It Is Not Just Food Anymore, It Is About The Experience, The Entertainment
“Approximately 20%-25% of a project goes to food and play. We don’t see that number going back at all.”
LAS VEGAS—As Americans head back to work, cities are seeing significant increases of daytime workers, which, according to JLL research, is crucial for the urban retail rebound. During a JLL research briefing at ICSC Las Vegas, the firm said that cities like Chicago are bouncing back with warmer months and noted that foot traffic in the prime urban corridor is within 10% of 2019 levels.
JLL also pointed out that New York City’s Times Square and San Francisco’s Union Square are seeing the biggest gains in foot traffic from last year. In addition, the JLL report said that Miami, which has been one of the go to spots in the US while international travel has been restricted, continues to outperform pre-pandemic levels.
The number of people dining out is almost back to pre-pandemic levels, the firm said, especially in places like Los Angeles, where this time last year, they report that the number of people going out to eat was 50.8% below 2019 levels.
The conversation surrounding the JLL report continued in a morning’s general session titled: “Shop, Dine, Work, Play: Predictions for the Marketplaces Industry,” where panelist Naveen Jaggi, president, America, Retail Advisory Brokerage Services, Leasing and Capital Markets, International Director, at JLL, said that over the last two or three changes, the change in consumer behavior trends have really changed.
There are many discussions on what the future of projects should look like and the “play” aspect, said Jaggi. “Approximately 20%-25% of a project goes to food and play. We don’t see that number going back at all.”
If you are factoring into how food factors into a project, “we are back,” said Jaggi. “One of the best things that have come out of the pandemic is that restaurateurs have made things more attractive and have mixed outdoor and indoor seating as a major requirement for doing a deal. That is here to stay.”
You don’t typically think of play and work at the same time, said speaker Craig Robinson, Chief Growth Officer of Industrious. But there needs to be an experience because play does lead to more productivity, he said. “You have to have a sense of why you are going to leave your home and be in a certain space.”
Moderator Anjee Solanki, national director of retail services and practice groups at Colliers, further discussed the change in consumer behavior and the overlap between the dine and the play. Adam Williamowsky, director of Restaurants at CBRE, said that “Dining is a form of entertainment and it is an experience. It is about the way people value their time and how they spend their human capital.” He adds that it isn’t just about their money but their time. “You have to create that experience that is memorable,” said Williamowsky. “There is a really valuable market put on experience today and on how people interact and when they are sitting at their desk.”
Overall, panelists said that the customer journey of shop, dine, work, play has been an evolution and it has not just been the last two years. As people dine out more, people are just choosing their time differently. According to Williamowsky, “The way you look at your day and the way you go about your business is a journey.”
Keep checking back with GlobeSt.com for more coverage from the ICSC Las Vegas event. And check out the stories below that you might have missed.
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