The numbers speak for themselves

Without mentioning the ‘P’ or ‘C’ word it’s safe to say 2021 was a tough year for retail. However, in partnership with our fabulous shopping centre clients, we managed to defy the norm and drive their centres towards huge success. 

Our Belgian shopping centre client, Docks Bruxsel, had a huge year with a 54% increase in footfall YoY, 34% ahead of the competitor average. What’s more impressive is that footfall was 17% higher than pre-pandemic 2019. Meanwhile over in Northern Ireland at The Boulevard premier outlet, footfall was up 26%, sales up 34.5% and average transaction value was up 12.5% YoY. Also noteworthy was our Swedish shopping centre Bromma Blocks’ 2% increase in footfall YoY, which like the Boulevard was calculated as a like for like, negating closed days in 2020. 

So, what’s the secret sauce? Whilst the success should rightly be attributed to the work of the leasing teams and physical improvements onsite, it has become clear to us that the continued investment in marketing and media has delivered direct results versus those centres that failed to invest.

Maintaining an ever-present voice supported by stand out creative, our clients we’re able to stay front of mind and whilst other centre’s reined in the spending, we were able to gain a much larger share of voice than normal, achieving a whole new level of reach.

This awareness-level communication was supported by carefully planned digital media to drive consideration. Paid search, online display, social media, and sponsored Google maps were all employed to make sure that our client’s centres appeared online, when and where our audiences were researching their next shopping, food, and leisure venture. 

So, whilst the threat of online is still there, even more so after a couple of years of intermittent lockdowns and restrictions for physical retail, schemes offering a great tangible experience, supported by consistent and attention-grabbing marketing are bucking the trend. The numbers speak for themselves.