The retail industry is changing both from the inside, such as its operations and related use of technology, and the outside as well. The latter has become just as innovative as the former with new formats and new entertainment and art as well.
Right now, drive thrus, quick service restaurants, and grocers are the driving force in the industry, Matt Hammond, Partner and Senior Vice President at Coreland Companies, tells GlobeSt.com.
"Retailers actively testing smaller format stores and store-within-a-store concepts are among the most recent interesting trends," he says. "Ulta and Sephora are opening small format sites at Target and Kohls, respectively, and Macy's recently launched an "off mall" small store format, Market by Macy's." These have captured consumer attention as well as other retailers. "This flexibility allows retailers to shrink their traditional product inventory on the sales floor while keeping the experience fresh for customers, Hammond explains.
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Retail's aesthetic is changing as well, according to Sandy Sigal, CEO and president of NewMark Merrill Cos., with shopping centers transforming to reflect not just shopping, but displaying art, music, outdoor dining, and entertainment as well. "The opportunity to make multiple stops per shopping adventure to extend the length of stay is growing as is the investment we are making in ensuring our environments are dynamic, changing, and reflective of our community," Sigal says.
Much of this entails including in the tenant mix merchants that provide a blend of shopping, services, entertainment, exercise, education, health care etc to ensure that our centers are truly the center of the community, Sigal continues. "This enables us to be a place in a busy world where we can accommodate the needs of our customers, and ensure we have a blend of shopper traffic throughout the day and night and throughout the week days and weekends." Our goal is to maximize traffic across our hours of operation … with which our tenants can connect."
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Natalie Dolce
Natalie Dolce, editor-in-chief of GlobeSt.com, is responsible for working with editorial staff, freelancers and senior management to help plan the overarching vision that encompasses GlobeSt.com, including short-term and long-term goals for the website, how content integrates through the company’s other product lines and the overall quality of content. Previously she served as national executive editor and editor of the West Coast region for GlobeSt.com and Real Estate Forum, and was responsible for coverage of news and information pertaining to that vital real estate region. Prior to moving out to the Southern California office, she was Northeast bureau chief, covering New York City for GlobeSt.com. Her background includes a stint at InStyle Magazine, and as managing editor with New York Press, an alternative weekly New York City paper. In her career, she has also covered a variety of beats for M magazine, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, FashionLedge.com, and Co-Ed magazine. Dolce has also freelanced for a number of publications, including MSNBC.com and Museums New York magazine.
