Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/528948
T H E C O M M O N A R E A 8 S C T / J u L Y 2 0 1 5 U.S. consumers have pockets full of cash, but getting them to part with it will require new ways of retailing, says Sarah Quin- lan, senior vice president at MasterCard Advisors. Her division of the credit- card firm controls a vast amount of consumer data based on the 160 million transactions it processes per hour at 38 million merchants worldwide. Quinlan pointed out that while gas prices are cur- rently about 30 percent lower than they were this time last year, consump- tion of gas remains flat. "So consumers have money. If your store's sales aren't rebounding, you have work to do," she said. Consumers are currently spending more than ever before, but in different ways, Quinlan says. For starters, they're increas- ingly doing their shop- ping at small stores. Sales were up 7.5 percent year on year in March at busi- nesses with $50 million or less in annual sales, she says, while overall U.S. retail sales remained flat for the month. "Sales are happening at small busi- nesses," she adds. "Big stores need to figure out how to feel small, whether that means keeping the same friendly manager at the front of the store to greet guests, or whether it's a curated selection of merchandise." Another trend based on MasterCard's trans- actions is the decline of luxury, she added. "It's no longer chic to be chic," she said. "In- stead you should create a luxury environment for everyone and every product." Consumers spend more at small stores: MasterCard Shopping centers are best billboards around Shopping centers offer untapped oppor- tunities to generate revenue by advertis- ing, a media executive told delegates at RECon. "The mall is a parade [of con- sumers], it's a mass medium with a lot of reach," said David Parsons, president and CEO of McGavren Guild Malls, a firm that helps malls connect with advertisers. Shopping centers offer enormous ad- vantages over, say, highway billboards or even radio and TV advertising, Parsons argued. But attracting advertis- ers calls for good judgment and a deft touch. For instance, different types of centers in different markets should target different clients. National ad- vertisers will only want to do business with landlords owning large portfolios. Owners of small portfolios or single centers will have better luck with local advertisers, whether they be car deal- ers, banks, schools, medical services or other uses. "Seventy percent of any mall's advertising will come from the local market," Parsons said. Landlords should use the price of roadside billboards in their areas to gauge how much to charge for their own banners, he said, adding that their rates should not be more than twice the rate charged for the former. Done right, mall promotions can be a lucrative source of revenue, Parsons said. "We have a huge amount of power." Americans are spending more money on their cars than ever, a fact that re- tail marketers should be watching carefully, MasterCard Advisors senior vice president Sarah Quinlan told attendees at RECon, in May. Consumers are spending $34,000 on average on new cars, and the U.S. is on track to see 17.5 million new vehicles sold this year, according to MasterCard data. To take advantage of this trend, retailers opening new stores should seek out markets such as Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee, where automobile production plants are hiring, she said. And all retailers should be marketing aggressively in those markets around Feb. 1, when worker bonuses are tradi- tionally distributed, Quinlan says. CARS DRIVE SALES