With all the emphasis on micro market design these days, it is a good time for operators to apply some traditional wisdom to their markets for better results. More than 2500 years old, Feng Shui is the Chinese ancient art of placement. It helps arrange interiors and create environments that are a source of harmony, health, well-being and prosperity.
Shelley Sparks is a Feng Shui expert, Author, Licensed Landscape Architect and Certified Arborist who has been studying, teaching and practicing Feng Shui for more than twenty-five years. She has served businesses of all sizes, including Fortune 500 firms, and believes that Feng Shui can have a very positive impact on your client’s breakrooms.
While most people think of Feng Shui as a home decorating application, Sparks enjoys a steady flow of corporate clients who seek a very clear benefit of this ancient practice. “Most often, businesses will call me in to enhance their wealth,” said Sparks. “They want to attract more business – they want success.”
According to Sparks, the proper choice and placement of colors for the micro market can improve the design and flow of energy in a space - enhancing the lives of people who work there.
“Green is about hope, tranquility, new beginnings and growth.”
- Shelley Sparks, Feng Shui Expert
Sparks believes that balance is critically important when selecting colors for a micro market environment. “There are some basic color associations and color placement factors that can enhance production and harmony,” said Sparks. “One color you can almost never go wrong with is green – especially on the lighter spectrum. Green is about hope, tranquility, new beginnings and growth. In Feng Shui vernacular it represents family, so it is a really good color for social interaction.”
Purple, dark red, green and plum are all favorable colors in a workplace environment, added Sparks. “The plum and purple colors particularly denote richness and royalty.”
Sparks likes red because it denotes excitement but would use it strategically in a micro market. “I might do the room in green, purple or plum – but put red behind the shelving and the food products to create excitement in that direction,” she said. “Color is just one aspect in the Feng Shui tool box, but it is an important tool.”
Shelley Sparks is a Feng Shui expert, Author, Licensed Landscape Architect and Certified Arborist who has been studying, teaching and practicing Feng Shui for more than twenty-five years. She has lectured at major universities as well as various conferences, private venues and botanical gardens throughout the United States. She is the author of “Secrets of the Land, Designing Harmonious Gardens with Feng Shui.”
She can be reached through her website, www.harmonygardens.net, email, [email protected] or phone 818-505-9783.
