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Retail landlords need to adapt to consumer trends at a time when bricks-and-mortar shopping is being quickly overtaken by e-commerce, according to a survey of 26,000 Australians conducted by Directional Insights.
The research looked at shopper behaviour, revealing shoppers enter shopping centres on a mission to buy only what they need and leave quickly after.
Directional Insights managing director, Helen Bakewell told www.smh.com.au the Consumer Shopping Benchmarks 2011 survey indicated retail landlords adapting to changing consumer actions will survive. In local centres, people shop mainly for food and since 2009 the spend per visit has increased.
"These centres must stay true to offering convenience and service. Spending per customer visit has been stable at sub-regional centres, which feature discount department stores like Kmart, Target or Big W," Bakewell said.
The consumer survey revealed people are more time poor than ever and according to Bakewell the global financial crisis and rising interest rates has changed their spending habits.
Regional centres with a David Jones or Myer store and a high proportion of non-food retailers had been impacted the most by "mission shopping", which involves consumers doing their shopping and leaving, rather than "stay and play".
The spend per shopper visit in these regional centres has noticed a 5% decrease in a year.
Westfield reported a 0.7% fall in sales for the first quarter of the 2011 financial year to $21.5 billion. The company reported the cinema and department store sector suffered the biggest loss in sales, with drops of 18.2% and 11% respectively over the three months leading to March 31, 2011. Discount department stores and general retail also noted declined of 3.7% and 3.4% respectively.
Joint managing directors Steven and Peter Lowry said the results were pleasing considering the current retail environment following the Queensland floods and the higher Australian dollar.
Bakewell urges retailerss to pay attention to the consumer signals, because "more than ever, retailers need to know their customers intimately, and shopping centres need to understand why customers visit their centres."
By Shivaun Hales
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