skip to main |
skip to sidebar
In mid-January, the Wall Street Journal reported that a real estate investment trust that runs class B and C malls across the country "is allocating a portion of space in its portfolio of about 70 million square feet to pop-up stores". These pop-up stores offer 60- to 90-day leases. The REIT is "targeting new merchants, including those that started their business online."
- Crocker Galleria, in downtown San Francisco, has a 1,700 square foot Storenvy Popup that began in 2013 as a venue for new merchants. They cite one example of a women's clothing retailer that "started out in a 'fashion truck' in a parking lot, moved to the pop-up space, and now occupies a retail storefront in the three-story mall."
However, we see a great opportunity for an established retailer – like you, perhaps? The mall business is very tough right now, and few landlords are in a position of strength. That means that more of them are open to considering new ideas.
As an independent retailer, maybe you can be very nimble in setting up and operating a 90-day pop-up shop.
Plus, as an established retailer, versus a new merchant, you could draw in foot traffic, coveted by mall landlords.
- Maybe you want to experiment with a new concept.
- Or, close out of a category of goods.
- Or, reach out to a new market segment.
- Or...?
Few landlords have retailers clamoring for long-term leases. For them, the opportunity to get some revenue – and its accompanying foot traffic to their property – could have a great deal of appeal.
Even better, it's a fine way for you to be able to experiment, innovate, and maybe even re-energize your operation.
Might a grim situation for some landlords be a golden opportunity for you? Something to consider.
The Millennial generation - now ages 17 through 34 - represents nearly a quarter of the U.S. population, and a significant portion of annual consumer spending.
We recently read of a study that has identified a set of attributes "that overwhelmingly resonate with this age bracket." In fact, when making shopping decisions, Millennials are 20% more likely than other generations to consider these elements.
As these studies so often do, an acronym has been created to help us remember those attributes: L-A-T-T-E.
- Local
- Authentic
- Transparent
- Traceable
- Ethical.
While each of these attributes provides the means to differentiate your stores, in our view, many independent retailers can leverage ALL of them!
Moreover, in our opinion, these L-A-T-T-E qualities not only resonate with Millennials, but with many others (your customers? your neighbors? You?) who share these same values.
- It is not just demographics (quantitative data); it's also psychographics (qualitative data). And the L-A-T-T-E attributes certainly point to qualitative measures.
We think this offers two significant opportunities for independent and local retailers.
With the L-A-T-T-E attributes, independents are uniquely positioned to take the lead, and make it known that Local - Authentic - Traceable - Transparent - Ethical have long been in your DNA.
Especially in today's environment, winning the hearts and minds of shoppers is the challenge confronting all retailers. Sharing your love for L-A-T-T-E is an important step!
