This "it" is the "atrium". Generally speaking, every shopping center, regardless of its size and location, has at least one atrium, and this atrium must be the most "show" in the whole shopping center-a "value show" full of business opportunities.
The literal understanding of the word "atrium" usually refers to the courtyard space inside the building, that is, the room "outside" space in the "inside" part of the building. Creating internal and external integration is an important position in architectural design and also plays an important role in architecture, especially in commercial buildings.
The design of this show, whether filling or leaping, is to realize the cumulative promotion of the commercial value of shopping centers. Throughout the world, some projects choose to rent directly for a long time to achieve economic benefits, and some cases choose to design carefully, even regardless of the cost, but seek to add a touch of bright color to the shopping mall to attract the favor of consumers and business organizers.
Southern Metropolis Daily: Atrium has become a magic weapon for shopping centers to generate income, and it is blindly expanded to save safety and business risks.
In the past May Day holiday, all major shopping centers in Shenzhen welcomed strong passenger flow, especially the temporary promotion areas set up in the atrium on the first floor of some shopping malls. As merchants carried out preferential activities in depth before and after May Day, the daily sales of various brands exceeded 654.38+10,000 yuan. However, Southern Reporter recently received some feedback from consumers. These promotional places were originally crowded with passengers, and now the main channels are basically occupied by promotional brands, which often appear crowded or even blocked. They are worried that in the event of a smoke accident similar to kkmall Burger King, the temporary promotion areas in these places will become obstacles for customers to escape. Industry veterans also said that in recent years, in order to increase the business area and strive for more rental income, some shopping centers in Shenzhen have a hidden rule of "not going up, not going down, not going up to public areas", and a number of suspected illegal buildings have emerged.
1 "atrium economy" has developed rapidly, but there are hidden dangers.
Last autumn and winter, women's shoes were as low as 1 discount, brand women's clothes 180 yuan, and skin care products 100 yuan, that is, 60% discount. Recently, if consumers go shopping in major shopping centers, they often see such posters and temporary booths near the atrium square. Indeed, as a means to stimulate consumption, in-depth promotion is a very good commercial marketing method. If these temporary promotion areas are set up in crowded places, we can even get twice the result with half the effort. However, this marketing model not only brings rich benefits, but also releases some security risks.
According to consumers' feedback, during the May 1 ST period, Southern Reporter visited the negative second floor of Jin Guanghua Plaza, where opinions were concentrated. Because this floor is seamlessly connected with the International Trade Station of Metro 1 Line, the passenger flow here is very large during peak hours, and sometimes subway personnel are needed to maintain order. During the visit, the reporter found that when entering Jinguanghua Shopping Mall from the subway station, the first thing I saw was the "special promotion" that the citizens complained a lot. This floor is not only a subway passage, but also a supermarket, a cosmeceutical shop, a sushi shop and a light food shop. These shops with strong customer appeal are basically crowded on holidays. However, compared with these fixed shops, the temporary promotion area will be more "domineering": there are large card slots between brands, cartons for replenishment are placed in the aisles, and promotional poster racks occupying a relatively large space outside the aisles. During the "May Day" period, colorful 10 anniversary promotion activities are being held here, and about six brands are engaged in large-scale clearance activities. In-depth promotional products include clothing, women's shoes, household items and so on. This promotion area covers a large area, and a large number of onlookers and shoppers make it very crowded. Many passing consumers need to say "I'm sorry" to pass.
The focus of another citizen's complaint is the China Resources Space at the East Gate. The area of this boutique shopping center is not large, but one of its entrances is at the exit of Laojie subway station, and the flow of people is particularly large. Therefore, during holidays, it is always crowded and special access measures need to be implemented. For example, during the May 1 holiday this year, the escalators entering the shopping malls were changed to one-way upward, and the merchants have posted notices next to the escalators: "It is forbidden to use escalators for strollers and trucks." However, what puzzles many consumers is that shopping malls hold large-scale eye protection series promotion activities in the atrium next to the escalator leading to the first floor, even though they know that there will be a large influx of passengers on the first floor during holidays. Because of its large location, many customers are dissatisfied with it, so businesses hold such large-scale promotional activities in such a narrow space, which leads to serious traffic jams. If anything happens at this time, the consequences will be very serious.
Zhang Jinye, a senior business person in Shenzhen, believes that the "atrium economy" of shopping centers has developed rapidly in recent years, and basically every shopping center is working hard, changing from the previous holiday marketing method to the current normalization. However, he believes that not all shopping centers are suitable for creating "atrium economy", some will be limited by the venue pattern, some will be contrary to public attributes, and some will even take risks to improve their ability to attract customers. These potential security risks are hidden in front of interests. Several recent accidents in Shenzhen shopping center fully show that how to strike a balance between commercial interests and public safety is an important issue.
2. The business model of shopping malls began to change driven by interests?
Why is the current "atrium economy" so sought after by businesses? What cannot be ignored is its economic benefits. Last year, a reporter from Du Nan asked about the promotion rent of about 120 square meters in the atrium of a medium-sized shopping mall in the city. At that time, the daily cost was 5,000 yuan, and now the rent has risen to 7,000 yuan, which is more expensive on Friday and Saturday. The head of its marketing department said, don't think it's easy to rent if the rent is increased by about 40%, because if you decide now, you can rent it in early July, and if you rent a weekend venue, it will be arranged until September. As a result, it is common for large shopping centers to increase their rents by millions or even tens of millions a year because of the "atrium economy". The person in charge of investment promotion also revealed that in fact, the industry attaches great importance to the "atrium economy" because it not only brings rental income, but also brings very strong passenger flow. Atriums of large shopping centers such as Vientiane City, KKMALL and Futian COCOPRK were previously rented to only one brand for promotion. Now, because the operators are very strong, they may introduce two or three brands in the same area for promotion at the same time, but the rent has not dropped at all.
In addition, in the past, shopping centers only held this kind of in-depth promotion on weekends, because they were afraid that the same type of in-store merchants would have opinions. Now, some shopping centers have launched promotion areas and "aisle economy" in the atrium and even the aisles on the first and second floors. This normal promotion method is euphemistically called "tapping business potential" by operators. However, this marketing model is still controversial in the industry. Supporters believe that retail business is still in the recovery stage, and creating "atrium economy" and "aisle economy" will help to enliven the commercial atmosphere in the venues. Opponents feel that due to the inclination of resource allocation and business strategy, the lower floors of shopping centers will have stronger and stronger ability to gather customers and operate, while floors above the second floor will gradually be regarded as "cold palace" by brands and suppliers.
A vice president of a large shopping center, who did not want to be named, believes that under the fierce competition, the shopping center began to appear disorderly in operation, which was manifested in the lack of guidance before development, the lack of focus in attracting investment, and the busy adjustment after opening. The problems exposed by the eagerness to build "atrium economy" are the consequences of disorderly management, or more seriously, the symptoms of "fishing with exhausted resources" in business. In order to increase the usable area of the first and second floors, some shopping centers not only increase the commercial weight of aisles and atriums, but also increase suspected illegal buildings in public areas.
There are two big problems. First, most shopping centers are connected with subways, which naturally assume the social function of diverting passenger flow. This practice of these shopping centers undoubtedly increases the security risk. How to balance commercial interests and public functions? At present, there is no clear system or established practice in the industry, and we can only rely on personal self-discipline and conscience. It is very dangerous when these bottom lines are broken without supervision. For example, restaurants with open flames in subway shopping malls are forbidden, but if you go for a walk in Liancheng Xintiandi and Shengfeng Town, you will encounter the smell of lampblack. Will the "atrium economy" of shopping centers follow the footsteps of subway shopping malls and become a gray area of supervision, laying hidden dangers for future public safety?
In addition to security risks, business risks may be ignored by many practitioners. Although the brands promoted in the atrium of shopping centers are all selected, they are lethal to the overall business environment of shopping malls and the cultivation of target customers. These subtle things may not be shown for the time being, but in the long run, the damage to other similar brands in the market, the impact of noisy environment on the psychological expectations of target customers, and the impact on the refinement of marketing methods are self-evident.