Chasing the atmosphere
It’s a daunting challenge to make the shopper travel across the city, but it can still be met. As they compete with community centers, large shopping malls have to tread a new “path of the samurai” to remain relevant and income-generating properties. There are two obvious ways: adjusting the tenant mix by inclusion of services and creating a unique atmosphere that would lure people from afar. “A large shopping and leisure center normally targets a larger catchment basin, offering its customers a wider choice of goods and services,” says Anastasia Dovchenko, Director of Property Department at Crocus Group. “The mall’s catchment area can be adjusted, given new housing commissioned, and altogether altered within the framework of citywide urban development dynamics. The customer appreciates and chooses convenience, easy access, comfort, novelty, a good choice of shops, a wide range of versatile services including amusements. Few community centers can meet all those needs combined.”
In the opinion of Dmitry Belanov, Project Director at IFG Agastone, people are willing to travel to some malls across the entire city not because they are filled with standard tenants, but because of their exclusive content. One example is RIO Mall on Dmitrovskoye Highway where Oceanarium was once opened. This was the only water tank in Moscow at the time; hence people flocking there from all parts of the city. Far-off visitors can be attracted by catering specialties, unique entertainments or amazing projects that cannot be found in other shopping malls. But it should be understood that these are one-off visits: people come to see a certain amazing feature and that’s all. Another example is Aviapark Mall (CSKA subway station) with its Marvel Avengers show.
Chief Operations Officer of MALLTECH Кирилл Степанов Kirill Stepanov gives the example of Planeta Mall in the city of Ufa featuring a water park as well as playgrounds, children’s restaurants and hairdressing saloons – in other words, all infrastructure needed for a full-time family visit and pastime.
“Large malls may lack unique brands, but their advantage is that all brands can be found in one place. Suppose there is an Inditex in one community center, but there’s no LPP there; the second community center has an LPP but no Inditex, while the third one has neither, but features H&M and Uniqlo,” the expert continues. “It should not be overlooked that while retail tenants do not like competition, they prefer to enter those malls where strong players are present. This is some sort of synergy because each brand brings in its own traffic and the tenant’s challenge is to lure some of the traffic.”
It should also be borne in mind that large SCs have more opportunities to create a special atmosphere. “Visiting a new shopping center or hypermarket, a customer is captivated by new experiences. Lighting, design, promo-actions, music, pleasant emotions roused by gifts, good service and privileges are very important. The feeling that you are special or you belong to the premium audience still works fine in any sphere of the client business,” reminds Guzel Gumerova, SC Manager with Astrum Property MC (Granel MC). “All these tools are needed to awaken emotions, provide experiences