Commercial interior design is about so much more than creating a functional space. It’s about creating an environment that encourages commerce.
Much of this is simply about making customers relaxed, comfortable, and ideally more likely to spend money. But is there a darker side to commercial interior design? Can businesses change their environment in ways that make people uncomfortable with the intention of boosting revenue?
That’s the theory underpinning a massively viral post making the rounds online. In the original post, TikTok creator @liv.audience makes a very specific, bold claim about the nation’s largest retailer. She says Walmart is changing to 10,000 Kelvin lights, “the coolest, bluest artificial light we have.”
These lights, @liv.audience claims, trigger the amygdala, making shoppers feel anxious and putting them “in fight or flight mode.”
“When you’re in fight or flight mode, you can’t make rational decisions,” she explains.
She believes that two things will happen: 1) people will shop very quickly because “your body is screaming at you to get out of whatever unnatural space that is,” and/or 2) “you’re going to overspend because you’re not gonna be logically making purchases. You’re just going to grab things because your heart rate’s gonna be increased.”
“If you didn’t like going to Walmart before, now you’re really not going to like it,” @liv.audience says.
She continues, “I really feel bad for the employees who have to work in the 10,000 Kelvin lighting all day with their body screaming at them to escape escape whatever this is, and they cannot.”
There’s just one problem: she seems to be the only person claiming Walmart is changing its lights.
That hasn’t stopped her post from going viral, however. As of this writing, it’s been viewed 8.9 million times in the five days since it was posted.
The bright light blues
While it’s not clear that Walmart is actually changing its lights, and the company did not respond to an inquiry sent via contact form on its website, @liv.audience is right about harsh, bright lights.
Light can negatively affect our state of mind on either end of the spectrum. Too dim and people may be less productive, overeat, and generally be in a fouler mood. Too bright and they may also become mentally distressed, especially if they’re prone to panic or anxiety.
A 2013 study found “a strong correlation” between panic disorder and photophobia (light sensitivity). Other studies have also found that bright lights can increase or cause anxiety and panic.
So if Walmart did switch to an even brighter light, it could cause shoppers to distress. It’s not clear that this would correlate to impulse buying, however. It also seems logical that people would actually avoid an establishment that makes them feel anxious or panicked, in which case, Walmart would be disincentivized from making this change.
What about Walmart?
It’s not clear where @liv.audience heard that Walmart is changing its lights. She didn’t respond to an inquiry sent via direct message on TikTok.
Many people who commented on her post seem convinced it’s true.
“Them employees gonna be zombies,” one wrote.
Another remarked dryly that kids will have more tantrums due to the purported change.
There are some doubters, however, particularly as the post has spread. The Mary Sue found it on Instagram, Reddit, and Facebook.
Earlier this week, a Redditor in r/Walmart asked about the alleged lighting change.
“10k Kelvin lights are for industrial settings, not retail,” responded one. “Don’t believe everything you see on TikTok.”
Another said they work at Walmart claimed that they’d changed their store’s lighting a few months ago and that it’s significantly brighter now.
To this, another responded that most Walmarts are transitioning from fluorescent to LED lights. The retailer began making this switch the better part of a decade ago.
A few skeptics scoffed at the notion that lights have that much of an impact.
As one commented on @liv.audience’s TikTok, “Y’all let lights control your decision making?”
@liv.audience Thats the tea ? #walmart #newsupdates #shopping ♬ original sound – liv.audience
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