체험형 코스메틱 공간의 VMD 연출이 브랜드 이미지에 미치는 영향 - 헤테로토피아적 공간 경험의 매개효과를 중심으로 -

초록

(Background and Purpose) Offline cosmetic spaces have been redefined beyond simple retail functions as experiential venues that directly communicate a brand's unique worldview. This shift places greater strategic demands on Visual Merchandising(VMD) as a spatial communication tool while also revealing the limitations of purely visual spectacles in forming lasting brand impressions among consumers. Accordingly, this study applies Foucault's concept of Heterotopia to experiential cosmetic spaces to empirically examine the causal structure through which VMD direction characteristics (independent variable) influence brand image (dependent variable) via heterotopic spatial experience (mediating variable). (Method) Based on a review of prior literature, VMD direction was categorized into sensory, narrative, and experiential characteristics. Heterotopic spatial experience was structured across four dimensions: boundary, plurality, temporality, and fantasy. Brand image was composed of brand awareness, brand attitude, and brand association. Accordingly, a research model and four hypotheses (H1–H4) were established. An online survey using a five-point Likert scale was administered to general consumers who had visited experiential cosmetic stores, yielding a final sample of 112 valid responses. The collected data were analyzed sequentially using SPSS 27.0 through reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), linear regression analysis, and simple mediation analysis via PROCESS Macro. (Results) The results indicated that VMD direction characteristics (X) had a significant positive effect on heterotopic spatial experience (M) (β=0.7820, p<.001), and heterotopic spatial experience (M) had a significant positive effect on brand image (Y) (β=0.3341, p<.001). Both the direct effect (β=0.2368, p<.01) and total effect (β=0.4980, p<.001) of VMD direction on brand image were statistically significant. Furthermore, the indirect effect verified through bootstrapping (β=0.2613) showed a 95% confidence interval (LLCI=0.1098, ULCI=0.4224) that did not include zero, confirming the statistical significance of the partial mediating role of heterotopic spatial experience. (Conclusions) This study empirically demonstrated that the VMD direction in experiential cosmetic spaces not only exerts a direct influence on brand image independently but also reinforces multi-layered brand awareness, attitude, and association through the indirect pathway of visitors' heterotopic spatial experience, constituting a partial mediation structure. These findings suggest that the organic integration of sensory stimulation, narrative immersion, and experiential participation in VMD planning deepens consumers' extraordinary spatial experiences, and ultimately drives the formation of a positive brand image. This study holds academic significance in empirically validating the Heterotopia concept as an analytical framework for consumer spatial experience and offers practical implications as a foundational reference for VMD design strategies applicable across diverse offline brand touchpoints, including cosmetic flagship stores and pop-up stores.

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