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Five Ways Retail Lighting Supports Staff Wellbeing
Happier employees convert more interactions into sales: one study found that a one-point rise in employee happiness led to a ~12% increase in sales productivity. Conversely, when staff are emotionally exhausted (low mood, fatigue), they are more likely to engage in service sabotage behaviours that undermine customer experience and sales. Lighting is an often-overlooked tool in shaping staff wellbeing. Well-designed lighting helps create environments where employees feel energised, confident, and valued. Here are five ways retailers can use lighting strategically to support staff wellbeing and drive performance. 1. Use Dynamic Lighting Where Staff Spend Time Retail teams often work variable shifts, including early mornings, late evenings, and weekends, which can disrupt natural routines and contribute to fatigue. While full circadian lighting strategies can be difficult to implement across the sales floor, where lighting is often driven by brand standards and visual merchandising requirements, they can be far more effective in staff-focused areas such as break rooms, back-of-house spaces, and cafés. In these environments, lighting can be tuned to support how the space is used throughout the day. Brighter, cooler light may help support alertness in staff areas during early or busy shifts, while warmer, softer light can help create a calmer atmosphere in break spaces later in the day. In customer dwell spaces such as cafés, dynamic lighting can also help shape the pace and feel of the environment, creating brighter, more energised settings during peak periods and warmer, more relaxed conditions later in the day. For staff spending extended time in these environments, this more considered approach to lighting can help create spaces that feel more comfortable, functional, and supportive across the working day. 2. Design for the Task, Not Just the Space Retail staff move constantly between tasks, from replenishing stock and changing displays to operating tills and helping customers. Each task places different demands on the eye, which means lighting needs to support the activity as well as the environment. In practice, this means pairing consistent ambient lighting with more focused task lighting where detailed work takes place, such as stockrooms, fitting rooms, service desks, and checkout areas. Much of this should already be addressed through good lighting design practice. Appropriate light levels, glare control, and visual balance are fundamental to creating spaces that are safe, comfortable, and functional for staff. When lighting is designed around the task at hand, staff can work more accurately and comfortably, helping reduce visual fatigue and support smoother day-to-day operations. 3. Support Inclusivity Retail teams often include people with a wide range of needs, including visual sensitivities, colour vision differences, and neurodivergent traits. Lighting that is too harsh, overly contrasting, or prone to flicker can make the working environment more difficult than it needs to be. Inclusive lighting design helps reduce these issues and creates spaces that feel calmer, more manageable, and more comfortable to work in. This might include providing adjustable lighting in staff-only areas, reducing excessive contrast between surfaces, or using adaptive controls to support specific tasks such as detailed labelling or evening restocking without relying on overly harsh overhead light. These adjustments can help staff feel more comfortable and more in control of their environment, supporting confidence, concentration, and day-to-day wellbeing. Staff who are able to work in conditions that suit them are more likely to feel at ease, provide attentive service, and help the store run smoothly. For further reading, see our interview with Dave Hughes, Head of Lighting Design at Fagerhult, where he discusses how strategic lighting choices can improve accessibility, comfort, and the overall shopping experience for all. 4. Integrate Natural Light In many retail environments, staff spend long hours away from windows or in stockrooms with little or no access to daylight. Yet natural light can have a significant effect on energy, mood, and concentration, with studies suggesting that daylight exposure can increase productivity by more than 60%. Where possible, introducing more daylight into staff spaces can help improve comfort and support alertness throughout the day. This might include incorporating windows, rooflights, or borrowed light into back-of-house areas, break rooms, or shared staff spaces. Studies by Smolders et al. and Boubekri et al. (2014) in office settings found that workers exposed to daylight reported higher vitality, better sleep quality, and improved concentration compared to those without window access. In retail, staff are likely to benefit in similar ways, with more energy and focus throughout their shifts. That can translate into better customer service, stronger attention to merchandising, and fewer errors during busy trading periods. 5. Create Comfortable, Balanced Environments Retail environments serve multiple functions, and lighting should reflect that. The visual needs of a sales floor are different from those of a fitting room, stockroom, till point, or staff break area. A well-considered lighting scheme responds to those differences, using light to support the purpose of each space rather than applying a uniform approach throughout. That may mean brighter, more focused lighting in task-driven areas, softer lighting in staff recovery spaces, or carefully placed feature lighting to draw attention where focus is needed. For example, more targeted lighting can help define areas of attention and support concentration, while softer surrounding light can create a calmer overall environment. When lighting is well-designed and adaptable, it becomes easier for staff to stay focused, work comfortably, and move effectively between the different demands of the retail day. How Fagerhult Can Help Lighting is more than a design feature – it is a practical tool that directly influences staff wellbeing, performance, and the overall customer experience. Even small changes to lighting can make a noticeable difference to staff wellbeing and the day-to-day running of a store. To learn more about designing retail environments that support wellbeing and inclusivity, contact Fagerhult today. A few carefully considered lighting interventions can change how your team feels, works, and connects, creating happier staff and more satisfied customers.
NEWS ARTICLE |
Why Uniform Lighting isn’t Enough for Modern Workplaces
Many offices still rely on static lighting: fixed light levels, fixed colour temperature and a one-size-fits-all approach applied across entire floors. While this supports compliance, it reflects an older model of office design built around consistency rather than the varied ways people work today. Modern workplaces are no longer single-purpose environments. Focused work, collaboration, video calls, and informal conversations all place different demands on the space, yet uniform lighting treats them the same way. A single lighting condition may satisfy baseline standards such as EN 12464-1, but it cannot accommodate different tasks, preferences, sensory needs or employee age. Recent workplace research found that 51.8% of employees identified flexibility as a top priority, while poor lighting was cited alongside noise and lack of personal space as a barrier to performance. This highlights a clear disconnect between traditional lighting strategies and the reality of modern work. Modern Workplaces Require Adaptive Lighting Today’s offices support multiple ways of working across the same footprint. Lighting that supports concentration at a desk may feel too clinical for a breakout space, while lighting designed for social comfort may not provide the clarity needed for focused work. This changes the role of workplace lighting. Rather than delivering a single uniform lighting setup, lighting should help define how the space is used. Subtle shifts in intensity, tone and contrast can distinguish between areas for focus, collaboration and restoration, creating clearer visual cues without relying on physical barriers. Visual Comfort Matters More Than Consistency Uniform light does not automatically mean comfortable light. A workplace may achieve consistent illuminance and still create discomfort if glare, reflections and contrast are poorly managed. In screen-heavy offices, visual comfort depends on more than just meeting an arbitrary illuminance target. Direct glare, veiling reflections and excessive contrast can all contribute to eye strain, fatigue and reduced concentration, even in technically compliant spaces. Effective workplace lighting should balance horizontal and vertical illuminance, maintain appropriate luminance ratios and reduce discomfort glare through careful luminaire placement, shielding and optical control. For modern workplaces, visual comfort is not a refinement. It is a prerequisite for sustained focus, well-being, and performance. Inclusion Requires Flexibility Uniform lighting assumes uniform needs, but workplaces are not uniform. A single lighting condition may meet technical standards yet still feel too bright, too dim, or distracting for different users. People experience light differently. Ageing can increase sensitivity to glare and reduce contrast perception, while neurodivergent users may be more sensitive to flicker, reflections, colour temperature or high illuminance. Inclusive lighting is not about finding a single ideal setting but about creating adaptable environments that support diverse needs throughout the day. Local dimming, zoned lighting, personal control and lower-stimulation areas can all help make workplaces more comfortable. Inclusion depends less on uniformity and more on flexibility. From Static Illumination to Dynamic Lighting Standard office lighting has traditionally focused on delivering a maintained average light level across a workspace. While this supports visibility, it does not fully reflect how people respond to light throughout the day. Human physiology is closely linked to daylight, which shifts in intensity and colour over time. Research suggests that changing light conditions may better support alertness, concentration and cognitive performance than constant lighting. “Static lighting assumes people need the same thing all day. In reality, effective workplace lighting has to respond to changing visual, biological and emotional needs.” — Leslie Thomas, Lighting Technology Manager, Fagerhult UK This is where Human Centric Lighting and Double Dynamic Lighting become relevant. Rather than treating light as a fixed background condition, these approaches consider its visual, biological, and emotional effects, balancing comfort, performance, mood, and well-being. A More Responsive Approach If uniform lighting no longer reflects how modern workplaces function, the alternative is not simply more light, but smarter use of it. A more responsive approach combines ambient, task and accent lighting to create greater visual hierarchy and flexibility. Subtle shifts in tone, intensity and contrast can help define spaces for focus, collaboration and restoration without physical separation. Responsiveness also depends on control. Zoned lighting, local dimming and personal adjustment allow users to shape their immediate environment, while connected systems can respond in real time through occupancy sensing, daylight integration and automated dimming. This improves comfort, supports more efficient use of space and ensures light is delivered where and when it is needed. Lighting as Part of Workplace Performance Workplace lighting should no longer be treated as a background utility designed purely to meet technical requirements. It plays a direct role in how people feel, how well they focus and how effectively they work throughout the day. Light influences more than visibility. It shapes concentration, comfort, mood and alertness, affecting both individual performance and the overall experience of a space. When designed to support comfort, adaptability and human rhythms, lighting becomes a strategic workplace tool rather than a compliance exercise. Rethink What Workplace Lighting Should Deliver If your workplace lighting strategy still prioritises uniformity above all else, it may already be limiting comfort, flexibility and performance. Speak to us to discover how our adaptive lighting solutions can create more responsive, inclusive and effective workplace environments.
NEWS ARTICLE |
Seeing Colour Clearly: How Lighting Builds Trust and Drives Sales
Imagine a customer buying a shirt that looks perfect under your store’s lighting, only to return it days later because the colour appears different in natural light. This mismatch isn’t merely inconvenient – it represents lost revenue, added logistics, and potential erosion of customer trust. Often, the underlying cause is lighting: how products are presented under artificial light shapes every purchasing decision, from apparel to furniture to accessories. The Power of Colour Rendering Among the qualities of effective store lighting, colour rendering – the ability of light to display products’ true colours accurately – is an essential factor in building trust and supporting sales. For decades, the industry relied on the Colour Rendering Index (CRI), a scale of up to 100, where higher values meant closer alignment with natural daylight. CRI helped establish a common language, but it only measured a very limited set of colours. Today, the industry is moving forward with RF metrics. RF examines 99 colour samples instead of just eight, offering a more detailed and reliable picture of how accurately a light source will reveal colours. Often paired with RG (gamut), which shows how vivid colours appear, these tools give retailers the confidence that their products will look authentic and consistent. Why Colour Accuracy Matters Customers expect products to appear consistent under standard store lighting and in typical real-world conditions. Discrepancies in shade or tone can contribute to disappointment and, in some cases, returns, particularly when other expectations, such as fit or quality, are already aligned. “If products do not appear as expected, that can be a real issue,” says Dave Hughes, Head of Lighting Design at Fagerhult. By contrast, accurate colour rendering enables customers to make informed decisions with confidence. They feel assured that what they see in store is what they will get. Dave Studies have shown that lighting operates “below the level of our immediate awareness” to subtly influence perception and behaviour. Inconsistent or poor-quality lighting can subtly affect how customers perceive products, which may influence their confidence and trust in the store. Beyond Returns: Shaping the Customer Experience Accurate lighting improves more than just return rates; it shapes the overall customer experience. Shoppers who feel confident in their purchases develop a positive impression of the store, increasing the likelihood of repeat visits. Fagerhult has explored ways to enhance this experience, such as adjustable fitting room lighting. This feature allows customers to see how garments appear in different environments – from cool daylight to warmer evening settings – creating an engaging, authentic shopping experience. Academic studies support this: lighting shapes not just what customers see, but how they feel. It affects mood, time spent in store, and even product preference. Positive lighting atmospheres encourage shoppers to linger, browse, and ultimately purchase more. Common Mistakes in Retail Lighting Despite the proven value of good lighting, mistakes are common. The most damaging, according to Dave, is simply failing to upgrade. “Some retailers stick with what they have and try to make the most of it, which can be a missed opportunity.” Other mistakes come from poor coordination. Lighting as an afterthought can clash with store layouts, for example, ceiling heights or fixture placements that make displays difficult to illuminate properly. While not strictly a colour rendering issue, such oversights undermine the impact of high-quality lighting. Lighting research highlights the balance needed between technical precision and atmospheric design. Manufacturers focus on measurable factors, such as lux levels and shadow elimination, while designers shape mood and experience through contrasts and layering. Effective retail lighting combines both approaches: it must meet technical standards and enhance the customer’s emotional journey. Fagerhult’s Approach Fagerhult prioritises collaboration and early engagement in the design process. If possible, lighting is integrated from the outset, working alongside interior designers, architects, and retailers. “Our approach is to engage as much as possible with our clients and ensure lighting isn’t an afterthought; it’s considered throughout the design process so that everything works together,” says Dave. A Single Piece of Advice Asked to summarise his guidance to retailers, Dave highlights communication: “Engage designers as early as possible. That gives you the best result – a great experience in your store, building trust, boosting sales, and reducing returns.” Light is more than illumination: it is a silent partner in every purchase decision. With accurate colour rendering, stores can create an environment where customers see products as they truly are, feel confident in their choices, and are less likely to return items due to unexpected colours or appearances. Returns can still occur for other reasons, of course, but accurate lighting helps ensure that colour-related surprises are minimised, reinforcing customer trust and strengthening long-term loyalty. Transform your store experience today – contact Fagerhult and see how expert lighting can boost sales, build trust, and reduce returns. Get in touch.
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