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By Ameen Ahsan Officially shopping malls are defined as “one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnected walkways enabling visitors to walk from unit to unit.” Unofficially, they are the heart and soul of communities, the foundation of retail economies, and a social sanctuary for teenagers everywhere. A storm of global trends are coming together to cause malls to change the role they play in people’s lives. No longer are they primarily about shopping. Now, when consumers visit malls, they are looking for experiences that go well beyond traditional shopping. The trends helping to create this change include changing demographics, such as an aging population and increased urbanization, which means more people living in smaller spaces and a greater need for public spaces in which to socialize and congregate. In this environment, malls offer a welcome watering hole, especially in cities where other public spaces are not safe. Sustainability concerns are causing some consumers to prefer mixed use developments where they can live, shop and work all within walking distance – instead of having to get into a car and drive to a crowded suburban mall. And finally, the e-commerce revolution and the rise of digital technologies are fundamentally reshaping consumer expectations and shifting the function of stores toward useful and entertaining customer experiences. As these trends advance across the global stage, they are forcing mall operators to rethink how they conceive and operate their properties. In the face of these considerable challenges, malls are seeking to stay relevant, drive growth and boost efficiency. We see successful players investing along three key fronts. 1. Differentiating the consumer offering, with a focus on experience and convenience. Online shopping provides consumers with ultimate levels of convenience. Malls will never be able to compete with the endless product selection, price comparisons and always-on nature of online. Nor should they try. Instead, malls need to move in a different direction, away from commoditized shopping experiences and toward a broadened value proposition for consumers. 2. Transforming the mall experience by leveraging technology and multichannel strategies. The digital transformation of retail is not all bad news for malls. On the contrary, it presents new opportunities for malls to engage consumers throughout their decision journeys. 3. Exploration of new formats and commercial real estate opportunities. The most innovative malls today look nothing like their predecessors. Although location remains the key real estate consideration for malls, a differentiated design and structure is increasingly important. Open air malls go a long ways toward lending an atmosphere of a town center, especially when they incorporate mixed use real estate. Many of the malls being built in urban areas are open and fully integrated with the landscape. --------- Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting (AASC) provides Business Research & Management Consulting services for Shopping Malls, Commercial Complexes and Speciality Commercial Real Estate projects including feasibility studies, management plans, business model development across Kerala and GCC. AASC is based at HiLite Business Park, Calicut (Kozhikode), Kerala. And serves clients across Kerala and Gulf (GCC) countries. To know more about AASC services, please call +91-7558-900-800 or email info@ameenahsan.com
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Why Marketing Plans are important for Shopping Malls?
*By Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* A shopping mall's sales marketing plan describes the strategies the mall management will deploy to attract and retain tenants and to bring in more shoppers to these stores. Preparing a plan is critical to success because shopping malls compete with each other and with other retail clusters, such as shopping centers. In metropolitan areas, consumers have numerous choices of stores, ambiance and entertainment options. Implementing a sound plan enables a mall to build its competitive edge. A marketing plan for any business should include goals for the upcoming year. In a marketing plan, a key goal is the sales levels you want your tenants collectively to achieve. Set a goal for occupancy percentage -- the amount of available retail space that is occupied by tenants. A mall would also have a goal for rental income. Number of shoppers, also called visitor traffic, is another goal. With these goals in place, you can track your progress over the course of the year. The mall owner and his team must have a clear understanding of the target markets they want to reach and attract to the mall. Demographic characteristics of the area -- factors such as age and income level -- give you a good idea what your potential customer base may be. Also look at who your current customers are and whether there are additional groups you want to target. The marketing plan details the strategies and action plans the mall will use to find the right mix of tenants that fits the purchasing behavior and needs of its target markets. Shoppers coming to the mall to visit one store may find other stores appeal to them as well, necessitating some care into finding the right mix. The mall's management should devise tenant satisfaction strategies, such as conducting an annual survey of tenants to find out what they think the mall is doing really well and areas where the mall could provide better service. Your marketing and promotions strategies should make your mall stand out. Ads could focus on unique stores you have, the excitement and fun available at the mall, the spectacular design and layout of the mall, or the variety of restaurants there Ultimately you want to create a brand image for the mall, displaying why your mall provides a superior shopping experience. Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting "where visions are realised" 7th Floor, Hi Lite Business Park, Calicut http://www.ameenahsan.com +91-7558-900-800 info@ameenahsan.com *Kerala's finest experts for Feasibility Studies, Strategy Reports / Project Reports, Business Models and Vision Realisation* Why Strategic Partnerships are Important for Retail Business?
By *Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* In the age of the omnichannel consumer, retailers need to ensure products are available at the right time, through the right channel and at the right price. While it seems collaboration between retailers, suppliers and manufacturers has existed for as long as the industry itself has existed, it has become more pivotal to success as consumers grow more demanding. The need for collaboration — on a micro and macro scale — is greater than ever. This is a consumer-facing industry. They’re more in control of relationships with brands and retailers and are more aware of products and services they’re being offered. Consumers have evolved to become harder to find, engage and please. Businesses across the entire retail value chain can conquer this challenge by banding together, sharing information and truly collaborating to exceed customer expectations. The benefits of collaboration are “tremendous” and “impact every aspect of all companies’ functions,” Teaming up with other businesses can result in a win-win outcome for you and the company you partnered up with. When done right, retail partnerships can result in additional exposure and revenue, and both parties end up happy with more customers and sales. That said, striking up those winning partnership agreements may not always be a walk in a park. In addition to investing the time and effort to find, vet, and woo potential partners, you also need to carefully craft the terms of your agreement to ensure that costs and responsibilities are clear to both businesses. Having an idea of whom to team up with and the nature of your partnership is a crucial first step, because it will enable you to figure out the best way to reach out to potential partners. Your outreach approach will depend on who you’re contacting as well as and the type of agreement you’re looking to get, so it’s important to iron out these details so you can touch base with other businesses in the most effective way possible. Share your views on this post! *Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* "where visions are realised" 7th Floor, Hi Lite Business Park, Calicut http://www.ameenahsan.com +91-7558-900-800 info@ameenahsan.com *Kerala's finest experts for Feasibility Studies, Strategy Reports / Project Reports, Business Models and Vision Realisation* Why Customer Segmentation is Important for Eateries and Food Business?
By *Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* People no longer need a reason or a special occasion to eat out. Consumers—across metro and non-metro cities—eat out simply because they want to experiment, love food, or that’s how they want to spend their free time. A restaurant today is not just a place for eating. It is a place to socialize, to unwind and more. Eating out is no more the rich man’s indulgence. There are options, and people, irrespective of economic class, go out to eat. For years and years, restaurants have been doing an entry-level form of market segmentation. Demographics have primarily driven restaurants’ decisions in creating these segments. Age. Gender. Household income. Education level. Psychographics have influenced some decisions as well. Market segmentation in the restaurant industry is the practice of targeting a specific customer base to maximize sales, even if it means alienating other potential customers. Going for a smaller piece of market share by offering a benefit attractive to only one group often leads to customers in that group becoming repeat buyers, spending more with you than if you tried to get more people buying from you by offering a generic product. Classifying customers allows you to spend less to acquire more ideal customers with the right messaging, marketing and customer relations. Segmenting customers allows you to gain a clear understanding of your best customers’ needs, wants and habits. Because you know exactly what kinds of marketing and advertising they prefer, you can personalize the customer relationship in every area of your eatery business. You can’t determine how to sell more until you know precisely who you’re selling to. Once you’ve identified your best customers—where they’re located, how they want to hear from you and what compels them to buy—you can identify exactly what they need and want, and then deliver it. So what do you think of today’s post? Please share your views and experiences! *Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* "where visions are realised" 7th Floor, Hi Lite Business Park, Calicut http://www.ameenahsan.com +91-7558-900-800 info@ameenahsan.com *Kerala's finest experts for Feasibility Studies, Strategy Reports / Project Reports, Business Models and Vision Realisation* Why Value Proposition is important for your Eateries or Food Business?
By *Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting* Eateries and Food Business have boomed in our localities. Every nook and corner of a city or a Town has an Eatery or a Food Business of some kind. It may be a small restaurant, a cafeteria, a food stall, a roadside tea shop etc. Eateries and Food are good business ventures for earning a stable income as People spending time to eat food from outside has tremendously increased and also eateries have turned out to be a favorite place for the youth and families to hang out and spend time together. One of the first steps for any new eatery business is to figure out its value proposition. In other words, you need to agree on how you are going to position your business and the product or service you are selling. Every business should have a Unique Selling Proposition – it is the one thing that differentiates your business from every other one. The value that a small restaurant in a town offers is very different from a restaurant that operates in a metro city. There might be a lot of difference in the value delivered to the customer. For example, the experience and the ambience, the quality of food, the price etc. can be some characteristics by which we can differentiate the two restaurants. It’s important for an eatery or a food business to clearly communicate the value it offers to the customers. It also helps the business to focus on those customer segment it’s catering to. If you are unable to communicate your value to your customers, customers won’t place value in what you offer. If you are unable to tell customers why they should choose you and why they should pay what you are asking, why would they? Ameen Ahsan Strategy Consulting "where visions are realised" 7th Floor, Hi Lite Business Park, Calicut http://www.ameenahsan.com +91-7558-900-800 info@ameenahsan.com *Kerala's finest experts for Feasibility Studies, Strategy Reports / Project Reports, Business Models and Vision Realisation* |
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