What is the role of a shopping mall in an increasingly digital world?
In 2021, h2\ worked alongside a multinational shopping centre operator to help them realign with today’s shopper’s needs and behaviours. This engagement was particularly complex given the rapid change of the shopping landscape, the adoption of the digital reflex and the increasingly omnichannel experience that consumers are becoming accustomed to. This context brings forth important marketing issues such as the definition of the appropriate frame of reference for a shopping centre operator and its relevant competitive set. Furthermore, the project was carried out during the peak of the Covid-19 crisis, which further disrupted consumer shopping behaviour and their relationship to crowded areas.
The first step consisted in leveraging an extensive body of existing quantitative research and subsequently carrying out in-depth qualitative research spanning multiple European countries, which allowed us to perform a comprehensive diagnosis of today’s shopper. This was used to identify the types of consumers that the shopping malls should cater to and the value they provide in the shopper’s journey.
Once the diagnosis was finalized, we used the learnings to craft a new positioning for the company, which served as a springboard for the optimization of their physical assets as well as for the conception of their communications strategy, which culminated in a new multinational brand campaign.
