Background Music in Retail Spaces: Can it make you a loyal customer?

I know there are a lot of Mango fans out there. A lot of women are fond of Mango’s fashions and accessories. But based on my visit to Mango as one of the locations for my paper on music in retail spaces, I found that the music they play in their stores plays an integral role, in keeping you ladies in there longer, and keep you coming back for another taste of trendy, young, chic enjoyable atmosphere. I was unable to cover the account of my study of the Mango fashion store in my paper, so I hereby spill the study of the use of background music in one of Doha’s popular fashion stores.

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When I went to Mango with my sociological intentions in mind, the store was not having a sale (sadly). Their final promotion ended over 3 weeks ago. And being a frequent visitor to the store, I realized that the music they played during sales varied in pace and volume from that played when they were not having a sale. There was definitely an added effect from the background music. The fast paced, loud music created the feeling of rush and anxiety, that “shop till you drop” sensation. It invoked feelings that urges you to hurry and grab as many merchandise as you can lay your hands on. People were loud and the music even louder, immersing shoppers in a “hungry for more” vibe, unbeatable prices that must be taken advantage of while they last. It was almost as though the music narrated the chaotic rapid random movement of clients in and out and within the shop, distracting us from the mess, and pulling our focus to one thing and one thing only: to shop, and to shop as much as you can. The music heightened the enthusiasm, and stamina in shoppers to keep digging through heaps of clothes, and grab whatever even if it wasn’t their size, because you don’t want to regret it later, when it has all run out. Moreover, the music stimulated my subconscious keeping me “into” what I was doing – shopping.



However, when I visited Mango just a few days ago, the ambience created by the music was not at all the image I described above. The mess and chaos was gone, the heaps of unfolded clothing transformed back into neatly, spotless, immaculate small piles of eye-catching fashions, and delicately hung dresses, skirts, and shirts on glistening racks. And the music echoed this fashion sophistication. Mango’s slogan, found on their catalogues and website reads: “Fashion for the young urban woman”.



And the music definitely compliments this statement as well as their arrangement of clothing and fashion styles. The type of music didn’t change much, they were still pop songs, a variety of remixes, techno music and popular hits, but the volume was marginally reduced, and the pace of the song played reasonably slower than what I had experienced about a month ago during the winter sale. The music played invoked this sense of “young” “trendy” and “urban” complimenting their products and creating an attractive environment for their target audience. I felt comfortable in their store, the music adding to the enjoyment factor, and kept me entertained as I browsed through the items on display. The beats varied from slow to faster, from warm to hip and cool and modern keeping my senses from getting bored. It kept me in this “urban” environment, making feel as though I were part of this preppy, trendy lifestyle, elegant while still youthful and casual. Positive emotions harvest positive experiences, and positive experiences harvest more visits, and more visits render more purchases and ultimately this is a business, and increased consumption is what they are after.



The critical theory best fits the analysis of my experience of background music in Mango. The pace, type, choice of music was used to fit the brand, market it, sell you a “lifestyle’ and pleasant experience, to keep you buying more of their products, and keep you entertained while you’re doing so that you’ll come back for more. The use of background to distract us from anything else but shopping relates to the critical theory’s main concept about the culture industries transforming us into mindless, materialistic, consumers, providing us with entertainment designed to distract us from other important dimensions of our lives.



There are organizations that help shops find the right music for their shops, restaurants and other retail spaces, and create the perfect match that is best for their marketing strategy to help increase sales. Shops are now paying more attention to the background music they play, as studies proved their effectiveness in increasing sales and customer loyalty.



Though I‘d hate to think I’m being manipulated by industries, evidence does suggest that background music in retail spaces is just another tool for enhancing the shopping experience making it memorable and enjoyable, so that we can all enjoy shopping, and if we do, we’ll probably consume more and more, which according to the critical theory is the focal point of the machinations of culture industries.