REPORT ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR IN SHOPPING MALLS
STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOR IN SHOPPING MALLS
INTRODUCTION
Marketplaces in urban demographic settings attract a large number of buyers and sellers, which can be termed as market thickness. The co-existence of many shopping malls with traditional markets in a marketplace causes market congestion. This problem may be resolved by developing small kiosks for transactions and allowing consumers to test out customised products and services from the main stores The growth of market share for specialised retailers and large departmental stores depends on the size of the consumer segment in a given urban population. It is observed that consumers’ buying preferences become more diversified as the extent of retail stores increases within a confined area. Thus, the market size reaches a threshold and the consumers’ shopping preferences are jeopardised owing to indecisiveness in shopping. However, shopping centres and hypermarkets have become important elements in the urban landscape, though lack of planning and vision has led to chaotic development and congestion of marketplaces, affecting the growth of the retailers. A larger shopping centre can facilitate a greater variety of shops, and can create a more pleasant environment for shoppers, thus enticing them to visit more often and stay longer. This proposition leads to one of the challenges faced by managers of shopping malls located outside the traditional shopping belt, that is, how to attract shoppers to patronise their malls.
Narrowing of shopping streets and the rise of shopping malls have been major trends in retailing in emerging markets. There has been no proper planning to manage the shift of agglomeration of retail stores from both a marketing perspective and consumers’ point of view. However, the findings of some studies proved to be quite similar for both shopping streets and shopping malls: the retail tenant mix and atmosphere had the highest relative importance. The social demand for environment
INTRODUCTION
Marketplaces in urban demographic settings attract a large number of buyers and sellers, which can be termed as market thickness. The co-existence of many shopping malls with traditional markets in a marketplace causes market congestion. This problem may be resolved by developing small kiosks for transactions and allowing consumers to test out customised products and services from the main stores The growth of market share for specialised retailers and large departmental stores depends on the size of the consumer segment in a given urban population. It is observed that consumers’ buying preferences become more diversified as the extent of retail stores increases within a confined area. Thus, the market size reaches a threshold and the consumers’ shopping preferences are jeopardised owing to indecisiveness in shopping. However, shopping centres and hypermarkets have become important elements in the urban landscape, though lack of planning and vision has led to chaotic development and congestion of marketplaces, affecting the growth of the retailers. A larger shopping centre can facilitate a greater variety of shops, and can create a more pleasant environment for shoppers, thus enticing them to visit more often and stay longer. This proposition leads to one of the challenges faced by managers of shopping malls located outside the traditional shopping belt, that is, how to attract shoppers to patronise their malls.
Narrowing of shopping streets and the rise of shopping malls have been major trends in retailing in emerging markets. There has been no proper planning to manage the shift of agglomeration of retail stores from both a marketing perspective and consumers’ point of view. However, the findings of some studies proved to be quite similar for both shopping streets and shopping malls: the retail tenant mix and atmosphere had the highest relative importance. The social demand for environment
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