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This article is the second installment of a two-part series on using lighting and color to revamp your store.

The construction foreman tried to talk them out of their color choice. He grabbed a piece of drywall and painted it the peachy color the retailers had picked out. Then he held it up where the walls were going to be.

"Can you see this orange all over the store, he asked.

Brenda Murr, vice president of Mermaid Pools, Spas & Patio in Anderson, Ind., laughs as she remembers his determination to prove the store's staff wrong in their color selection. But the decision stood. The color, peach sorbet, was painted on the walls 14 feet up from the floor, and then a cream, vanilla color continued onto the ceiling.

When the painting was done, Murr says, "we were so tickled with the colors. The blues [in the displays] play off the peach just gorgeous. Even the foreman admitted it looked good."

More importantly, the colors created a more welcoming look for customers.

That's because color--whether it appears on the walls or in the flooring or cabinetry or even in pictures or banners on the wall--can convey subtle messages to consumers about products and your store. It can even help target a particular customer base.

"We could have stayed safely where we were in the old store, [which was painted in the traditional blue and white scheme]," Murr says. "But we wanted to capture more money per customer."

The best part: Adding color is probably the least expensive way to spruce up even the most outdated store. Paint costs less than $20 a gallon and accessories can be had for as much or as little as you wish to spend, depending on your creativity.

Picking your palette

Retail designers recommend that before you choose the color for your store's walls, flooring, cabinetry and accessories, first consider the emotional response to your merchandise and store that you want consumers to experience.

How do you want people to feel? Calm and relaxed about making purchases at your place? Comfortable about browsing through the aisles? Or do you want them to feel excited and impulsive? (For ideas, see sidebar.)

After you've decided the right mood for your store to exude and chosen a dominant color based on it, you must next figure out the best way to use the color with your product selection.

This process is often difficult for pool and spa retailers because of the wide variety of products sold in one place. Retailers have no control over the color of their products and in this industry, a store without any interior decorating still can offer a rainbow of color.

But too much color in a store can seem chaotic to shoppers. Also, colors often will dash and strain people's eyes, which can turn them off from staying long in a store and buying the merchandise.

Blank white walls are not the best answer, however, say designers.

"White is not a warm color, and selling water is not about selling cold," says Brian Dyches, retail designer at the Retail Resource Group in Laguna Niguel, Calif. "White connotes value, a price discount."

Whether you have lots of color in your merchandise or blank walls to conquer, the designers say when you decide to make changes, choosing a limited number of colors to work with is best.

Linda Cahan, a retail designer based in Redding, Conn., recommends choosing four or five focal points [for color] within your store. For example, after selecting the wall and flooring colors, you can use shades of those colors or other coordinating colors to then differentiate your spa display, service counter and toy section.

Combining colors

Although color is rather subjective, you can still find the right color combinations for your store by borrowing ideas from retail professionals--and even other stores.

"I learned to try and imitate what was going on around me," says Kevin McPhee, image director at B&N Industries, a retail design firm in San Carlos, Calif.

"And still today, I read, look at and buy tons of books about color. I tear articles out from magazines and go on the Internet. I carry my "spy" camera whenever I travel. And sometimes I try and do what another designer or artist has already accomplished."

Dyches says he often tries to mimic colors used in homes. He suggests looking at model homes in your area to see which colors people are using.

Cahan finds that "the No. 1 rule is, it works if it is found in nature."

For instance, use blues sparingly in store interiors. "Blues put together look awful. They clash," she says. Instead, Cahan advises that soft greens, taupe and beige be used as complementary colors to one chosen blue.

She also says certain colors combined can make the merchandise look more valuable to consumers, and can help retailers target a customer base with a significant disposable income.

"The wealthy like more complicated colors ... ones that are muted or blended," Cahan says, adding that they are also attracted to dark green, beige and navy blue. Dark wood finishes also add to the perception of quality.

In general, especially where a lot of merchandise is displayed, it

is best to stay away from bright colors in wall paint, flooring and cabinetry. Peach is among the colors having the most pleasant associations for consumers, according to the Pantone Color Institute.

McPhee says green is one of the most varied and versatile colors he uses--and one of his favorites in retail design.

"It can easily be paired with wood for a warm, endearing feel, or with bright metal for a high-key modern aura," he says.

Dyches likes to use warm "sun family" colors, such as warmer yellows and orange rust, when designing for pool and spa stores.

The finishing touch

Be careful about using bright merchandising banners prominently if they don't fit into your color scheme, warns Cahan. Also, do not use them in desperation to hide white walls.

"If you're trying to sell customers things that are going into their homes, you don't want to draw eyes up walls," she says. "Not many of them are going to have banners up on their walls. Keep [the banners] away from the nice merchandise. Instead, put smaller company merchandising on the displays."

Then, to replace the idea of hanging banners, she suggests adding color above that will work with the atmosphere of the store.

"Try a sea sponge mosaic, or a mural of a scene of woods, or an outdoor painting of trees. Hang fabric backdrops, especially for seasonal displays--in winter, a rose tone, for example. Pink is also a very sexy color. Think Victoria's Secret pink, not Pepto-Bismol pink. Have that color fabric hanging behind the spa display with a vase full of huge white feathers in front."

Finally, don't be afraid to change your colors often. "I advise retailers to repaint their stores every three to five years to keep up with the trends," Dyches says.

RELATED ARTICLE: True colors.

The colors you choose to work with can affect the moods of consumers and make a difference in how they feel while in your store.

Here's a look at some popular colors and the emotions they generate:

RED The most excitable color for consumers, bright shades of red often are used in retail design to dramatically direct people's attention to specific displays.

PURPLE This color is often attributed to wealth and can be used in retail design to create a higher-end look. Purple reflects power and sophistication and is especially popular among 18-to-29-year-olds, who consider it "sexy," according to a Pantone Color Institute survey.

BLUE Often popular with consumers during times of economic instability because it is associated with calm, trust, tradition and quality, says Kevin McPhee, image director at B&N Industries, a retail design firm in San Carlos, Calif. It is also the favorite color of most Americans.

BLACK Also a color that often attracts those with more to spend, according to the survey--especially wealthy, achievement-oriented women who view it as mysterious, powerful and sophisticated. Blue-collar or middle-aged men and women, however, tend to associate black with mourning, the survey found.

YELLOW The most difficult color to work with in retail design. "Despite its connotation of sunny, happy and warm feelings, overuse of it can create anxiety and tension. It is said that if you want to lose weight, paint your kitchen yellow. It'll make the stomach nervous," McPhee says.

GREEN The easiest color for retailers to design with. It has the most variations in shade and thus its use tends to rate high with all consumers. Greens reflecting the natural environment, such as those with browns and grays in them, are most well-liked in retail design, according to Linda Cahan, a retail designer based in Redding, Conn.