Even as shopping malls strive to lure and retain customers with a huge blend of shopping, fun, food and activities, the big bag of retail brands with just a couple of dining options thrown in is no longer sufficient enough. This is where the concept of FECs comes into play. To script a radical change in the business viability of organised retailing, consumer connect is imperative and to fuel this change, a substantial amount of exposure is being allocated to FEC zones in malls...
Tier II and tier III cities are undoubtedly the future growth engines of the country. The rise in internet penetration, influence of social media and growing disposable incomes of the new generation have essentially ushered in an era of commerce, resulting in a mall boom in India.
Such is the growing mall culture in India that 34 new shopping malls, covering 13.6 million sq. ft. area are expected to come up in top eight cities by the year 2020. However, with the growth of e-commerce and m-commerce, malls understood the need to reinvent themselves in order to offer more than just retail to bring in and retain the modern consumer. This was especially essential in Tier II cities, where the penetration of Internet meant people could access brands that could not physically reach them.
Today’s Tier II consumer is as evolved, educated and well-travelled as anyone living in a metropolitan city. He’s demanding and has a high disposable income. To cater to him, new malls being constructed in smaller cities are allocating substantial square footage to Family Entertainment Centres (FECs).Maximising on digital technology, these malls are improving upon customer engagement to stimulate footfalls as a business strategy to boost sales.
IMAGES Shopping Centre Bureau talks to some top Tier II malls and developers to understand their FEC policy...
D N REGALIA MALL, BHUBANESWAR
D N Regalia Mall, a promising addition to the shopping centre landscape in Bhubaneswar, is all set to launch a benchmark in customer experience by adding an FEC zone. “FEC plays a crucial role in every shopping mall. It acts as a definite crowd puller for kids, who in turn bring their families to the mall with them. Our FECs are designed in a childfriendly manner and thus families tend to flock around our mall,” says Siddharth Nayak, Vice President, D N Regalia Mall.
This story is from the August 2019 edition of Shopping Centre News.
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This story is from the August 2019 edition of Shopping Centre News.
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