RETAILSUPPLY THAI

Store planning

Bakery Display Cases vs Open Shelves in Small Shops

Published 30 August 2026 · 4 min read

A supermarket glass island in 30 sqm splits the queue. Pack from one case. Ticket the boxed wall.

Bakery display cases vs open shelves in small shops is packing versus facing — remaining walk after the case. Independent bakeries in Thailand copy a supermarket island because the catalogue showed glass. The shops that still queue keep a case that staff can pack from and skip a second island in 30 sqm.

We do not invent food-safety ratings, temperature specs, or hygiene certifications. Those belong in your handbook and the landlord letter — landlord. This page is fixtures: facing, wrap, walk.

Cafe-retail is queue vs gift wall. Cash wrap may be the same counter. Queue space is people with bags and boxes. Island vs perimeter: a case eats walk like an island.

What each is for

Display case. Facing that staff open. Strong for packed goods you do not want on an open shelf. Weak as a second forest plus a gondola — gondola, aisle width.

Open shelf. Boxed, bagged, labelled — price tickets, how much shelving. A dump of unlabelled pastry on a table is not merchandising — dump bins.

Wrap that packs. Boxes, bags, leftover width — counter height. Impulse is a small tray, not a third case on the till — impulse.

Layout: decompression empty. A case in the door is still in the door. Window: one story in the glass, not the day’s bake as leftover stock.

Lighting is electrical points — fixture lighting — no lux claims. We do not specify a fridge rating.

When case vs shelf

JobCaseOpen shelf
Staff-packed facingStrongWeak
Boxed / baggedSlowStrong
30 sqmOne or noneWall metres
Queue pathOff the pourOff the pour

Opening priority: wrap and walk before a second case.

Common mistakes

  • Two cases plus a gondola in 40 sqm.
  • Food-safety rating on a fixture blog.
  • Case in the first two metres.
  • Unpriced open pastry.

What belongs on the quotation

  1. Case count — usually zero or one.
  2. Open-shelf metres for boxed goods.
  3. Remaining walk after the case on all sides that need it.
  4. What we will not specify (temperature, certifications).
  5. Language of the document, Thai or English.

Send shop type and whether goods are packed or boxed. That is enough to specify a case instead of a supermarket island.

One case if the walk remains, shelves for boxed

If you are fitting a bakery in Thailand, do not default to a glass island. Send the shop type, the size, and the opening month through the fixture plan form. We will return one fixture schedule and one written quotation — Thai or English — covering the case if any, the wall, and the walk.

Common questions

How many display cases in 30 sqm?
Usually one or none. Two cases plus a gondola steal the walk.
Do you specify fridge temperature or food-safety ratings?
No. Those are not lines we invent. We specify case vs shelf, wrap, and walk.
Can the case sit in the door?
No. Decompression stays empty. A case in the opening is still in the door.
Do open shelves still need price tickets?
Yes. Unpriced pastry is not merchandising.

Want a fixture list that fits your shop?

Tell us the shop type, size and opening date. We build one fixture plan and one written quotation, in Thai or English.

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