Attraction to entertainment
The same type of shopping centers no longer attract customers. What to do next? What else can attract visitors? How to promote shopping malls? These and other issues were discussed at the II Commercial Space Exchange, held in Moscow on October 20 – 21. The organizers are MALL Events and the Russian Council of Shopping Centers. It may be interesting for store owners because it provides information for reflection on how the developers so unloved by them live.
One of the current trends is the increase in the non-trade component of shopping centers. Tatiana Smirnova from the Sistema-Hals development company spoke about the existing options for entertainment zones. The most common is a cinema. There are water parks, mini golf, zoos, go-karting clubs. Night clubs and discos, SPA salons and simulators appear, and sports competitions are organized. In general, the entertainment market in shopping centers is just beginning to develop. There is a demand, and there are not enough operators ready to offer interesting concepts.
What determines the entertainment part
1. The size of the mall.
If the total area does not exceed 3-5 thousand square meters. m, the maximum you can count on is a small play area for children. In a shopping center with an area of up to 30 thousand sq. m already it is possible to open a cinema and an amusement park for children. And when there are more than 30 thousand square meters in the center. m, the entertainment format depends only on the imagination of the developers.
2. Competitive environment
If there is only one shopping center with a cinema in the district - the competition is not high, if there are many - the opening of another cinema is unlikely to attract attention.
3. Consumer preferences
At the food court, for example, you can open a restaurant serving national cuisine.
4. Economy
Entertainment creates an atmosphere, ensures customer loyalty, but their operators do not pay such leases as the operators of a shopping gallery. But contracts with the first are already concluded at the design stage. In addition, many of them can act as co-investors.
Change of layout
If the neighborhood of a food court matters to you, please note that the layout of shopping centers is changing now. The latest trend is not to gather those who want to have a snack in one place, but to distribute flows by opening shops and cafes between clothing, footwear and other boutiques. The logic is clear: the area of shopping centers is constantly increasing, and such a rich concentration of visitors is already inconvenient for both developers and food court owners - they simply do not have enough time to serve everyone, and for the visitors themselves, who have to walk for a very long time in the shopping center in looking for a place to eat after shopping.
Trends
The emphasis will be placed not so much on sales as on family vacations with children. Children shape the buying preferences of parents. The more a child likes a shopping center, the more often dad and mom go there.
In Russia, most developers plan an entertainment zone on a leftover basis: a piece of anchors and a gallery is left in the worst place, which means that you can put some toys here. Of course, this is not the most optimal way, therefore Russia is increasingly using the American strategy for the development of these zones. He shared his American experience. Yaroslav Sobko from Gametrade Group Currently, four formats of entertainment centers are developing in the United States, some of them independently, some in shopping centers.
Formats
1. Arcade. Mini-format: 20-50 units of entertainment equipment in the lobby of the cinema, in the food court area. It completely depends on a large "anchor", works on its flow. Keeps children and teenagers in the center.
2. Family Center. In Russia, a family format is understood as a children's entertainment center with a place where parents could wait for their children. Area - maximum 1,5 thousand sq. m. Typical examples: "Hapilon" and "Fantasy Park". In the classical (western) version, the family center has an area of about 5 thousand square meters. m, is located in a separate building between two cities, 30-50 km from each. In the United States, this format pays off for a very long time, in Russia it takes even longer due to the low mobility of the population: in our country people prefer to have fun where they live. Thematic entertainment centers are good for tourist cities (for example, the same "Disneyland"). The theme for the first time delights, for the fifteenth time it causes rejection.
3. Children's entertainment center. Most exploited, most rewarding format. Does not require large areas - 1–1,5 thousand square meters. m. Does not require large investments - $ 1-1,5 thousand per 1 sq. m. m. The most striking example is Igromax.
4. Adult entertainment mall. This format is practically not represented in Russia. Area - from 3 to 5 thousand square meters. m. It is rarely built separately, more often it is a part of a shopping and entertainment complex. Ideal location: on the 1st floor with two entrances - from the parking lot and from the very center. A separate entrance is necessary, because, firstly, this part of the center is often used longer than the main center, and secondly, in such centers, for example in the USA, corporate events are arranged, and the centers need to be able to close.
There are no large bowling alleys. Most often, redemption machines with a wagon are installed. The device accepts coins, tokens or service payment cards. The ticket obtained by the results of the game can be exchanged in the prize pool for the prize you like. The number of tickets depends on the skill of the player, the speed of reaction, logical thinking.
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