One fact sheet sent to my clients on shop layouts is wrong; too much Americanism. Although US research on retailing is excellent, retailing there is generally behind in Australia. Besides, it is a different culture. Any idea that comes from the US has to be modified for Australia.
Firstly unlike in the US, customers here tend to look at your shop in a clockwise manner when they enter your shop. This is as we drive on the left side of the road, so our habit is to go left. So it is on the left where your most profitable items should be, and on the right is where your counter should be.
Of course, it gets more complex. We divide retail shop layouts into six basic types. A good discussion can be found here.
In my experience, the best design for my clients is the loop.
If your layout concerns you, I suggest
1) Getting a feel of the theory here.
2) Study your top-selling and companion stock reports before moving. You need an idea of what you have.
3) Then check out a few stores. Once you know the ideas, it is easy to see what the designers are trying to do. With the majors who have heaps of money and time, you will find that they have worked it out. Nothing is by accident. Try to figure out the purpose.
4) If you do anything serious, always insist on seeing a planogram. A good shopfitter should be able to produce a professional one quickly. With a pencil and paper you can do a reasonable job too. Then study it, check the traffic flows, the top buying points, etc.
A good shop layout can improve sales in a shop.
