobs, clothes get ripped and stained. I love clothes and believe in representing yourself in how you dress.
Is your industry male or female dominated? Female, but all my Creative Directors have been male.
Does this affect you in any particular way? I would like to see a better mix across all levels of the sector, top and bottom - that would be a good thing for teams and businesses in general, I think.
Is your job stressful? How? Rate it on a scale of 1-10: 7/10 Sometimes it is. I have two types of stress – One comes from being a business owner, sales and admin can be a worry. The other stress comes with trying something new creatively, which is productive and pushes me to do better. Overall, I wouldn’t describe it as a highly stressful profession.
Do you work with others or on your own? I am usually working solo, when I need help I am so fortunate to call on Yvonne Harte from @four_at_14. We’ve worked together for years. Yvonne’s an incredibly talented VM with an eye for detail and a great work ethic.
When do you plan to retire or give up working? While I may not be lugging around plinths and mannequins into my old age, I hope that I will be teaching and speaking about it for as long as I can.
Best bits: The feedback, hearing my clients talk about their customers reactions, those connections are the reason I’m there, and seeing them excited and proud is the best part. Being creative in my job. Meeting loads of new people. Independence.
Worst bits: Loading and unloading my car multiple times a week! Losing confidence – it happens, it can dip for no reason or because you have a setback, and that’s when you need your support network.
Advice to those who want your job? It’s a fabulous career, go for it! So many different businesses need these skills, and there’s a broad variety of roles to suit different creative talents. There is a lot of hard slog behind the scenes, if you’re on for that, you’ll love it.
Any other comments? Writing this has brought me down memory lane, it’s a great exercise.
Thanks to all the people that have encouraged, educated, and inspired me along the way, and huge gratitude to all my clients.
When people invite me into the precious business they have nurtured and grown, it’s a huge act of trust and collaboration, a bonus I didn’t foresee when I started working for myself.
@spectrumdisplaybylisa
www.linkedin.com/in/spectrumdisplay Sa
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