Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/58695
THE COMMON AREA NYC DRAWS DOLLARS, AMERICANS GET STINGY WITH TAX RETURNS, CHAINS PRIORITIZE WEB SALES 'Showrooming' becoming a trend Showrooming is becoming more of a problem, and retailers need to respond by stressing the advantages of bricks-and-mortar retail, say experts. The term refers to the consumer trend of re- searching an item in a physi- cal store and then making the purchase online. Some 20 percent of shoppers who bought home-related items last year made the purchase through showrooming, according to research firm NPD Group. Stand mix- ers, electric knives, sewing machines and floor cleaners were last year's most popular showrooming pieces, and this year power tools, hair setters and robotic vacuums show signs of being next, says Perry James, president of NPD Group's home-and- office-supplies division. Last year 7 percent of con- sumers who pre-examined a kitchen item inside a brick- and-mortar store made the actual purchase online, NPD reports. Some 4 percent of shoppers looking at personal- care items later bought the merchandise online, and 2 percent did so with home- improvement products. "On the flip side, two in three consumers that researched a home-related product online ended up purchasing it in the brick-and-mortar store — a practice that has been the norm," said James. Online sales of small ap- pliances and home-improve- ment merchandise grew 20 percent in dollar terms last year, says NPD. But small ap- pliances accounted for just 13 per- cent of online sales in dollar terms last year, while home- LANDLORDS ARE SEARCHING FOR CREATIVE WAYS TO BOOST SMALL-SHOP OCCUPANCY. ''Last year 7 percent '' of consumers who pre-examined a kitchen item inside a brick- and-mortar store made the actual purchase online. improvement sales made up 5 percent. Thus, the majority of these sales took place in brick-and-mortar stores. Amazon. com launched a smartphone app last year called Price Check, which en- ables product scans in physi- cal stores for 6 SCT / APRIL 2012 subsequent online purchase from Amazon at a discount. "The prevalence of smart- phones provides consumers with the ability to do price comparisons in real time, while still in the store, increasing the challenge retailers are faced with to offer the best price," James said. James recommends that brick-and- mortar retailers promote the immediacy of the in-store shopping experience. "The need to touch and feel a product before making the purchase is still very compel- ling for most customers, and that is what initially gets them in the door," he said. "Once they have decided they want the item, the need for immediate gratification can be too strong to go home and wait even if it is the less expensive option." Landlords: Small-shop leasing a challenge As the number of prospec- tive small tenants continues to shrink, and in view of a seed-capital market that remains challenging for mom-and-pops, vacancy rates among small shops have become the Achilles heel for many a landlord, panelists said at ICSC's Open-Air Summit, in Dallas. Modera- tor Michael V. Pappagallo, COO of Kimco Realty, noted that even while Kim- co's vacancy rate for big-box spaces remains at an enviable 2 percent to 4 percent, its spaces measuring less than 10,000 square feet are suffer- ing rates of 12 percent to 18 percent — an all-too-common tale these days. But panelists disagreed about whether the small- shop problem is cyclical or long-term. "I think it is largely structural, and I see it for a long time to come," said