Endcap Displays vs. Floor Displays: The Pros and Cons for Grocery Environments

August 11, 2025

Endcaps and floor displays are two of the most effective ways to win customer attention without a full grocery store remodel. Each has clear strengths depending on space, traffic patterns, and merchandising goals.

Kinter-Endcap_Displays-Floor_Displays Use this blog to evaluate when to deploy an endcap or floor display, how to avoid common mistakes, and which Kinter retail display hardware can help you execute your goals with speed and consistency.

What Is an Endcap Display?

Endcaps sit at the ends of aisles, where shopper traffic is naturally highest, and give grocery stores extra display real estate without crowding main shelves. They’re ideal for seasonal features, overstock, or items nearing expiration when presentation and speed-to-purchase matter.

What are the Benefits of Endcaps in Grocery Environments?

Encaps boosts product visibility. Studies link endcaps to a 93% lift in exposure and a 32% increase in sales.
Encaps offer an efficient use of space. Endcaps convert underutilized aisle ends into high-impact real estate, which is especially valuable for grocery stores with limited space.
Fast to deploy. Modular retail display accessories and hardware make resets quick and repeatable.
Product tie-ins. Endcaps are a great option for bundling complementary items to drive basket size. For example, perforated shelf ends can turn into mini-displays with wire power wings.

What are the Downsides of Using Endcaps?

Potential for clutter. Poorly managed or overfilled endcap displays can create visual clutter, making the store look disorganized and potentially deterring customers.
Maintenance demand. Endcaps require regular upkeep. If endcap displays become messy, empty, or unchanged for too long, their effectiveness drops and they may even detract from the store's appeal.
Limited product space. Only a small fraction of store items (often around 2%) can be featured on endcaps. As a result, endcap product selection is critical, and many products will not receive the same high-visibility benefit.
Distraction from other products. Poorly chosen endcap products may overshadow regular shelf items, which could hurt overall category sales if not balanced properly.

Learn more about retail display hardware for grocery store environments.

What Is a Floor Display?

A floor display is a freestanding merchandising unit, such as a bin, rack, or pallet stack, placed directly on the sales floor to showcase products. Grocery store retailers use floor displays to add capacity, feature seasonal or promotional items, and drive impulse purchases in high-traffic areas.

What are the Benefits of Grocery Store Floor Displays?

Strategic adjacency. Floor displays offer grocery stores the opportunity to place items that pair well together. For example, non-refrigerated complements can be displayed near cold or frozen items to spur impulse buys.
Flexibility and mobility. Floor displays can be easily moved or repositioned to accommodate changing store layouts, seasonal promotions, or new product launches.
Efficient use of space. By utilizing vertical space and multi-level racks, floor displays maximize product exposure and capacity without crowding shelves, optimizing revenue per square foot.

Read a case study about how one major grocery store chain trusted Kinter to help solve a critical organizational problem.

What Are the Downsides of Using Floor Displays?

Takes up floor space. Floor displays can take up significant square footage. For smaller stores, this can lead to crowded conditions and limit customer movement or display space for other products.
Maintenance demands. Floor displays require regular updating and upkeep. If left neglected, they can become messy, damaged, or outdated. They are also prone to damage by traffic, carts, and cleaning.
Potential for inefficient layout: Poorly planned floor display placement can disrupt store flow, create bottlenecks, or block sightlines to other merchandise, frustrating customers and potentially driving them away.

Endcap vs. Floor Display: How to Choose the Right Option for Grocery Stores

Goal	Best Solution
Product feature or launch, clearance, or high-velocity promotion	Endcap
Build adjacencies and impulse purchases near high-traffic areas	Floor display
Tight spaces with limited aisle width	Endcap
Open zones, queue lines, lobby, or storefront	Floor display
Labor and maintenance	Either
Frequent moves and promotions across the store	Floor display
Assortment size, curated SKUs	Endcap
Broader mix or bundles	Floor display

Execution Tips to Maximize Results

Endcaps and floor displays bring great product visibility opportunities to grocery stores and offer many benefits to boost sales and product impact. Consider these tips to maximize placement and long-term value.

Planograms and adjacencies: Based on your grocery store layout, make a strategic plan for product placement to tie products together.
Signage and price visibility: Keep messaging at eye level, and use clean, consistent paper tags or electronic shelf labels.
Set a maintenance cadence: Face shelves daily and replenish as needed, and assign clear ownership for each area.
Measure and iterate: Track sell-through, attach rates, and traffic, then rotate underperformers.
Safety and flow: Maintain ADA and egress widths, and avoid blocking sightlines to core categories.

Why Choose Kinter?

Kinter designs durable, easy-to-install endcap and floor display grocery store retail display hardware that helps teams execute fast and maintain flawless presentation.

With deep inventory, rapid shipping, and custom options, we make it simple to scale seasonal promotions and everyday merchandising across your grocery stores.

Ready to upgrade endcaps or floor displays?

Explore our full catalog to find endcap and floor display hardware to meet your unique grocery store environment, or contact us for expert help with sourcing, planning, or custom solutions.

Additional Resources:

Back to All Posts