A1 november2014 final

On the plus sideN Brown’s Angela Spindler on giving customers stores they love

Global iconsThe retail brands making waves around the world

Reinventing retailLand Securities keeps pace with

the changing face of retail

Click-and-collectHow to take convenience and

experience to the next level

winter 2014

22

The pace and scale of change at Land Securities in the past six months has been phenomenal. We have completed well over £1bn worth of transactions, both buying and selling, to better align ourselves with the seismic changes taking place in the retail market. We are reshaping our retail portfolio to focus on centres that deliver dominance, experience and convenience in their respective markets.

A key milestone in this transformation was our acquisition of a 30% stake in Bluewater shopping centre earlier this year (see page 16). Also on our investment agenda is Glasgow, where we took 100% control of Buchanan Galleries in October. These acquisitions come alongside disposals of our secondary centres in Dundee, Sunderland, Exeter and Bristol, transforming our shopping centre portfolio to reflect the needs of both retailers and consumers.

The UK is a great market for international retailers (see page 12) and it is a vital element in any international strategy, as well as being one of the most advanced in terms of digital and omnichannel offers, which we discuss in our feature on page 28.

To remain relevant in today’s changing consumer landscape requires landlords to continually evolve schemes, reviewing the retail line-up, service proposition and investment in facilities. Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth is the epitome of an experiential centre and the changes we are making there are another example of the transformation of our retail portfolio (see page 19).

Innovation is central to everything we do at Land Securities, and it’s also a vital part of staying ahead in retail, which is why we recently launched fashion app Styleicona (see page 26), and are trialling new click-and-collect concepts at Trinity Leeds, St David’s and The Galleria in Hatfield (see page 31).

Ultimately, our role is to create platforms for brands to succeed, and we are pushing the boundaries of innovation to offer this to today’s consumer.

Delivering dominance, experience and convenience

Foreword

8 N Brown’s chief executive on giving customers stores they love

Scott Parsons, managing director, Retail Portfolio, Land Securities

winter 2014 winter 20142 3

12

14

16Contents 4 Retail Round-up All the latest

news, retail deals and development updates from Land Securities’ retail portfolio

8 Interview Why N Brown’s chief executive, Angela Spindler, is vying to destigmatise plus-size shopping and give customers stores they love

12 International A1 explores what makes some of the most reputable global brands such as Apple, Burberry and Ikea iconic

16 Strategy Why dominance, experience and convenience is the key to success for Land Securities’ new portfolio

19 Outlets An update on Gunwharf Quays’ on-going transformation and how it is now seeking to make its mark with tourists too

22 Development 20 Fenchurch Street in London is a panoramic destination with a difference

24 Stores Dutch retailer Hema has made its first foray into the UK

26 Innovation How guidance from TrueStart helped Katrin Suess found fashion app Styleicona

28 Digital Thomson’s new stores give customers a personalised and interactive service

31 Initiatives Land Securities launches two new click-and-collect services

34 Portfolio An overview of Land Securities’ shopping centres, outlets, retail parks, leisure destinations and latest developments

Innovation is central to everything we do at Land Securities, and it’s also a vital part of staying ahead in retail

26

19

Produced by

Editor Charlotte Hardie

Writers Ben Cooper, Mark Faithfull, Gemma Goldfingle, Laura Heywood, Rebecca Thomson

Production Editor Tracey Gardner

Design forty6 design Ltd www.forty6design.com

Publisher Tracey Davies

For Land Securities

Claire Reynolds [email protected] T +44 (0)20 7747 2390

Sejal Lad [email protected] T +44 (0)20 7024 5411

© Retail Week

All material is strictly copyright and all rights were reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of Retail Week is strictly forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine at the time of going to press, but we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors. The views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of Retail Week or Land Securities.

A1 is printed by Headley Brothers Ltd.

Ashford, Kent


Trinity Leeds shopping centre has been named one of the UK’s cool-est brands as part of the 2014/15 CoolBrands® list. The influential annual list sees Trinity Leeds cel-ebrated alongside long-established brands such as Apple, Glastonbury and Prada.

The announcement acknowl-edges Land Securities’ success in creating Trinity Leeds, the brand, right from the concept. Achieving CoolBrands® status illustrates that Trinity Leeds is among an eclectic but small group of brands that are providing an authentic, innovative and unique proposition to consumers.

The CoolBrands® list, now in its 13th year, is built following consultation with a combination of 2,000 consumers and a panel of 37 designers, style experts, media personalities and prominent figures from the worlds of TV, fashion and music.

Trinity Leeds voted one of UK’s coolest brands

Retail Round-up

White Rose unveils new food courtLand Securities has unveiled

a newly refurbished food court

at White Rose shopping centre

in Leeds.

The 21,000 sq ft new dining

area, renamed the balcony,

opened in May this year and

has attracted four nationally

renowned restaurant chains

– Frankie & Benny’s, Prezzo,

Wok & Go and Handmade

Burger co.

Land Securities brings unique food experience to Lewisham

A Christmas built on convenience and reward

Inside Out VictoriaCreate Victoria hosted a series of events in October to celebrate the on-going transformation of Victoria giving Londoners an exclusive ‘back-stage’ view of everything on offer in and around SW1.

Inside Out Victoria showcased the range of amenities and hidden gems in the area with some of the biggest names from across Victoria’s thriving music, art, food, culture and fashion scenes taking part. They included St James Theatre, Donna Ida, Chelsea College of Arts, Delfina Foundation, Curzon Victoria and The Vincent Rooms.

The series of events, including the Great Victoria Bake off, raised money for Land Securities’ charitable partner, MENCAP, across the four days.

Land Securities has a 2.2 million sq ft development pipeline for Victoria and is investing £2bn in an exciting period of transformation. At the heart of this regeneration is the introduction of spectacular residen-tial space, the best in contemporary office space, and a new retail heart for this part of the West End.

Shoppers will prioritise convenience and reliability over price this Christmas, consumer research has indicated.

A poll of 2,000 shoppers by retail analyst Conlumino reveals that those retailers able to guarantee product availability or offer a click-and-collect service will be the winners during this year’s busiest trading period. Many shoppers said they will be willing to sacrifice the best price for a hassle-free shopping experience.

To meet consumer expectations around convenience, Land Securities’ shopping centres are running a series of targeted media campaigns highlighting the ease and accessibility offered by its shopping centres, not only with its wide choice

of retail and leisure brands in one location, but also its extended opening hours and click-and- collect services.

This Christmas, several Land Securities schemes, including White Rose, Leeds and St David’s, Cardiff, will run spend-related promotions encouraging shoppers to start their

Christmas shopping in November to receive a gift card reward that will in turn help to drive spend at the shopping centre during the quieter December trading weeks.

Conlumino’s Christmas Tracker was based on consumer views of Christmas shopping last year.

A pioneering London night market was introduced to Land Securities’ shopping centre in Lewisham this summer as part of a new food concept.

Street Feast brought together the capital’s best street food traders, chefs and restaurants to create a unique eating culture, offering people the chance to meet and eat in unusual locations while sampling high-quality fast food.

The night market took place every Friday and Saturday night for 15 weeks in the summer and revived a 7,500 sq ft area of the centre, which used to be known as the Model Market in the 1950s.

Ten vendors, including well-known street food names such as Breddos, Rola Wala, SmokeStak and Yum Bun, served a range of

food, including tacos, Indian cuisine and pork buns, while five bars were stocked with wine, rum, cocktails and slushies.

THURSDAY 2 OCTOBER TO SUNDAY 5 OCTOBER

CREATEVICTORIA.COM/INSIDEOUT #INSIDEOUTVICTORIA

From 13th November. Free parking too.

white-rose.co.uk

23043.000 AN AW14 Convenience 48 Sheet HD200 3065x6116(10%).indd 1

07/10/2014 15:31

NEWS

Trinity Leeds’ innovative proposition has earned it a place on the CoolBrands® list

Street Feast night marketRetailWeek

RetailWeek

REtail dEalS


Retail Round-up

dEvElopmENt

The Bishop Centre in Taplow, a 101,500 sq ft new development, is 88% let, with more than two thirds of retailers now open.

In the past three months, a 55,000 sq ft Tesco has opened, together with TK Maxx, Nike, Mountain Ware-house, Frankie & Benny’s, Costa Coffee and Evans Cycles. Majestic Wine is to open in November.

Following the acquisition of the centre in 2005 as part of the Slough Estates asset swap, Land Securities embarked upon a meticulous process of regeneration, relocating several office and industrial businesses to the neighbouring village Burham and investing in various local initiatives around the development. After a lengthy planning process working with local authorities and commu-nity groups, consent was received in September 2012. Construction was completed in July 2014, creating a modern, sustainable development with an exciting, carefully curated retail offer.

The Bishop Centre delivers a truly unique retail offer set amidst a high quality, sustainable retail environment, cementing its status as a regeneration project that will play a vital role in benefiting the local economy.

In October, Land Securities exchanged contracts to sell its 50% stake in Princesshay shopping centre to surrounding properties in Exeter to TIAA Henderson Real Estate for £127.9m. It then simultaneously bought TIAA Henderson Real Estate’s 50% stake in Buchanan Galleries, Glasgow for £137.5m.

This takes Land Securities’ interest in Buchanan Galleries to 100%.

Land Securities has planning con-sent for a leisure and retail extension to Buchanan Galleries, which would extend the centre to 1.2 million sq ft of retail, leisure and restaurant space in the heart of Glasgow, anchored by Marks & Spencer and John Lewis.

Scott Parsons, managing direc-tor, retail at Land Securities, said: “Our planned retail development programme, of which the proposed

extension to Buchanan Galleries forms part, will create the very best shopping environments in some of the UK’s top retail destinations.”

The detailed design proposals (Reserved Matters) to redevelop the Westgate Centre to create a new retail and leisure destination in Oxford city centre’s West End have been submitted to Oxford City Council by the Westgate Oxford Alliance, a joint venture between The Crown Estate and Land Securities Group PLC. This follows approval of the Outline Planning Application by the City Council.

The detailed design proposals have been informed following extensive consultation with the local community, the Oxford Design Review Panel and officers at Oxford City Council

and Oxfordshire County Council and interest groups.

The Reserved Matters Application is expected to be determined by Oxford City Council later this year.

Westgate, a stunning new develop-ment, will bring 800,000 sq ft of shop-ping, leisure and dining to Oxford and house more than 100 new retailers and restaurants and a boutique cinema.

Reserved Matters submitted for Westgate Oxford development

Bishop Centre in full swing as retailers open

Land Securities ups stake in Buchanan Galleries to 100%

TRiniTy LeedSCabana 2,441 sq ft

DKNY 2,265 sq ft

KIKO MILANO 2,000 sq ft

Meat Liquor 5,498 sq ft

Open 5,430 sq ft

Pintura 3,595 sq ft

Rola Wala 676 sq ft

Three 1,329 sq ft

ST david’S deWi SanTBonmarché 2,637 sq ft

Clintons 1,613 sq ft

Fuel Juice 292 sq ft

MAC 2,140 sq ft

Size? 2,542 sq ft

Superdrug Beauty Studio 4,783 sq ft

Patisserie Valerie 1,180 sq ft

Poundworld 7,733 sq ft

Wahaca 5,832 sq ft

(opening november 2014)

LONDON

62 BuckinGHaM GaTeBenugo 1,292 sq ft

Curzon 9,590 sq ft

Leon 1,252 sq ft

All Bar One 3,050 sq ft

One neW cHanGe Pho 3,584 sq ft

ZiG ZaG Iberica 5,343 sq ft (opening mid-2015)

BLueWaTeRSteamer Trading 3,900 sq ft

Bill’s Restaurant 3,195 sq ft

White Stuff 7,000 sq ft

Rockar Hyundai 2,015 sq ft

9winter 2014

N Brown boss Angela Spindler is on a mission to give plus-size shoppers a fashion brand to be proud of.

It is notoriously difficult to find fashionable clothes in larger sizes, and shoppers with “fit challenges”, as

Spindler describes them, often feel ignored by the high street. Despite the fact that the average UK woman is a size 16, that is often the largest size some chains offer.

However, recently there has been a wave of change. George at Asda launched its first plus-size range last month, hot on the heels of New Look, Boohoo and Mango, which have all widened their scope. Arcadia-owned Evans added to the revolution by becoming the first plus-size brand to show at London Fashion Week in September.

But N Brown is leading the charge. “We’ve grabbed that agenda. We deserve to own it. We’ve been working on behalf of that customer for years and years and not taking any credit for it,” its glamorous chief executive says.

Spindler, former managing director of both Debenhams and George at Asda, joined N Brown just over a year ago from her previous role as chief executive of discount depart-ment store The Original Factory Shop.

The move to head up a FTSE 250 company made her one of the most powerful women in retail. It wasn’t the power but its unique proposition that attracted Spindler to the role.

“For businesses to be successful they need to be differenti-ated, they need to be relevant to how people are shopping and how demographics are changing and they need to be economically viable. I joined this business because it has all

Interview

plus sidethree of these things in spades,” she explains. “People are getting larger and people are getting older, both of which, work for us.”

N Brown has a fantastic model and great brands, according to Spindler, who sees her task as getting those brands in front of more people.

She has just done what every retailer dreams of – opened her own flagship store on London’s shopping mecca Oxford Street for womenswear brand Simply Be and menswear specialist Jacamo.

However, that feat is even more notable for Spindler, who is in charge of a business that until a few years ago traded solely through catalogues and online.

While bricks-and-mortar retailers invest heavily in online and sing the benefits of a multichannel approach, Spindler et al are vying to do the same by opening stores.

“Swimming upstream I think it’s called,” she laughs. “Multichannel customers are your most valuable customers, any retailer will tell you that. If you’re a bricks-and-mortar retailer and you can get customers shopping online they become your most loyal and most frequent.”

With 10 stores opened, N Brown has proof that the same applies for online retailers.

The halo effectOnline has often been accused of cannibalising store sales, however, Spindler argues that it has the opposite effect. “The store acts as a catalyst for loyalty,” she says.

Although the Simply Be and Jacamo stores are profitable in their own right, the purpose behind N Brown’s push into

N Brown’s chief executive is vying to destigmatise plus-size shopping and give her customers stores they love. Gemma Goldfingle reports

On the

g


stores is to maximise online rather than develop retail sales through stores.

Spindler explains that when it opens a store, online sales in its catchment rise by 5% to 6%, in what she refers to as the “halo effect”.

However, the Oxford Street flagship should take the halo effect to new territories. She admits that recognition is relatively low for its brands. Putting its store on one of the most popular shopping streets in the world is sure to boost awareness and hopefully sales.

The retailer is confident that multichannel works so is now vying to cover as much of the UK as it can do efficiently with its stores.

For N Brown, this means opening about 25 to 30 stores, which will cover 85% of the UK population to get to one of its shops in about 40 minutes.

“Having come from a background of bricks and mortar I know what not to do and where not to go,” says Spindler. “We could get better deals but we will not compromise on site.”

For Simply Be and Jacamo that means prime locations, mostly shopping centres, being easily accessible by car, close to an anchor store – “a John Lewis, M&S or Debenhams is ideal,” she says – preferably with double frontage to showcase both brands.

Spindler is keen to use N Brown’s latecomers’ advantage and ensure its store portfolio is perfect. “We reject many, many more than we accept. It’s taken us a while to get to 25,” she admits.

Simply Be and Jacamo stores are tailored to the multi-channel shopper. It has services such as click-and-collect and a ‘Stay and Play’ area, designed for customers to “relax in store” and browse the full collections using tablets. The idea is to make shopping through any channel easy in its store.

The plus-size offer naturally lends itself to the multi-channel model, says Spindler. Simply Be sells clothes from a size 10 to 32 while Jacamo stocks a size small to XXXXXL, therefore housing every SKU in one store is unfeasible.

Shoppers are encouraged to use iPads to order unusual fits, which can be delivered at their home, the store or even a local convenience store within 24 hours.

“People ask me, ‘why open stores now?’ It’s down to technology,” Spindler explains. “Technology has meant that our store proposition can deliver the full range and fit options.”

Plus-size store designThe store environment is designed for its plus-size shopper. The fitting room is spacious, so rather than being squeezed into a tiny cubicle, the shopper has an area where he or she has room to lounge.

It is also decked out with the latest technology including ‘magic mirrors’, which take a snap of the shopper in their garments which can be loaded directly to social media, and – in keeping with its ‘flatter and fit’ USP – a Bodymetrics body scanner for shoppers to determine their exact size.

Simply Be and Jacamo also have a wealth of larger sales

assistants. Spindler says contrary to popular opinion it has not actively recruited more rotund people. “We’ve picked people that have the right attitude and can offer really good style advice. That has meant that there’s a leaning to people who have fit challenges themselves. They’re perhaps more empathetic.”

Opening stores also fills a large gap on a high street that is failing to serve the plus-size shopper.

“There are lots of people doing a great job for people up to size 16 and 18 but we are very focused on doing a great job for larger sizes,” she says.

The difference between N Brown’s brands and mainstream retailers that have expanded their sizes is that N Brown’s clothes are designed with the larger shopper in mind and are sympathetic in its styles, cuts and fabrics.

“If you go into other high street retailers they’re designed

with a size 10 in mind. They go up to size 16 to 18 but they weren’t their focus. We seal our samples on a size 16 and size 22,” she says proudly.

An inclusive retailerDespite this pride, Spindler has recently widened its size range, surprisingly, to include smaller sizes. Womenswear brand Simply Be now stocks the distinctly slender size 10 and Jacamo sells some lines in a small.

This is not N Brown moving away from its plus-size roots. The retailer is unlikely to sell many of its smaller sizes – Spindler admits it is likely to hit efficiency – but she believes sending out a message that it is an “inclusive retailer” is more important.

“If you’re size 10 or size 32 we’re delighted for you to come shop at Simply Be,” she says. “Positioning yourself solely as

plus size or, on the flipside, a brand that goes up to size 16 is alienating shoppers. Everyone is welcome at Simply Be.”

Inclusivity has become more imperative now it has stores. Shopping is often a social activity and women in particular hit the high street with their girlfriends to pick up some new wares.

“There is a stigma attached to brands, which are only for larger people. We don’t want people to shop with us because of their size, we want them to shop with us regardless of size,” she says.

And Simply Be’s stores are encouraging shoppers to do just that. Spindler is confident that plus-size shoppers have finally been handed a brand they can truly love.

“It’s fun, fashionable, credible, with cheeky style to it,” she asserts. “Being proud of your curves goes hand in hand with shopping at Simply Be.” l

Building Brand awarenessBuilding awareness of n Brown’s

brands is one of spindler’s big

opportunities to grow the busi-

ness. Mature brand Jd williams, n

Brown’s biggest brand with sales

hitting £400m, has unprompted

recognition of just 4%.

she is vying to change this and

has brought in some big hitters

as ambassadors for its power

brands, for simply Be Kelly Brook,

who is known for her curves, and

lorraine Kelly for Jd williams, and

Candice Huffine, the first size 16

model to appear in the Pirelli

calendar.

spindler has clearly invested

heavily in marketing including Jd

williams launching its first-ever TV

campaign this autumn as part of

a multimillion-pound campaign.

“The hits to the website

demonstrate that we live in a

multichannel world. They went

up 5,000% during that ad break.

People are there on a mobile

device logging on and saying: Jd

willliams, who is that?” she says.

Interview

Technology has meant that our store proposition can deliver the full range and fit options Angela Spindler, N Brown

simply Be and Jacamo stores are tailored to the multichannel shopper. services include click-and-collect and a ‘stay and Play’ area (above), so customers can relax in store and browse the full collections using tablets

13winter 2014

Across the globe there are hundreds of thousands of retailers competing to build an enduring image in the mind of the consumer. They might vary widely in their target consumer, merchan-dising choices, marketing positioning,

advertising and sales channels, but they all share one universal aim – to be the number one choice for shoppers.

Yet of these myriad retailers, a mere handful stand out as true powerhouse brands. These are the names with which every household around the world will be familiar. They are the Coca-Colas and McDonald’s of the retail world – retailers that have instant and universal brand-name recognition.

But what are the factors that combine to make an iconic retail brand? For Mark O’Hanlon, senior manager at Kurt Salmon, it’s all about being a disruptive presence in a crowded retail space. “This means that these stores are able to steal a march on their competitors and, while they are often copied, their brand positioning in the customer mindset is secured for a long time,” he says.

Consistency is another vital component of what gives the world’s top international retailers the X factor, asserts Allyson Stewart-Allen, chief executive of international business consulting firm International Marketing Partners. “It’s about their DNA that they’ve worked hard to create and sustain which makes them distinct, and the consumer wants to be part of the movement, part of the tribe.”

Serving customers’ needs is top of the list when it comes to what makes a global powerhouse brand, claims Anita Balchandani, OC&C Strategy Consultants’ partner and head of UK retail. “An iconic retail brand is one that under-stands what matters to its customers and organises every-thing else – product range, brand image and channels – to market it in a way that enables them to uniquely serve those customer needs,” she says.

Report

Developing “multiple routes to growth” also play a part in establishing the world’s top retail businesses, Balchan-dani adds. “The best retailers have also been the smartest at developing their businesses into new growth areas – whether it is online and mobile, new international markets or new formats, good retail propositions innovate and travel well,” she says.

Helen Merriott, managing director for Accenture’s retail practice in the UK, believes consumer accessibility to products and first-class fulfilment strategies are vital to the success of a brand.

“Customers need to know how and where they can make purchases, especially in this digital age where consumers are more demanding than ever.” If it isn’t convenient for them to purchase from a retailer or doesn’t provide the experience they expect, then they will simply go elsewhere.

But for David Roth, chief executive of The Store, the global retail practice of WPP, establishing a global reputa-tion isn’t just about the sheer volume of consumers who have access to the brand. “Iconic brands have something special – they are highly differentiated in a meaningful way to their customers that transcends mere functionality but attains an emotional connection,” he maintains.

For any retail brand looking for that elusive X factor, Roth believes it’s a combination of two vital factors – “a renewed passion of the art of the merchant, curation and the love of product”, combined with the ability to use data and technology “to give the customer a seamless experience, omnichannel access and insightful use of mobile and location-based technology”.

To delve deeper into what makes a global retail brand truly iconic, A1 has selected five of the most reputable retailers from around the world to reveal what makes them stand out head and shoulders above all the rest.

Every household in the world will be familiar with the likes of Apple, Burberry and Ikea. But why? Laura Heywood looks at some of the most reputable international retail brands to reveal what makes them iconic

A

winter 201412

BURBERRYIn a nutshell: Helping redefine the concept of

contemporary British luxury fashion, Burberry

has been busy broadening its appeal to include

a new generation of consumers. This is thanks to

a savvy social media marketing strategy and use

of new technology cleverly connecting its high-

profile fashion shows with today’s consumer at

their fingertips.

Headline stats:

Group sales: £2bn in 2012/13

stores worldwide: 206 mainline; 49 outlet;

214 concessions; 65 franchised; 20 UK

UK retail sales: £160m

number of Fte employees: 8,887 in 2013

(Source: Retail Week Knowledge Bank)

In the past decade Burberry has reinvented itself

as a highly sought-after fashion label. This interna-

tional luxury brand may have a distinctive British

heritage, but it is synonymous around the world

with style and elegance. In more recent years it

has successfully widened its appeal to attract a

younger, more tech-conscious generation of fans

thanks in part to a strong digital focus.

To other aspiring power brands, the Burberry

success story should be considered “a masterclass

in the use of technology and social media as mar-

keting levers to become relevant and connected

to a new generation of consumers and opinion

formers”, according to The Store’s David Roth.

Allyson Stewart-Allen of International Market-

ing Partners also commends Burberry for its clever

repositioning. “It has broadened its influence

beyond pure fashion into being a way of life,

especially by deftly using social media. There’s

Burberry Acoustic, its homewares and interiors

offering, its in-store live gigs, its advertising featur-

ing fresh-faced young and aspirational faces, and

its cosmetics and fragrance.”

But an advanced digital strategy isn’t the only

reason Burberry has a global reputation, adds Kurt

Salmon’s Mark O’Hanlon, who praises the retailer

for its “beautiful aspirational product, great brand

sponsors and leveraging the Britishness but in a

cool modern way”.

The retailer has certainly come a long way since

its first flagship store was opened in New York in 1970.

The brand’s presence and reputation has spread

around the world, with more than 80 stores opened

in emerging markets since 2009/10, to take the total

number of Burberry stores in emerging markets to

173. This compares with 58 stores operating across

these markets as recently as 2007 and demonstrates

that a sprawling network across the globe is a large

component of building international notoriety.

In the past seven years, with chief execu-

tive Angela Ahrendts at the helm, Burberry has

undergone significant expansion in a handful

of emerging markets, especially China where a

£70m franchise buyout in 2010 enabled the luxury

retailer to reap huge rewards – perhaps proving

that dynamic leaders are a large contributing

factor to an iconic brand’s success. All eyes are

now on Christopher Bailey, who took over from

Ahrendts, who departed to become senior

vice-president of retail at Apple, to see what

results he can deliver.

IKEA

In a nutshell: Originally a Swedish furniture

retailer, Ikea has expanded around the world

owing to a successful business model focused

on offering stylish flat-pack furniture at afford-

able prices.

Headline stats:

turnover: £1.3bn in 2012/13

Group sales: £23.8bn in 2012/13

Worldwide stores: 345 – includes 45 franchised

and 19 UK

number of employees: 7,186 in 2013

number of group employees: 135,000 in 2013


winningformula


Report

APPLE

In a nutshell: As one of the most recognisable

brands in the world, Apple is synonymous with

sleek design and high-spec innovation – all brand

values which are replicated in its bricks-and-

mortar stores.

Headline stats:

Worldwide stores: 425, of which 254 are in the

US and 37 in the UK as of July 2014

UK sales (apple stores): £900m in 2012/13

number of employees: 4,598 in 2013


The interior design of Apple stores is a major

contributor to the brand’s international

reputation. A minimalist look is achieved

by open and airy surroundings where the

products take centre stage on large wooden

desks. Customers are encouraged to ‘try

before they buy’ and every store features a

‘Genius Bar’ that offers help and support by

specially trained staff.

Apple’s store concept was “revolutionary”

when it was established in 2001, chiefly for rec-

ognising that creating a retail space for adults

to play and learn would lead to significant sales,

according to Kurt Salmon’s Mark O’Hanlon. “Let’s

not forget that despite one of the lowest stocking

densities [number of products per sq m], it enjoys

the highest sales density [sales per sq m],” he says.

Form and function epitomise what makes Ap-

ple great, asserts International Marketing

Partners’ Allyson Stewart-Allen. “Design in every

sense is what Apple is and has been about.

The packaging, the store designs, the product

design, the ease of use of the products – com-

pared with all its competitors, this is what makes

it stand out,” she says.

Apple is also praised for merging its multiple

channels and blurring the distinctions between

the physical and digital worlds. In store, this can

be seen in the way staff handle sales transac-

tions on smartphones before sending customer

receipts via email, or the way iPhone owners

can complete the sales process themselves

using the Apple Store app on their own

devices. Similarly, shoppers are able to buy

music in store via the iTunes service on their

phones. By creating a smooth transition from

online to in-store shopping, Apple is able to

offer its customers a seamless, omnichannel

experience.

Launching high-profile flagship stores

is another key component of the brand’s

success, with 35 flagship stores around the

world. Aside from its London flagships on

Regent Street and in Covent Garden,

locations include New York, Los Angeles,

Tokyo, Sydney and Paris.

In the first half of 2014 Apple continued

to extend its influence

around the globe,

becoming a force to

be reckoned with

– by mid-2014,

stores had been

established in

the US, the UK,

Canada, Austral-

ia, France, Italy,

Germany, Japan,

China, Spain,

Switzerland, Hong

Kong, Sweden,

the Netherlands,

Turkey and Brazil.

NET-A-PORTER

In a nutshell: Considered one of the world’s

premier online luxury fashion retailers, it has built

its reputation on offering style-savvy customers

the hottest looks of the season from international

labels via worldwide express delivery.

Headline stats: Group sales, ex-Vat: £435m in 2012/13

Group number of employees: 2,193 in 2013


social media reacH:

twitter followers: 656,000 followers

Facebook: 1,316,291 likes

Google+: 679,290 followers

Net-a-Porter Group is an innovative online retailer

that sells luxury women’s fashion by means of a

weekly online magazine. Jimmy Choo and Anya

Hindmarch were among the first brands to sign up,

but its success has seen many more follow suit.

The pure-play has established itself as a brand that

really knows what it’s talking about when it comes

to cutting-edge fashion trends, thanks in large to its

founder – former stylist fashion journalist Natalie Mass-

enet – who received an MBE for her services to fashion

in 2009 and is chairman of the British Fashion Council.

For its many supporters, the etailer can do no

wrong. It’s widely regarded as the ultimate fashion

magazine, merging content and commerce on

a global scale. While the US and the UK remain its

core markets, a significant investment programme

has been underway in Asia since 2012 following the

acquisition of a start-up business in China, helping

to build its global reputation.

The site and online magazine is available in four

languages – English, French, German and Chinese

– proving that accessibility is another facet of an

iconic global brand. Speedy, convenient fulfilment is

another key area where Net-a-Porter’s international

repute has been built up. In 2006, the etailer intro-

duced its own fleet of vans for same-day deliveries in

London, which has since been replicated in Manhat-

tan and more recently in Hong Kong – indicative of

the company’s aim for uniquely high service levels.

In late 2012, the company opened a distribution

centre in Hong Kong as well as corporate offices in

Shanghai and Hong Kong to support its significant

investment programme in Asia and improve its

fulfilment services overseas.

Product diversification has been another

crucial part of Net-a-Porter’s success as an iconic

global brand with the launch of discount site The

Outnet in 2009, and a dedicated menswear site,

Mr Porter, in 2011.

Although Swedish in origins, Ikea is arguably

one of the world’s most international of retail

brands, with 345 large and distinctive stores

covering 42 countries in August 2013, including

some 40 franchise stores.

It is estimated the retailer serves about 410

million shoppers per year. Many consumers cite

Ikea’s affordable prices as a chief reason for

staying loyal to the brand, while others favour

the functional, stylish furniture design. The

retailer’s robust corporate social responsibil-

ity strategy is another big part of the brand’s

global reputation; with consumers liking the

brand’s commitment to using recyclable mate-

rials, which are not harmful to the environment

or people who interact with it.

Ikea’s famous flat-packed furniture also

resonates with consumers and enables the

business to cut all their transportation costs

and storage expenses.

A consistent store image is a big plus,

with large warehouse-style stores encourag-

ing shoppers to try the furniture out, navigate

around the store using a set pathway and

engage with staff at frequent points along

the way. However, some commentators have

questioned if that could be set to change as

the retailer trials a smaller urban format store

in Hamburg, named Ikea Citystore, covering

194,000 sq ft.

“Ruthless attention to detail, supply chain

efficiencies and cost engineering” have all

contributed to Ikea’s success, believes The

Store’s David Roth. The retailer’s style of

furniture has come to be a crucial brand

characteristic, he claims, with “design

impregnated with their DNA”. He adds that

Ikea is positive proof that “consistency is

the essence of great brands”.

Advertising is another weapon in Ikea’s

arsenal. Kurt Salmon’s Mark O’Hanlon applauds

the “great tone of voice in their advertising”,

which positions it as offering “one-stop shop

solutions that recognise how I live, designed

by people who live like me”, he says.

AMAZON

In a nutshell: The ecommerce giant has reshaped

the retail landscape in little more than a decade,

transforming people’s views of shopping online.

Headline stats:

Group pre-tax profit: £310m in 2013

Group sales: £46.3bn

UK group sales: £4.5bn in 2013

number of UK employees: 5,912 in 2013


Amazon, the world’s largest internet retailer, has

positioned itself at the forefront of innovation.

Take for example its first smartphone Fire, which

went on sale in the US in July and allows users

to see images in 3D and buy items they see. This

immersive experience is one of the many reasons

Amazon products, and its online store, have

international renown.

In the UK, the brand’s success has in part been

down to shrewd ranging decisions. No longer just

considered a book specialist, it has branched

out into music, and items such as digital cameras

and DVD players, along with stationery and office

products, digital media, health and beauty lines,

clothing and accessories, footwear, pet supplies

and car parts. It also operates a second-hand

service, Amazon Marketplace, for customers to

buy and sell pre-owned items. It is now crossing

lines into new markets by building its digital

products portfolio, from Kindle Singles web

services, Prime Instant Video and a reported

development of set-top boxes to stream video

into people’s homes.

Amazon is a pacesetter when it comes to

using its supply chain to set the standard for

customer experience. Providing fast, free shipping

and returns on a range of products that it offers

through an extensive supplier network, the

company has redefined consumers’ expectations

of service.

Its reputation for offering a first-class customer

service is set to grow even further as it expands

existing delivery initiatives, such as making

collection lockers available throughout the UK and

US in shopping centres, convenience stores and

train stations.

Summing up Amazon’s position as an iconic

retail brand, OC&C’s Anita Balchandani says:

“Its real strength comes from establishing itself

as the first port of call for customers online – it is

the de facto research destination for products

online, serves a diverse range of customer needs

and missions, and delivers impeccable first-time

resolution of customer issues.”

Retailers have faced extraordinarily challenging times over the past five years. Since the financial crisis hit in 2008, not only have retailers battled against a recession and sharp reduc-tion in consumers’ disposable income,

they have also been faced with the inexorable rise of digital technologies and the inevitable changes that has brought to consumer behaviour.

Consumers may be ready to spend again, but on their own terms and at their convenience, whether that be from the comfort of their own home, through their mobile devices, or at a bricks-and-mortar retail destination.

Landlords have faced the same challenge – adapt to the changing retail landscape, or see the demise of their once-successful portfolios.

Land Securities has acted fast and decisively to react to the pace of change within the industry, and will continue to do so, according to Scott Parsons, managing director, retail.

The acquisition of X-Leisure last year instantly made Land Securities the UK’s largest leisure landlord, but that was only the start of the leisure story. Parsons explains that leisure is key to retail success, not just through standalone leisure schemes, but by integrating

Report

including Victoria’s Secret, Tommy Hilfiger, Jack Wills, and anchors such as John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and House of Fraser.

Bluewater’s popularity and international acclaim gives Land Securities access to the very best international brands when they are first considering their UK strategy, and Parsons is optimistic that is something that can be leveraged across the portfolio. The Bluewater acquisition also provides a resilient income stream to the business, which is key in terms of the wider Land Securities’ strategy.

Parsons is quick to point out that to understand the retail strategy, it is important to first look at how the two parts of the Land Securities’ business – the London portfolio and the Retail portfolio – fit together.

The London business, where Parsons was head of property before he took over as managing director, retail earlier this year, is very cyclical and is focused on finding and developing promising locations across the capital.

“We have 1.5 million sq ft of speculative development underway in London at the moment,” he says. “That puts us at the forefront of huge, game-changing schemes in London.”

Those developments include 20 Fenchurch Street, EC3, a 687,000 sq ft joint venture with Canary Wharf Group, which at 90% let is the most successful speculative tower ever built in London, and 1 & 2 New Ludgate, which is 35% pre-let, more than 10 months ahead of completion. Then there’s Victoria – 1.2 million sq ft of new office, retail and residential space covering 20 acres and creating a vibrant new destination in the heart of the capital.

Land Securities funds its development strategy from the balance sheet, so the guaranteed revenue that the retail business generates is crucial to counter-balance the development activity across London. “We need the company to be underpinned with core, resilient income streams. The retail business is a very important part of that,” says Parsons.

He goes on to explain that the company has a net debt neutral approach, so “we have been funding developments and acquisitions through sales”.

Sales have been plentiful since Parsons took the reins. Overgate in Dundee, The Bridges in Sunderland and Cabot Circus in Bristol have all gone from the portfolio over recent months as Parsons has presided well over £1bn of transactions in his first six months in charge.

He explains that is because Land Securities is rapidly

Reinventing retailThe acquisition of Bluewater marked a significant milestone in the transformation of the Land Securities retail portfolio. Rebecca Thomson looks at the pace of scale and change in the past six months and why dominance, experience and convenience is the key to success for the new portfolio

leisure into shopping centre developments, transforming them into true customer-focused experiences rather than just a collection of shops.

That’s increasingly important with the growth of omnichannel retailing leading to “a strategic shift in the retail market, and a move towards online sales”, according to Parsons.

“A key driver of success is increasing the experiential side of things to continue to provide a reason to visit a physical space,” he explains.

This means providing improved catering and leisure elements in all shopping centre schemes, and as well as embracing digital technologies to give customers excellent service and experience.

Take catering. In the 1980s, shopping centres comprised the odd anchor and a very bad food court that made up maybe 5% of the floor space. Fast forward 30 years, and Trinity Leeds, which Land Securities opened in 2013, dedicates almost a quarter of its floor space to catering and leisure. “It’s quite a differentiated offer,” says Parsons. “We brought catering outfits that were new to the city, ranging from grab-and-go to rooftop dining to the unique street-food concept at Trinity Kitchen.”

Trinity Leeds is not just known for its excellent catering facilities. It is also at the forefront of new digital technolo-

gies. Where once that meant free wi-fi, today Land Securi-ties is experimenting with technologies such as Bluetooth beacons, which communicate with mobile phones, and location services to help shoppers navigate a centre by delivering proximity based messages. The company has also just launched two click-and-collect initiatives, which are detailed on page 31.

It’s not just in Leeds where Land Securities is pushing the boundaries. The company’s portfolio of flagship regional shopping centres also includes St David’s in Cardiff, Buchanan Galleries in Glasgow and, following the high-profile acquisition earlier this year, Bluewater in Kent.

The acquisition of a 30% stake in Bluewater with full management rights (see box on page 18), which was announced in June this year, is a “game changer” for the business, says Parsons.

“Not only does it bring the UK’s top retail destination outside central London under our roof, but perhaps more importantly still, it allows us to accelerate our retail strategy,” he adds.

Bluewater is the destination of choice for international brands when choosing where to open their first shop outside central London. American Eagle is about to open there, alongside more than 330 other names


A key driver of success is increasing the experiential side of things to continue to provide a reason to visit a physical space Scott Parsons, Land Securities

g

winter 201418

Report

reshaping its retail portfolio to reflect what retailers and customers want both now and in the future. Dominance, experience and convenience are the three key cornerstones of the Land Securities retail strategy.

The company has carried out research around customer visits, spend and dwell time in retail, and its findings show why dominance, experience and convenience are going to be key to future success. In centres which are dominant in their area, visits are down but when customers visit they spend more and stay there longer. In centres focused on convenience, spend and frequency of visits is increasing. But in secondary centres – those that Land Securities is selling – visits, spend and dwell time are all falling.

That’s why Land Securities is overhauling its shopping centre portfolio. Parsons says, “We’ve been trying to divide the winners from the losers. We have gone from around 25 shopping centres throughout the country in 2007, to a dozen today.”And it’s not just shopping centres which have been sold. “We have disposed of most of our bulky goods and standalone grocery stores too,” says Parsons.

Parsons has refreshed the structure of Rexcom board – the retail executive committee – to help achieve the business aims. In March this year, he announced that Ailish Christian-West had been appointed as head of shopping centres and Polly Troughton as head of retail parks and leisure. They joined head of retail development Lester Hampson and head of retail finance Despina Don-Wauchope to form the senior retail leadership team.

Future focusSo what’s next for the new leadership team? The last few years have seen a huge amount of change, and that shows no sign of slowing down. Parsons says: “Our London development pipeline will be largely hitting practical completion over the next two years. That’s when our devel-opment pipeline for the retail business starts heating up.

“Over the next year we will be making big decisions on development opportunities. It’s about talking to retailers and getting their support for the scheme, and making the decision on whether to push the button.”

The major opportunities in the pipeline are the Westgate shopping centre in Oxford, where Land Securities is progressing plans in a joint venture with The Crown Estate, and Buchanan Galleries in Glasgow, where the company is considering a major extension to the existing successful scheme. “They are both exciting opportunities.” says Parsons, “The improvement in sentiment among consumers is looking more positive, as is footfall and spending.”

The overarching aim won’t change however. “We will continue working to provide our consumers with a great experience, focusing on leisure and catering, and ensuring we are at the forefront of digital innovation.”

Ultimately, the business is cherry-picking the centres it thinks represent the future of retailing.

“Spend and footfall will improve in the right centres – there will be some that just don’t cut the mustard. We want to make sure we have the winners.” l

Bluewater

the acquisition of Bluewater was the biggest deal in land Securities’ history – it bought 30% of

the shopping centre for £656m in June.

It also acquired the full asset management rights for the centre and 110 acres of surrounding

land for £40m.

land Securities thinks the price tag is worth it, calling it the uK’s prime shopping destination

outside central london. the business said in an announcement: “It attracts 27 million visitors

a year and its catchment is one of the most affluent in the country. the centre totals 1.8

million sq ft and is home to over 330 retailers, cafes, bars and restaurants, including Marks

& Spencer, House of Fraser, John lewis, american eagle, Victoria’s Secret, tommy Hilfiger,

Jack wills, H&M and Zara.”

Parsons says it was a great opportunity for the business: “top 10 retail assets come to the

market very rarely. Most are held and kept almost forever.”

He adds it is strategically important as well. “we see Bluewater as the number one retail

destination outside of london. the critical thing about Bluewater is that it’s one of the first ports

of call for retailers outside of london who are looking to enter the uK market.” american eagle,

for instance, is about to open its first store outside of london in the centre.

However, there is a bit of work to do at the centre, he adds. the void rate at Bluewater is

about 5%, and Parsons predicts it can be reduced to 2.5%, which is the company average. the

empty units tend to be the smaller ones, he says, meaning they can be combined to create

bigger stores that will be more appealing to retailers. “we will combine units and create fewer

but larger units, which will be more in line with what retailers want.”

He adds that land Securities acquired leisure specialist X-leisure last year, meaning it has

in-house expertise in how to improve the catering and leisure offer. “we have got real experts in

house we can use to improve the tenant mix at Bluewater. It’s a great centre but it’s 15 years old

and it could use a bit of a refresh.” In addition, the business will be exploring what can be done

with the land around the shopping centre. “we own a significant amount of land around it so we

will explore any synergies. I can’t see Bluewater expanding but it’s a big economic population

growth area and prospects for growth are good.

“there’s no doubt that this acquisition is a defining moment for land Securities. But there’s

plenty more to come. watch this space.”

19winter 2014

Report

Land Securities’ best-performing premium outlet has increased its sales by an impres-sive 25% in the past two years, following an influx of popular brands, but there are big plans to capitalise on the scheme’s growing catchment and on the potential

investment, of up to £1bn, in its host city.Gunwharf Quays – situated by the water in Portsmouth

– has been a fixture on the retail and leisure scene since 2001 and has played a big part in helping to create the idea of a retail destination being a day out rather than simply a shopping mission.

With 425,000 sq ft of retail space, the premium outlet has constantly evolved over the past 13 years and comprises 90 stores and 30 dining units catering to meet every need and price point, as well as a multiplex cinema, hotel and casino. Land Securities has also added more than 22 premium retailers to its line up as the destination forges a growing presence in the premium market.

Names such as Tommy Hilfiger, Jaeger, Diesel, All Saints, Ugg, Musto, The North Face and Links of London have opened in recent years to complement existing names such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Hugo Boss and Ted Baker. The South of England’s premium outlet destination now attracts more than 8 million visitors a year and its growing catchment area attracts visitors from large affluent parts of southern England.

“Gunwharf Quays is a turnover rent-based outlet scheme. As a result, we share a common desire with our brand partners to see strong sales growth,” says Land Securities portfolio director, outlets, Jack Busby. “It is a mutual benefit and one that flows quickly through to rental growth performance for Land Securities, but at

sustainable levels for them as it is geared to their own performance.”

Reshaping the line-upHe adds: “The best retailers enjoy the best sales and particularly so in outlet retailing. We are reshaping the brand line-up to tap into the higher average spend that is commonly seen at premium retail outlets. This means a shift towards those same kinds of retailers. The ultimate example of this is at Bicester Village, which has experi-enced double-digit annual sales growth over the past 20 or so years because of an active asset management programme each time replacing them with retailers that generate higher and higher sales.”

While active and ongoing asset management has been the key to the scheme’s success to date, its widening popularity has prompted Land Securities to refine its strategy still further to react to the changing retail environ-ment. Land Securities’ survey data showed that the further shoppers travel, the more they spend.

Portsmouth’s tourism industry is also witnessing year-on-year growth, both in terms of domestic and interna-tional visitors. Those visitors will benefit from changes to the centre’s asset management strategy, with the new premium brands supported by existing retailers investing in extensive store refits.

Premium imageThe scheme is undergoing considerable investment in its physical appearance – through improved wayfinding, a more sophisticated suite of shop fronts and store designs, with further plans for new lighting and landscaping

Gunwharf Quays has established itself as not only a popular premium retail outlet but as a major leisure destination on the south coast. And, as Mark Faithfull reports, there is a lot more on the horizon as it seeks to make its mark with tourists too

Outlets’ best kept secret

g

Report

winter 201420 21winter 2014

schemes. All of this will help to create a much more premium look and feel that is attractive to both higher-end retailers and their customers.

“It’s an extremely busy and exciting time for Gunwharf Quays. We are targeting new brands that will deliver greater sales. This in itself will require direct investment in those new tenants.”

Busby adds: “We are aiming to create a brand mix that is appealing to shoppers and, with sales increasing by 25% in the past two years, the results show that our approach is working. As well as attracting popular names to the centre, over 20 retailers have invested in refits and we have a number of premium brands trading ahead of £1,000 per sq ft per annum – reinforcing the confidence our tenants have at our scheme.”

Gunwharf Quays does, of course, have some natural advantages. The stunning location overlooking the Solent on the South Coast of England is also close to a variety of tourist attractions in the area, such as the HMS Victory, Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard and Spinnaker Tower. The appeal of the area as a whole to tourists has strength-ened the centre as a destination rather than just as an outlet centre, as it’s one of the most unique retail environments in the UK. Furthermore, the City Council has also identified £1bn of investment opportunities in and around Ports-mouth, as it strives to reinforce its position as a year-round tourist spot.

There was an additional boost in July, when Ministers announced £7.5m of Government funding to support Sir Ben Ainslie’s America’s Cup team and their proposal to be based on the Camber in Portsmouth, adjacent to Gunwharf Quays. The news follows on from Portsmouth City Council’s decision to give planning approval for the site of the new base.

Outlets have established themselves as an important element of many retailers’ distribution strategies. At the same time, the sector has been prone to similar dynamics as those that have had an impact on the mainstream shopping centre market. So while some of the smaller outlets around the UK have struggled, by contrast the larger projects in the best locations have thrived, appealing both to the consumer’s love of great value and also to high-quality environments dovetailing retail and leisure.

Busby notes that this consumer preference for premium retail outlets is attracting new types of fashion retailers to Portsmouth, and he mentions signings at Gunwharf Quays of the likes of Original Penguin, Ugg, All Saints and Tommy Hilfiger as proof of that trend.

“Many of the brands see outlets as an additional channel and certainly there is not a huge overlap between the buyer of full-price [goods] in central London and the buyer at an outlet centre,” he notes. “It’s worth pointing out that it’s not just about new names either, some of our long-established brands are also continuing to see really strong sales growth – the likes of Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike and Ted Baker, Molton Brown, and Cath Kidston.”

However, he also reflects that attracting shoppers is no longer simply about creating a strong retail brand

mix but, rather, in another trend analogous with the experiences within the mainstream mall sector, the leisure offer has become crucial. “For obvious reasons, outlets have grown in popularity during recent years and we find that shoppers are now more inclined to travel to find that all-important bargain,” Busby says. “But we understand that shoppers are not just looking for a great retail offering – they also want a compelling leisure offer when selecting their destination.

Gunwharf Quays offers a wide choice of 30 cosmopol-itan restaurants, bars and cafes. The scheme also includes a 14-screen cinema, a 26-lane bowling complex, a night-club, a health and fitness club and a casino, which create a compelling leisure offer. There is also a 165-room hotel and a number of premium residential apartments on site.

“At Gunwharf Quays, 30% of the space is leisure, which has increased dwell time by 17% in the past 12 months. The success we are experiencing at this outlet is extremely encouraging and we will continue to find ways to channel growth and widen the centre’s appeal,” says Busby.

He also points to a third component of asset manage-ment as equally important – customer services. “Shoppers demand more than just retail. Our vision is to seamlessly

blend world-class facilities, exceptional customer service and a well-tailored leisure offer to support the new retail mix. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it’s the new battleground. Our team has been on trips to the US, Korea and China to see how best-in-class service is provided and what those consumers want and expect, it’s clear that taking our customer service to the next level is crucially important.”

In real terms that means that the in-depth training and attentive guest relations delivered in American outlets is the vision Land Securities is aspiring to at Gunwharf Quays, as the company strives to ensure that shoppers want to stay longer, spend more and enjoy an experience “that is unrivalled by any outlet centre in the UK”, says Busby. “If we achieve this, they’ll want to visit again and they’ll tell their friends about it.”

Customer service focusBuilding a direct relationship with customers is a vital element of this bold initiative and Land Securities has invested heavily in a CRM database that sits behind the updated website and which allows customers to tailor their preferences, meaning they will receive only the infor-mation that is relevant to them.

On customer services, Land Securities has “beefed up” the team, adds Busby, installing Jay Wood as head of its new guest relations team. Wood was previously head of customer services at John Lewis in Southampton. “We have started construction on our new guest relations suite in Central Square at Gunwharf Quays, which will be the base from which we can project a much more dynamic and proactive suite of guest relation services that seek to make everyone’s visit special and of a different standard to a normal shopping experience,” says Busby.

“The next phase of this plan will see the roll-out of more premium shopper services such as home delivery, valet parking and the like, when the time is right.

Given the rising popularity of Portsmouth as both a national and international tourist destination, with over 634,000 international visitors in 2013, Land Securities is also seeking to boost the service it can offer tourists to Gunwharf Quays, with overseas shoppers typically spending more than domestic consumers. “Clearly it’s crucial we look beyond the UK market and ensure that tourism is factored into our strategic growth plan. We need to explore our communication channels across multiple languages, outbound marketing campaigns in key markets and understand the part technology plays in making the customer experience as memorable as possible,” says Busby.

Gunwharf Quays has always enjoyed a fantastic relationship with the city of Portsmouth, notes Busby. “The local shopper catchment are regular visitors and are rightly proud of their centre. We are opening up the horizons, though, in seeking to target visitors from further afield – both domestically and internationally – and these same visitors will be attracted by a trip to Portsmouth because they can visit the Historic Dockyard or HMS Victory as well,” he reflects. “We see the ultimate evolution of this into a position whereby shoppers and tourists would base their trip to Gunwharf and Portsmouth around the outlet shopping experience supplemented by all the various leisure options available.” l

With 30% of the space at Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth dedicated to leisure, dwell time has increased by 17%

It’s an extremely busy and exciting time for Gunwharf Quays. We are targeting new brands that will deliver greater salesJack Busby, Land Securities

the facts

Snapshot: Gunwharf Quays,

Portsmouth

Size: 425,000 sq ft

No of units: 90 stores, 30 bars

and restaurants

Anchor and major units: Jack Wills, hugo Boss, Bose,

cath Kidston, GaNt, superdry,

Lacoste, Jamie’s Italian

Annual footfall: 8 million

Comparison goods spend: £2.45bn

Resident catchment population: 1,521,593

CACI, UK fashion outlet centre ranking: 3

the proposed guest service suite as part of Gunwharf Quays’ on-going transformation

Development


London has become accustomed to colourfully named new additions to its skyline – from the Gherkin to the Shard to the Cheesegrater, which has become a fixture of the capital’s vista ahead of opening. However, what may be less

familiar, at least for the moment, is that 20 Fenchurch Street, as it is officially called, will also add a large expanse of high-rise public space to London.

The vast Sky Garden that sits atop 20 Fenchurch Street will bring stunning views, a large amenity space and three levels – both metaphorically and physically – of food and beverage offers to this corner of the City. In doing so it underpins the opportunity for owners Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group to create a building that gives something back to its location (the Sky Garden’s viewing balconies will be open free to the public daily, on a pre-booked basis and underlines the importance of good quality leisure to commercial buildings.

Work is well underway. Almost 90% of the 38-storey, 667,000 sq ft of office space has been let, says Land Securi-ties development director Kiran Pawar, primarily to the insurance sector, which calls this corner of the financial district its own. As Pawar reflects, this was a speculative build: “It was about creating the right product at the right time in the right place. We knew a lot of lease expiries would be happening in 2014 and we targeted our comple-tion to meet that window of opportunity. We could offer a

high specification, technically robust modern building at the right time, to meet the latest needs of occupiers.”

Tenant fit-outs are well on course after completion of the build in the spring, and ahead of that the final 180ft rib to support the 50ft-high glazed roof has already been bolted into place. Come Christmas, the 32,000 sq ft glazed top-floor space, filled with abundant foliage, will have a soft opening with its surrounding cafes and bars run by the Rhubarb Group.

Access will be free to the public daily, on a pre-booked basis, and will offer spectacular views of London, including the view south towards the Shard from an open balcony.

Architecturally, the office building was designed to swell from bottom to top and, besides the view, the big attraction for prospective tenants is the expansive, uninter-rupted floorplates, which allow companies the flexibility to fill this space at a higher density: one person for every 86 sq ft, compared with the City average of 130 sq ft.

Architect Rafael Viñoly, a 69-year-old, Uruguayan-born, American-bred architect found a way of providing the upper floors with their larger footplates – the higher the floor the more desirable. He has spent his career trying to marry public amenity and commercial reality, and he describes the possibility of offering an urban experience at such a height as “pretty remarkable”. His reflection is: “Every building is an occupation of the skyline, most don’t give anything back.”

The terraces of its nearby One New Change retail and

A GArden with A view

the Sky Garden will be run

by rhubarb and will feature

two restaurants, a cafe/bar and

four dedicated event spaces

over three floors. A seafood bar

and grill on level 37 will serve fine

seafood as well as seasonal

game, meat and vegetarian

dishes. rhubarb says the design

is inspired by architect rafael

viñoly’s vision for 20 Fenchurch

Street and the city’s sense of style,

describing the atmosphere as akin

to the finest international members’

clubs, smart but informal with a

highly personal touch.

the darwin Brasserie on level

36 will be an accessible and

deluxe space overlooking the

thames, offering classic european

cuisine, while the cafe/bar on level

35 will be a contemporary wine

and food bar, with an all-day menu

serving breakfast and the best

British tapas inspired by Borough

Market. the space will transform into

a destination bar in the evening

serving classic cocktails and

craft ales in a chic environment

that offers some of the best

panoramic views of London.

there will be four events spaces

available for hire at the Sky Garden,

one each on levels 35 and 36, and

two on level 37. the capacities

range from 20 to 250 guests, with

the option to hire the entire venue

for 450 guests. there will be a

wide range of bespoke menus

to choose from, including classic

and contemporary options. A

dedicated event planner will

help tailor events from charity

galas to weddings.

BuiLdinG SnApShot

Market: City core/insurance

Local authority: City of London

Office space: 667,000 sq ft

Viewing gallery: 11,000 sq ft

Number of levels: 34 (plus three

levels of enclosed Sky Garden)

leisure destination offer stunning vistas across to the dome of St Paul’s, which fit seamlessly into the environment and the design there was conceived to be both sympathetic to its famous neighbour and to optimise the visual links with the building. At Trinity Leeds, Land Securities had also addressed the increasing importance of leisure within commercial destinations, combining a boutique cinema, an eclectic and diverse food offer, and rooftop dining with views over the Leeds skyline.

At the Sky Garden such influences will be executed on a grand scale, with three levels of food and beverage in a garden streetscape, with two huge floral banks linking the three open levels and “creating the first such viewing space which attracts the eye inwards as well as outwards, making it also an internal world”, says Pawar. “All of this will be enclosed within the enormous glass roof, although viewers will be able to access an external balcony to enjoy the views in the open air too.”

The three restaurants sit one on top of another and stepped back as they rise, enclosed within the glass dome,

and will act as the backdrop to not only al fresco dining but also to substantial public space. Their orientation directs the views towards the Thames, to which the building almost nods, creating a dramatic sky-high park of which the UK has no equivalent.

Back at ground level, Land Securities has also paid attention to the streetscape, which through the shape of the building means that it provides more great public space. Again, this reflects the company’s wider desire to provide human-scale environs for landmark buildings, and this zone includes another food and beverage offer set within the ground floor facing outwards, with spill-out chairs and tables. The backdrop to this is a huge green wall of foliage – the largest green wall in the UK – which runs the length of one side of the structure. So while 20 Fenchurch Street may have already established itself on London’s skyline, it is the views it will offer across its host location that will make the headlines. The Sky Garden is undoubtedly unique, ambitious and might just make this building the talk of the town. l

the limitAlthough 20 Fenchurch Street is the latest headquarters for London’s insurance businesses, for the capital’s population it is likely to become better known for its stunning high-level garden, viewing terraces and restaurants. Mark Faithfull looks at a panoramic destination with a difference

sky’sThe

Report


“It makes sense to keep the horizons open and do a more mixed portfolio,” says Nicholson. “As an emerging retailer you’ve got to be more and more adaptive to survive in a new market. I think it will have to be a combination of the different types of store locations. The good thing for Hema is that the three stores they have done are pretty in your face. The designs are good and the locations are very strong.”

Ruempol says longer term he is considering all key sectors of retail property: high street, shopping centres and transport hubs, and adds that retail parks could be an option.

Location is crucial, but unless the public takes to the brand and remembers the name, Hema’s expansion could stall. So Ruempol says for now the retailer is looking at the most buzzing spots in and around London, where as many people as possible are going to get a taste. But the big advantage Ruempol has is, that with 600 stores already trading and 80,000 staff across five countries, there is a tried-and-tested formula in place.

“We want stores in locations with substantial traffic,” he says. “Obviously the Greater London area will offer numerous possibilities for Hema but when the brand is firmly estab-lished and we have a more thorough understanding of shoppers in the UK we will push the brand out of London and into other key markets in the UK.”

Exactly what these key markets will be, and what type of location Hema will go for, time will tell. Which is why this initial phase for the retail giant is so crucial, and will dictate how the rest of the chain will develop.

Nicholson says: “If the concept works in the UK then there’s no reason why a store in a shopping centre in Bromley will work any better than a high street store. It’s more about whether or not the consumer will understand it.”

Whether the British shopper will embrace the new retailer is impossible to predict, but with a good tranche of stores now up and running and cautiously ambitious expansion plans underway, it’s so far so good for the latest arrival on the scene. l

From a single shop in Amsterdam in 1926 to more than 600 stores across northern Europe, Hema has quite the track record. Already a household name in the Benelux region, and with major portfolios in Germany and France, the retailer is ready

for its next big challenge: the UK. In its largest stores on the Continent it sells everything from

crockery to lingerie, upholstery to beauty products, all of which is own brand, and it thrives in transport locations. So how will it fare in a dense and competitive retail scene, and how is it going to find its place in the property market? A1 takes a closer look at how Hema has made waves this summer.

As a value retailer Hema has a twofold task ahead of it: winning over the British public and, perhaps even harder, finding its place in the property market. For a retailer with 600 stores, it has kept a low profile over here and, if it’s going

THE THREE HEMA STORES SO FAR

Victoria Place shopping centreA major mall attached to one of

London’s most buzzing transport

hubs, which sees some 136 million

passengers passing through each

year. Owned and run by Network

Rail, it has a good range of retail

brands, from typical transport

retailers such as Boots, Cards

Galore and The Perfume Shop, but

it is also home to fashion brands

Next, New Look, Dorothy Perkins

and Joy.

Clarence Street, KingstonA nice, thriving pedestrian part of

an affluent town, Clarence Street

is far more like the type of space

Hema is used to. And with John

Lewis acting as an effective anchor

at one end, plus some good

fashion brands such as Topshop,

Monsoon and River Island on the

street, it will be in good company.

Intu BromleyThe scheme’s tenants include

Debenhams, Marks & Spencer,

Zara and H&M, as well as

another 130 retail units, and is

well connected to the centre

of the capital.

nicheto rise to these challenges, that will need to change fast.

Opening its first store in June at the Victoria Place shopping centre adjacent to London Victoria train station was a good start. It’s familiar ground for the retailer, which has thrived in transport locations in its native Netherlands and in France, and with an estimated 136 million people passing through London Victoria annually, it has done all it can to achieve a high profile very quickly.

What’s striking when you include the other two sites that Hema has taken so far (see box) is that each is a very different pitch and location. The retailer has appointed Tim Newman and Martin Morgan, directors at London-based agency Harper Dennis Hobbs, to find it the ideal sites, and so far there hasn’t been one clear type. The retailer is trialling the market.

Newman says: “They have been very successful on high streets in the Benelux region, where the high street is king.

Over here we have to think more about shopping centres, but I think we’ll end up doing more high streets and transport locations. They are very strong in transport, and the Victoria store has been great; it’s trading really well. We’re going to push very hard on transport.”

Hema’s director of business development, real estate and construction, Emile Ruempol, says: “Stores of 1,300 sq ft and above are very scarce in Victoria so once this opportunity came up we decided to go for it. We quickly opened another two stores, one on a high street and another in a shopping mall, which has given us an ideal mix of store types for Hema to test the concept in the UK.”

But Paul Nicholson, associate director in the Savills retail team, says in terms of winning over the property industry, Hema will need more than a high profile. It will need to clearly define where it stands in the retail market.

He says: “People are waiting with intrigue to see what happens. But one of the issues they have is getting into the landlords’ mindset and getting the pitch right. They have to convince the property market and the landlords that they are not a pure discount retailer because they might not secure the pitches they want to be in.”

Already the labels abound, many of which are inaccurate. Comparisons have been drawn with Woolworths and other domestic discount retailers, but Hema is keen to not let the discount label stick. And when you go into one of the stores, you can see why. The smart, bright interior – with different zoning for items such as womenswear, beauty, bathrooms, kids and cooking – has a very different feel to the pure discounters British shoppers are used to. And its second and third stores – in Kingston upon Thames and Bromley respec-tively – are hardly secondary pitches.

Newman says: “It’s a totally different offer from the discounters like Poundland. They have put a lot of thought into the store layout and design. You come away thinking ‘I didn’t expect that’.”

For a new retailer in any market, caution is always advised. But for a value retailer it’s worth an even more circumspect approach because unlike, say, a luxury fashion brand, which would have obvious stepping stones in London, Hema has to find its own unique place.

This year Dutch value retailer Hema made its first foray into the UK. Ben Cooper asks if the chain has what it takes to find a place in British retail and stand out from other value stores

Carving a

Report


Ailish Christian-West, head of shopping centres for Land Securities, says: “Retailers are just as hungry for the latest ideas and technology as shoppers are, especially in such a competitive market as UK fashion. For Land Securities to bring those ideas to them puts the company in a unique position as an early adopter and an innovative landlord that retailers need to do business with.”

With Suess’ residency at an end there isn’t any time left for tests. Now she needs to convince shoppers to engage with Styleicona and for retailers to get on board.

Suess, TrueStart and Land Securities have spent the summer thinking about the best way to get the word out to shoppers and retailers. But, as Suess says, the only truly effective way will be for shoppers to start using Styleicona and spreading the word themselves.

Users can invite their friends to join and install the app and, in true social media style, the more people they connect with the better it works. And with the added functionality to share selfies and receive feedback from the whole network of users, even those who aren’t a direct friend, the potential is huge. Suess targeted fashion-mad shoppers, designers and bloggers for the launch, to get all the channels buzzing and a chain reaction to follow.

It’s a big moment for her, and for TrueStart. Less than a year old and with its first intake now graduating, the big test has begun. Retail is an exciting and, at times, unpredictable industry, especially given the pace of change and the shortness of trends. Ten years ago nobody could have begun to imagine the advances in smartphone technology that are made today, nor the ways in which social media has changed our lives.

TrueStart is all about getting ahead of the next big trends and getting the bright young lights to where they need to be to succeed in this new world. There are no guarantees in retailing, but with the support from both TrueStart and Land Securities that Suess has had, Styleicona could be just the innovation that shoppers will one day wonder how they did without. ln styleicona.com

Six months ago Katrin Suess started out on a journey into the world of retail apps. With just an idea and lots of drive, she discovered TrueStart – a nascent concept to bring new ideas into being through funding, mentoring and making connections with the right people.

Suess is one of the first entrepreneurs to have entered the creative space known as The Hub after an intensive appli-cation and selection process. And now after a life-changing six months of guidance from the TrueStart experts, her idea has been unveiled to the retail industry, and the gritty business of making it in the real world will begin.

The engaging fashion app, Styleicona, brings social shopping together with social media. The app prompts shoppers to ‘check in’ by tagging their location when they’re in a store to let their friends know with instant notifications where they are and what brands they’re trying on. Not only does it instantly promote a store and let potentially thousands of people know what’s on the racks that day, but also it allows retailers to track the popularity of their clothing with real-time feedback from users, and enables them to stay ahead of key fashion and market trends.

Suess says: “Retailers will be able to get real-time trends, it will help them to decide what will be in stores or what prominence it gets within a store. At the moment retailers are only able to track popularity of products based on sales.”

It’s a business, which says a lot about where the industry is going. True Capital chief executive and TrueStart founder Matt Truman shares what the whole project is all about.

“It was the typical TrueStart deal,” he says. “We were looking for businesses that are exposing themselves to growing channels in retail. Styleicona is something that empowers the consumer through visualisation of products in real time and brings together the notion of hyperlocal plus global in real time. It’s about sharing.”

The creator of Styleicona, entrepreneur Suess, says that like the best ideas, it was born out of watching the latest trends and finding a way to improve on what was already

being done. She says: “I was in a shop in Sydney and the assistant asked me if she could take a picture of me wearing one of the outfits, and it gave me an idea. Lots of teenage girls take selfies in shops and send them to their friends to get feedback. That’s how Styleicona came about. It lets you take pictures and send them to friends to look at.”

But having an idea is one thing, however en vogue it is. Turning that into a reality is a different question all together, and that’s where TrueStart and Land Securi-ties were able to add considerable value and insight. TrueStart connects entrepreneurs like Suess with the funding, expertise, space to create and industry contacts they need to turn their ideas into something ready for the retail market.

For the lucky few who pass the rigorous applica-tion process, there are big rewards. Those who get through go on to become Hub Residents, and for six months they work alongside some of the most exciting new businesses in the retail industry.

Matt says: “Katrin is the perfect example because she’s had guidance and funding from our experts and the benefit of working in a space where she’s been introduced to retailers through Land Securities. We’re very focused and Katrin is a very focused and driven individual. She’s just the sort of person we wanted in the Hub.”

During her residency Suess has had £25,000 in funding, business mentoring from a range of experi-enced experts and, crucially, the chance to meet with retailers to try out the idea and gauge how it sits with the industry as she’s nurtured it slowly to maturity. In the launch phase alone, Trinity Leeds provided Seuss the perfect platform with which to instantly connect to that young fashion shopper, leveraging their digital marketing footprint to encourage downloads and engagement through blogger videos, website promotion, digital screen advertising, segmented emails and highly engaging social content.

Land Securities were also instrumental in delivering the perfect app functionality to ensure it was built to provide valuable data, shopping insight and focused on the infor-mation that retailers are eager to see.

Suess says: “We have been able to raise awareness and build a product that is suitable for retailers. We’ve got feedback and built it how they want. We’ve been able to see what retailers think are the benefits of Styleicona to get an understanding of what they’re looking for and what they need.”

Land Securities has been involved from the start, not just in providing the space for The Hub to be born into – Francis House in Victoria, West London – but through its considerable contact book of retailers.

“We’ve got conversations going very quickly,” says Suess. “One of the reasons why I decided to go with TrueStart is because of their background in retail and access to a network of retailers we wouldn’t naturally have. Especially for a start-up the opportunity to set up a meeting with a big retailer is really hard.”

And it’s not a one-way street. For the retailers that have met Suess and, for those that sign up for Styleicona, there is also a golden opportunity. Letting users take selfies to share with their friends isn’t just fun for them, thanks to an insightful reporting tool it’s a useful way for retailers to see what shoppers are up to and what’s hot, providing valuable insight for retailers.

And for Land Securities it’s not just a way of nurturing the latest talent, it’s a sound commercial move as well.

How guidance from TrueStart helped Katrin Suess found Styleicona. Ben Cooper reports

Trueinnovation

I decided to go with TrueStart because of their background in retail and access to a network of retailers we wouldn’t naturally have Katrin Suess, Styleicona

Report


A s winner of the Digital Store of the Year at this year’s BT Retail Week Technology Awards, holiday operator Thomson is certainly breaking bound-aries when it comes to new-generation digital stores.

Its new-format shops have everything from an external immersive wall to get shoppers in the holiday mood, to an interactive map that allows them to explore information about countries around the world. An interactive table helps customers choose hotels, and a ‘mood-based’ search allows customers to select their holiday based on images that inspire them (see boxes).

This is holiday shopping at its most inspiring – gone are the days of sitting in front of a travel agent’s desk as they attempt to sell you one of your most expensive purchases of

Thomson’s new digitally progressive stores give customers a personalised and interactive service from the moment they step inside. Laura Heywood asks what the retail industry can learn from the travel operators’ innovative take on fully immersive shopping experiences

the year, armed only with a dog-eared holiday brochure. “Historically travel agents have been very sales orientated

and the environment has been more office than shop,” admits Doug Glenwright, Thomson’s general manager of retail transformation. “We have relied on traditional brochures; taking a brief from customers has been functional and uninspiring as we have done little to bring holidays to life outside of the sales systems.”

But all that has changed with the operator’s Holiday Design Store format, which was rolled out to Bluewater in Kent, Liverpool and Bristol at the end of last year on a trial basis, before what Glenwright describes as “a sizeable roll-out of the concept” in the latter half of 2014.

For Glenwright, the number one driver for revamping Thomson stores “was to make buying a holiday as exciting as it should be”. “To do this we needed to bring our products

digital

g

transformation

Lessons in

Features oF the thomson holiday design stores

exterior immersive wall: a large 10ft by 13ft screen, displaying

inspirational content including a 10-minute “perfect holiday”

designed to put customers in a holiday frame of mind.

digital billboards: two 55-inch digital screens in the entrance

allow customers to approach from any direction and see

the range of products and services offered via simple

motion graphics.

interior interactive map: an 84-inch interactive map allows cus-

tomers to explore useful information around the world with each

level displaying further detail (broken down to world, country, des-

tination, region, resort) to finally view more than 2,000 properties.

interactive table: two 42-inch touchscreens allow customers

to explore maps, search hotels and narrow down their choice by

selecting features that are important to them. individual proper-

ties can be viewed and emailed at any time

to look at later. a “mood-based” search allows customers to

select four photos from a range that best represents their ideal

holiday. they can then access video and photos of three recom-

mended products, and view individual properties to inspire them.

Community screen: a 75-inch screen is used to entertain and

inspire customers with top 10 lists, staff tips, customer reviews,

live weather updates, social and films. according to glenwright

“customers love tweeting their holiday booking and celebrate as

they appear on screen”.

self-service PCs: two self-service PCs demonstrate multichan-

nel integration, allowing customers to print off e-tickets, check out

tripadvisor reviews or even book their own holiday.

Personalised projection walls: large inspirational panoramic vis-

tas project on the wall when booths are not used, or the content

can be tailored to reflect the type of holiday discussed or to play

a video of the actual holiday the customer is buying. the screens

are visible around the shop to inspire other customers as well.

an interactive table helps customers select their holiday based on inspiring images

Report

winter 201430

It’s vital to stay relevant by delivering highly personalised experi-ences and modernising our service to support an omnichannel distribution strategy Doug Glenwright, thomson

to life in an engaging and inspiring way, and put the customer in control of their in-store experience, allowing them to get as close to our products as possible and person-alising their experience to make it memorable,” he explains.

According to Glenwright, travel operators face the same major obstacle as online retailers – namely that customers cannot touch the products when they buy them. “It’s a very considered purchase,” he says, “meaning that customers tend to use multiple channels when researching”.

It’s certainly a challenge most, if not all, multichannel retailers are facing daily as consumers flit between mobile, online and physical shopping channels, comparing prices and offers as they go.

Therefore it’s vital to “stay relevant by delivering highly personalised experiences and modernising our service to support an omnichannel distribution strategy,” Glenwright believes.

Retailers looking to become digitally advanced must not underestimate the importance of integrating technology seamlessly into the experience, Glenwright cautions. “This was something we were very clear on from day one,” he says. “Without integrating we would have delivered a beautiful shop without substance – so the experience would not have been significantly different from before.”

The technology must also be intuitive with no need to extensively train staff, he adds.

All the investment has certainly paid off for Thomson, with customer and staff satisfaction at an all-time high. “From a customer perspective the comments we are getting suggest we have hit the spot in making the experience fun and exciting, but also ensuring our staff deliver the personal touch that customers want from a retail experience,” Glenwright says. “From a staff perspective we focus signifi-cantly more time on talking about service and through this focus we continue to hit our sales targets. Staff also comment that this is a great place to work – they feed off each other’s experiences, striving to deliver the best service possible.”

To date, the Bluewater store is on course to be the biggest in Europe for sales, he adds, and all the revamped stores are “exceeding expectations in terms of both sales and service”.

So how will the stores develop going forward and, perhaps even more importantly, how will advances in digital technology change what Thomson can offer its customers in the future?

Mobile will be the biggest game-changer, Glenwright believes, and if Thomson can develop its technological capabilities to allow customers to interact with stores using their own mobile devices in the future “we can get our brand and products into their hands in ever more sophisticated and exciting ways”, he says.

Any retailer looking to showcase its product range in engaging and inspiring ways would do well to take a leaf out of Thomson’s book. l

l From the moment a customer enters the shop

make them feel comfortable and in control.

l integrate technology into the experience

seamlessly.

l use technology that enables the customer to lead

the interaction, not the other way round.

l make sure any personalised services focus on

positive validation rather than presumptive selling.

l encourage customers to engage with you via social

media at any point during the shopping experience.

l don’t intimidate customers with complicated-look-

ing technology – keep it simple and user friendly.

l Bring products or services to life using touchscreens

and interactive features.

l don’t underestimate the value of staff in helping to

bring the technology to life and showing customers

how to use it – make sure they’re available to

answer questions or provide reassurance.

l showcase content that has previously only

been available on the web in theatrical and

eye-catching ways.

l expensive and advanced technology is no substi-

tute for quality service and first-class products in an

inspirational environment.

toP 10 lessons For making a digitally led store work For you:

B&Q China integrates PhysiCal retailing with staFF interaCtion and digital teCh

a truly immersive experience for shoppers should

integrate the physical bricks-and-mortar structure, with

human interaction and digital technology through apps,

devices and broadcast, claims Bernadette morrison,

associate strategy director at FitCh. “digitally progressive

stores will combine all of these elements,” she says.

morrison points to the work Fitch has undertaken with

B&Q in China to create a concept – called Vivid homes

– that integrates the customer journey through the store,

website and mobile applications, as well as the staff.

Customers start by gathering ideas and inspiration

online for their dream home and sharing their mood

board on a website and blog. in store, a Vivid coach

helps collate and visualise the ideas on screen in a 3d test

apartment, and helps measure the customer’s home and

fit their ideas to their actual space and budget.

Customers can then view their dream home in what

morrison describes as “an immersive projection ‘cube’ at

an exclusive ViP screening”. “a multi-sensory 4d Visualiser

creates their dream home complete with sight, sound

and scent,” she explains. work then begins on site, and

the customer is kept constantly updated by the Pocket

Coach mobile phone app, which sends visual updates of

the installation.

For morrison, digital technology needs to be used

in a way “that doesn’t just add to the experience but

enhances the journey” and makes it a more personalised,

seamless retail experience for the shopper.

31winter 2014

Report

In September, Land Securities launched a new click-and-collect service at St David’s in Cardiff, which it jointly owns with Intu, and then went on to launch one at Trinity Leeds at the end of October. Both are renowned for embracing digital technologies and high levels of customer services

– and this latest project is certainly seen in those terms – and St David’s has been a test bed for a number of firsts from Land Securities, while Trinity Leeds is arguably already the UK’s most digitally enabled mall.

The partnership is a collaboration between Land Securities and the UK’s largest collect and return service, Collect+, which has more than 5,500 collection points and more than 260 retailers nationwide signed up to its service. The company plans to add another 2,000 locations to its network in the next 12 months and is a joint venture between PayPoint, the UK’s leading multichannel payments company and the UK’s leading independent parcel carrier, Yodel.

The Click&Collect+ service first went live at St David’s in Cardiff in September and was followed shortly after by its debut at Trinity Leeds. In both cases the centres have created a dedicated area for shoppers in a prominent location, staffed by the centre’s own teams. They include bespoke, dedicated fitting rooms to not only create a convenient location for collection but also to enhance the customer experience.

This combination is crucial to the thinking behind the initiative, says Sean Curtis, head of marketing, retail at Land Securities. “The decision initially came from extensive

research we have been carrying out at our centres,” recalls Curtis. “While we are seeing significant changes in customer behaviour in terms of click-and-collect, we identified that under a third of our retailers offered click-and-collect in these schemes. This led us to believe that such a service would enhance the shopping experience for customers, add true value to retailers and provide a point of difference for us.”

Indeed, you don’t need to look far for ongoing evidence that a joined-up strategy around stores, online, delivery and collection reaps rewards. High street and multichannel retailers with a physical store presence delivered stronger growth in m-commerce sales during the first half of 2014 compared with their online-only counterparts, according to the latest research by industry body IMRG and Capgemini.

The multichannel merchants recorded 79% year-on-year growth in sales via smartphones and tablet devices in the period of January to June this year, while the online-only/catalogue retailers had annual growth reach 59% during the same period. The multichannel group also experienced a steep rise in m-retail conversion rates in the first half of this year, as the average rate rose 33%, while the latter group recorded a slight dip in conversion rates during the same period.

Taking offIn earlier research, the companies noted that nearly one in five (19%) of online purchases were made through click-and-collect last year. Tina Spooner, chief information officer at IMRG, says: “What we are seeing happen with click-and-collect is increasing consumer

Land Securities has announced two click-and-collect initiatives in quick succession

as it looks at how it can take convenience and experience to the next level.

Mark Faithfull reports

Collective experiences

g

Report


nial age where shoppers often take images of themselves in a potential new outfit in the dressing room and then share them with friends before making a purchasing decision, it gives those using the two trial collection points a chance to share on-site and make their choice. Once the purchase is completed, it encourages shoppers to make the most of their trip; they might then visit other stores and accessorise an outfit in the same visit, for instance.

The trials are at two of Land Securities’ best-known schemes. Trinity Leeds is already bursting with digital collaborations between its physical presence and its online reach. It’s a £400m retail destination in Leeds’ prime shopping district bounded by Briggate, which sits within the top 10 busiest streets in the UK, Commercial Street and Albion Street. Situated in the heart of the city, the scheme is a state-of-the-art shopping and leisure destination and includes 110 new shops, stores and restaurants, bringing big international brands and the best of fashion, food, arts and culture to Leeds, with 65 of those brands new to the city.

Meanwhile, the £565m St David’s shopping centre in Cardiff was extensively refurbished and extended in 2009; it has more than 180 stores and restaurants and a retail floor space of 1.4 million sq ft, and was an important catalyst for the modernisation of the centre of the Welsh capital.

Not surprisingly, Land Securities intends for these trials to provide insights that go beyond these two flagship

schemes. With a diverse portfolio of malls and out-of-town parks across the country to consider, Curtis says the company is developing a national strategy to identify the role landlords can play in supporting retail performance in a multichannel environment and that it sees the potential across its schemes.

“It’s crucial not to see these two trials in isolation, impor-tant as they are to developing our thinking,” stresses Curtis. “We are looking at a whole host of ways to embed omnichannel retailing within our schemes and at how we might marry promotional and loyalty elements with our initiatives. So, for example, we’ll look at metrics such as building promotional offers around the click-and- collect offer, which might take the form of services such as preferential or limited-period free parking,” he says.

“There are myriad things that we might do but it needs to be driven by what the consumers and therefore the retailers really want and need. Shopping journeys have become so complex and have evolved so far that constant research is the key to delivering these insights and how we might respond best.”

Grocery trialIn September, Land Securities announced it is to host a six-month click-and-collect trial with online grocer Ocado at The Galleria in Hatfield. Shoppers can collect their online food order from the centre by driving into

a designated car park zone, where their shopping can be loaded into the boot of their car. It is the first time Ocado has trialled such a scheme in a shopping centre. Such trials may well be different for different parts of the portfolio.

Curtis explains that important as these test services are, they are also part of a much broader range of initiatives. Ultimately, Land Securities may provide one centralised click-and-collect location or develop a number of adjacent services. Curtis points to the Amazon Lockers trials that Land Securities pioneered at One New Change in London as an example, while noting the Transport for London initiatives to use its end-of-line Underground station car parks as collection points with third-party providers. “We’re talking to companies such as Ocado about chilled collection areas,” says Curtis. “So, if we look forward, there may come a point where we have a Collect+ with changing rooms, Amazon Lockers and chilled collection points for grocery, all side by side. Nothing is set in stone and anything is possible.”

Some research has suggested that major flagship schemes may in fact not be the widest used locations for click- and-collect, given their substantial size, and that shoppers may prefer smaller and secondary centres because of their smaller scale. Curtis emphasises that Land Securities sees the establishment of click-and-collect as a wide-ranging initiative that could look very different in retail parks and smaller projects, and city centre vs out-of-town but that it is by no means restricted to one type of location. Other than that the offer may be tailored to the shopping missions typical of different retail locations.

Seen in that context, the trials at St David’s and Trinity Leeds – obvious test-bed locations given their prominent positions in the urban hearts of two major cities and the huge footfall that they produce, coming in at a cumulative 59 million annually – while significant in their own right, are just one component of a far wider opportunity.

“So far click-and-collect has been able to deliver on that convenience requirement but it has achieved little in terms of the experience piece,” reflects Curtis. “That’s what we want to do now. It’s a learning experience for not only us but Collect+ as well, but it’s certainly where they want to take their business. We believe there are huge opportunities to deliver something that enhances the customer experience, leverages the potential of great locations and helps our retailers to deliver higher sales.” l

We’ve made it a priority to offer our customers the opportunity to shop in a way that is convenient for them Matthew Jacques, Collect+

Land Securities has launched a new click-and-collect service at St David’s in Cardiff

adoption driven by widespread retailer promotion who clearly feel that the convenience of the option can enhance the customer experience.”

Curtis supports that view and notes that in the 13-week run-up to Christmas last year, click-and-collect took off nationally, with the last two weeks of that period recording a doubling of click-and-collect fulfilled orders compared with the same period the previous year. On top of that, 50% of collections are outside normal shop trading hours, all of which suggested to Land Securities that there is a mismatch between consumer demand and available supply.

Armed with this information, Land Securities considered how it could best use such compelling data to serve its retailers and customers, while at the same time supporting its retail strategy for its centres to provide “dominance, experience and convenience”. Collect+, says Curtis, felt like the right fit and St David’s and Trinity Leeds were natural starting points to try the service, given their urban and central locations, strong service and after-hours propositions.

“Our job, as we see it, is to provide a platform for our retailers to succeed,” Curtis reflects. “So while this initiative has been borne from research, its impact and the potential to roll it out will also be determined by research. We want to answer questions such as whether it attracts new customers, and whether those customers went on to visit other retailers, or whether they arrived out of hours and had a meal and went to a movie, then picked up their items. In other words, is this about convenience or experience, or both? We need to understand the role the landlord plays in all of this.”

The right fitIt is also a milestone for Land Securities’ partner Collect+. Matthew Jacques, strategic partnerships director at Collect+, says: “This is a significant partnership for Collect+ as it continues to move our business on from being just a location-based delivery service, to being destination-based too. As shopping behaviour has evolved in line with the changing retail landscape, we’ve made it a priority to offer our customers the opportunity to shop in a way that is convenient for them.”

Jacques stresses that by introducing Collect+ to two of the most prominent and popular shopping destinations in the UK, “thousands of shoppers will now be able to collect and return their items at a time and location that fits with their day.”

So how do the new click-and-collect locations work? Managed by centre staff, the units will enable shoppers to pick up their orders from any retailer, not only those within the scheme, and they will have changing rooms where customers can try before they buy. Curtis cites a number of reasons why this is such an important part of the offer: “Firstly, it helps the retailers because it enables them – especially those within the schemes themselves – to get returned product back into the supply chain much quicker,” he says. “This is also a convenience factor for the consumer and delivers on the ‘experience’ element which, to date, collection often fails to offer.”

But he also points out that in a millennial and post-millen-

St David’s click-and-collect service desk

Land Securities Retail

Shopping centres Location Property Name Number of retailers Principal Contact Phone Number and leisure operators

Birmingham Priory Square 80+ Harlan Pollitt 0113 261 5351

Cardiff StDavid’sDewiSant 180+ GraemeStevenson 02070245415

Kent Bluewater 330+ RussellLoveland 02070245497

Glasgow BuchananGalleries 90+ RobJewell 02070243803

Leeds TrinityLeeds 110 RobJewell 02070243803

Leeds WhiteRose 100 MikeThomas 02070245127

London OneNewChange 50+ DavidAtcherley-Symes 02070243730

London Shopstop,Clapham 20+ SeanMoran 02070245435

London LewishamCentre 70+ AndrewRawlings 02077472336

London W12,ShepherdsBush 30+ AndrewRawlings 02077472336

London TheO2Centre 26 AndrewRawlings 02077472336

London Southside,Wandsworth 35+ SeanMoran 02070245435

Oxford WestgateCentre 35+ EmmaLawson 02070245132

Outlets

Location Property Name Area sq m (sq ft) Principal Contact Phone Number

Hatfield TheGalleria 80+ RobertHardie 02070245083

Portsmouth GunwharfQuays 120+ GemmaDew 02070245133

Retailparks


Bexhill-On-Sea RavensideRetail&LeisurePark 24,980(268,893) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Blackpool BlackpoolRetailPark 11,302(121,659) IanBramley 02070245484

Bracknell ThePeelCentre 15,700(169,000) NickDuffield 02070245485

ChadwellHeath GoodmayesRetailPark 8,983(96,693) IanBramley 02070245484

Chester GreyhoundRetailPark 16,619(178,890) DeepanKhiroya 02070245436

Chesterfield RavensideRetailPark 12,371(133,169) IanBramley 02070245484

Crawley SussexHouse 10,999(118,388) IanBramley 02070245484

Derby MeteorCentre 17,572(189,150) NickDuffield 02070245485

Dundee KingswayWestRetailPark 27,731(298,499) DeepanKhiroya 02070245436

Gateshead TeamValleyRetailWorld 35,171(378,591) DeepanKhiroya 02070245436

Livingston AlmondvaleRetail,South 35,285(379,800) NickDuffield 02070245485

Northampton NeneValleyRetailPark 13,637(146,791) IanBramley 02070245484

Poole PooleRetailPark 19,336(208,137) NickDuffield 02070245485

Taplow TheBishopCentre 9,429(101,500) NickDuffield 02070245485

Thanet EastKentLeisure 9,290(100,000) MarkLomax 02077472396

Thanet WestwoodCross 38,447(413,852) MarkLomax 02077472396

WestThurrock LakesideRetailPark 35,551(382,679) IanBramley 02070245484

Workington Derwent,DerwentHowe 15,637(168,323) IanBramley 02070245484

Leisuredestinations


Bath Kingsmead 8,361(90,000) DeepanKhiroya 02070245436

Manchester Printworks 32,516(350,000) JulieGarsden 07764208791

Nottingham TheCornerhouse 20,900(225,000) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Boldon BoldonLeisurePark 5,275(56,780) AndrewRussell 02077472395

London WestIndiaQuay 6,597(71,010) PollyTroughton 02077472398

London GreatNorthLeisurePark 8,542(91,945) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Wolverhampton BentleyBridgeLeisurePark 9,195(98,974) JulieGarsden 07764208791

Kent EurekaLeisurePark 9232(99,372) MarkLomax 02077472396

Aberdeen QueensLinksLeisurePark 11,951(128,639) MarkLomax 02077472396

Maidstone LockmeadowLeisureComplex 13,214(142,234) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Cambridge CambridgeLeisure 13,863(149,220) MarkLomax 02077472396

Poole TowerParkLeisurePark 18,510(199,240) MarkLomax 02077472396

Norwich Riverside 19,595(210,920) JulieGarsden 01614865035

Leeds CardiganFields 21,436(230,735) JulieGarsden 01614865035

Edinburgh FountainPark 21,636(232,890) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Manchester ParrsWood 21,795(234,600) JulieGarsden 07764208791

Brighton BrightonMarina 31,855(342,884) MarkLomax 02077472396

Yorkshire XscapeYorkshire 33,650(362,205) JulieGarsden 07764208791

MiltonKeynes XscapeMiltonKeynes 39,109(420,966) AndrewRussell 02077472395

Developments

Location Property Name Area sq m (sq ft) Principal Contact Phone Number Opening

Glasgow BuchananQuarter 46,452(500,000) NickDavis 02070245203 2017

Oxford Westgate 74,360(800,000) BertMartin 02070245076 2017

SellyOak SellyOak 42,888(461,646) ChrisFleetwood 02070245204 2017

WorcesterWoods WorcesterWoods c36,696(395,000) NickDuffield 02070245485 2017 RetailPark

Ealing EalingFilmworks 21,695(233,527) RiccardoMai 02070245136 2018

winter201434 35winter2014

T h e U K ’ s l e a d i n g p r e m i U m r e T a i l o U T l e T

g u n w h a r f - q u a y s . c o m

Gunwharf Quays Drapers Ad_230_297_AWv2.indd 1 09/10/2014 10:18

A1 november2014 final

Documents

retail market

retail deals

retail round

retail lineup

shopping centre portfolio

land securitieswinter

international strategy

international retailers