Shopping means many things to different people, to some getting the necessity, while for other, a form of therapy (Retail therapy). This makes shopping an experience for most people, it is expected to be exciting, stimulating and overwhelming.
Women who go to malls for some retail therapy often use this as a way of improving their mood or disposition. Often in times of depression or stress, Items purchased during periods of retail therapy are sometimes referred to as “comfort buys”.
There are many factors which are a driving force to making the decision of visiting a certain mall over the other. The urge may be driven by the past experience during the first visit; it may be influenced by the family or by social groups. Unfortunately stores have not yet mastered what influences the shopper to choose a certain mall over the other.
In a survey that was conducted by Metros magazine SA, a question was asked to determine what makes a good shopping experience and some of the answers received became the very foundation of this campaign. You can have the most expensive mall in the world, but if it isn’t convenient to get to the mall, chances are that people will avoid the new shopping Centre. If there’s a lot of traffic to that mall, people will ignore it and use the old one.
The truth is no one wants to spend an hour stuck in the traffic just for a grocery. Second popular was entertainment, although many people go to a mall to do shopping, a lot of people see a shopping Centre as an activity hub and expect to be entertained when they meet up with friends at a mall.
Combining relaxation with physical entertainment provides enough options for people to choose from, which is usually highly regarded as one of the top qualities of a good shopping mall. Third popular answer was, prices versus prestige: Some people are looking for low priced malls and others want the exclusive luxury brands. Malls that only cater for a certain segment usually end up becoming empty shopping centers.
To all the shoppers out there, the silence is over: Metros magazine SA and MillionsWorth PR brings you Shoppers experience, a campaign aimed at consumers empowering consumer’s opinion about the type of experience they would like to have at the malls of their choice. Things like consumer satisfaction are a driving force.
Shoppers experience is not only aimed at the consumers but it also helps stores delineate and also know the needs of their customers. Metros magazine and MillionsWorth PR will be going around malls in different metros (all provinces) with a panel of 6 people who will be tasting food and doing reviews on local shops. First mall to be visited is Jean Crossing Avenue on the 25th of July.
Malls are part of the fabric of their local community. Many shoppers’ first job or first date was at their local mall. Most shoppers can recall positive personal experiences from their youth that occurred at the mall. Additionally, malls actively support a number of local charities helping raise funds to support the broader community.
Shops have realized that shopping in the real world will forever satisfy consumers’ deep-rooted needs for human contact, for instant gratification, for the promise of (shared) experiences, for telling stories. Shopping malls have become somewhat of a landmark in each region, city and town in South Africa.
It seems like every second month, there’s a new shopping Centre popping up on a new corner. One can hardly believe that so many property developers would invest in new malls when it seems that the specific area is already saturated – but new builds are common and you could basically choose to shop at a different mall every week!
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