DMM Retail Industry e-News Issue #203

Rochester, NY, First to Test Dick’s “Experiential” Store

In-store retailers have long had an advantage over their online counterparts: customers can use all their senses to sample their wares before purchasing. Kids frequently can be seen in toy stores enjoying the latest craze or bouncing a ball or sampling a video game before tugging on mom’s and dad’s sleeves begging for something to be purchased. Dick’s Sporting Goods, having exceeded investors’ expectations earlier this year, has launched an “experiential” store in Rochester, New York, called Dick’s House of Sports, with a focus on an up-close and personal shopping experience. The Motley Fool reports the store includes “an outdoor field for sporting events, a rock-climbing wall, and indoor wellness spaces. It’ll also give consumers an opportunity to seek advice from fitness experts who can help them choose equipment and get more out of their workout routines.” For those who consider themselves to be sports observers than enthusiasts, perhaps this could provide a new form of entertainment while out shopping.

Electric Cars and Luxury Fashion Invade Arizona Mall

A Scottsdale, Arizona, mall has seen the future of shopping, and it’s luxury retail with a focus on fashion. AZ Big Media recently reported that, despite the pandemic, Scottsdale Fashion Square, a Macerich property, has added several new stores, including Versace, Rolex, and Fabletics, and plans to debut a two-level, 11,000-square-foot flagship Dior store later this year, the only one of its kind in the state. “As the retail industry evolves, Scottsdale Fashion Square continues to…exceed expectations because we are always listening and collaborating with retailers, restaurants and others to deliver exactly what customers want and need,” said Melanie Sutton, Marketing Manager, Scottsdale Fashion Square. And, perhaps taking its cue from the story below, Lucid Motors will launch its “Lucid Studio” to show customers the chance to check out their EV technology and make a purchase.

Window Shopping at the Mall: Jeans, Candles, Wings, and an Electric Car

While we don’t yet have flying cars (as The Jetsons led your humble e-newsletter editor to believe, 40 years ago, would be ubiquitous by now – do notice in the opening sequence to the animated classic show that shopping centers of the future are large, indoors and still take cash), electric vehicles (EV) are becoming more popular. While the gas-powered car isn’t exactly extinct just yet, it is becoming one of those technologies for which many believe the endangered species list is holding a parking spot. Automotive News reports many Shanghai malls have at least one EV showroom. The move pits the more established automakers against EV manufacturers who want to position their cars as premium items for the middle class. “They pay big rent because they want to be seen. In China, you have many EV brands competing for a still very small market share, and every two-to-three months there’s a new car released,” said Zino Helmlinger, head of retail in eastern China at real estate firm CBRE Global Inc.