The Power Of “Curb Appeal”: Something Virtually No American Retailer Appreciates

The Pain Continues

Another Week Of Pain For American Department Stores & Malls

Consumer spending is up yet malls and department stores are seeing dramatic declines in traffic, same store sales and ultimately EBIT as they resort to almost giving it away to get sales.

This isn’t a new trend or a surprise. The surprising thing is that while the malls and their mall-based retailers are looking at new ways to “lure” shoppers to them, they are not inspiring them to want to go there.

While I have written a lot (many might say too much) on this topic, this week’s results just make me want to add to what I have written. Particularly because this round of results comes with a particularly large number of CEOs blaming their poor results on external factors. That really ticks me off - when are these folks going to “man-up” or “woman-up” and take responsibility and then take charge of their own destinies? Again, I have written about a myriad of things they should do but let me dwell on one I haven’t.

Must Embrace Experiential Design From The Outside In

Admittedly there are many headwinds facing malls and mall-based retailers but rather that focus on all of the external pressures which are beyond their control, they must focus on what they can do better.

Today I want to focus on the power of attraction and the lack thereof in malls and mall-based retailers today. I am literally talking about the look and the feel of the place as you drive by, drive up an walk in. Retailers are in the nascent stages of exploring how to enhance the in-store experience, but no one is dealing with the exterior experience, what draws people into the store. I want to give you some concrete examples of the power of proxemics and design thinking that are NOT being utilized to revitalize the appeal and excitement of going to American department stores or the mall in general. The fact that the industry isn't but now must focus on “Experiential Design” from the outside in.

Rather than explain it to you let me show it to you. Which of these is exciting to you? Which of these feels inviting to you? Which of these do you want to check out first?

Both of these could be defined as shopping malls – places that allow independent vendors to rent space in return for selling their products and services. One you have to force yourself to go into and the other you often willingly pay a fee just to enter. One has been around for centuries and thriving, the other less than a century and failing.

Enter the world of proxemics and design thinking. Many of you know companies like IDEO or CMG Partners that have clearly demonstrated the power of this thinking in creating and growing businesses. Yet malls and department stores have yet to truly engage in this kind of thinking to create environments that offer real experiences. Let’s assume for a moment that stores can’t / shouldn’t wait for malls to get their acts together in a way that drives more traffic. So, what can these stores do? Well let’s take a look at what they look like now.

Fair to say that virtually no one (I Hope) would say this is great curb appeal. The retailer would tell you it has declining traffic and sales but it’s the mall’s fault. To which I would say really???

To me these ar fortresses and their design says, “Keep out” not “Come on in”; “Boring” not “Exciting”, “Ominous” not”Safe”, “Dead” not “Alive”. Designed to make you feel like going there is because “You have to” vs. “You want to” So, what can you do if you accept what I am saying? I say A LOT.

This is where the power of proxemics and experiential design comes in. As I a former senior retail exec I can tell you that even to this day many CEO sand their C Suite members have never even heard of design thinking. Shocking to me considering they are in the business of attracting consumers to their stores. They continue to believe that if they have the right merchandise at the right price that’s all they need. And, that the keys to making this formula work are exclusivity and limited inventory – get it now or it will be gone. Old school thinking that again, based on this week’s results, isn’t cutting it and certainly won’t in the future.

So, Let’s Talk Specifics.

Most American retailers don’t– or more accurately won’t – spend the money LVNH will on applying experiential design to creating greater curb appeal as you can see below.

But department stores like Corte Inglais in Spain certainly seem to be able to do something to create excitement and visual appeal with the exterior of their stores.

Imagine if American retailers unleashed a creative approach to creating curb appeal. Those big white/grey exterior stone walls could have appliques that bespeak an exciting experience within. At night they lend themselves to holographic image projections or even just laser light shows that entice you to see what is happening in store. And, of course during the Holiday season why not have appliques of wrapped presents on the walls – isn’t that what retailers want, consumers to come on in and buy their holiday presents there?

And why limit this effort to the building. What about those empty parking lots that first signal “there is nothing happening here” Why not turn them into farmers markets, Holiday markets, pop up markets etc. – the kind of things that bespeak fun, vibrancy, something new and something exclusive. Isn’t that what retailers are trying to do?

We all want shopping to be fun and exciting so let’s stop blaming external factors, grab the reigns and start creating retail magic again from the outside in.