It's the target group again

Heuer Dialog: Fitness, Wellness & Shopping to become neighbours

Munich (September 22, 2006). After closing, shopping centres clear; gymnasiums and wellness centres, on the other hand, are deserted through the daytime. But that can change and Kai Schimmelfeder, Managing Director of Feder Consulting in Hamburg, knows how. At the Heuer Fachdialog in Munich at the end of October, the specialist will explain how leisure real estate can regain its appeal. Before he begins he gives example of how fitness, wellness and shopping can together become a profitable customer landscape.

The objective of any attempt to regenerate the appeal of a certain location to spending customers must be to first increase their numbers, especially during slow periods. "Leisure time and shopping are generally a good match," Kai Schimmelfeder says, Auditor and Specialist for leisure, wellness and fitness facilities. He estimates that as many as 60 shopping centres have already attained positive results by combining their services with leisure facilities. Measured against the total number of shopping centres, 60 is surprisingly few - this figure corresponds only to around one fifth of all shopping centres in Germany.

Kai Schimmelfeder

Combining leisure and wellness with shopping can mean a rejuvenation of the customer mass. "Lifestyle facilities certainly bring in younger consumers", Schimmelfeder states, "whether that be through the fitness studio on the roof or the mobile phone store on the shop floor." The investor and centre management have to ask themselves here, who exactly belong to their (desired) target group. As a general rule of thumb: If teenagers are to be attracted, a mobile phone shop should be preferred over health food stores. The reason is simple, there are more 25 year olds with mobile phone mania than back problems. If a more mature public needs to be brought into the establishment, then physiotherapy and relaxation are likely to generate better results than trend shops. The building block "health" will also become an "anchor of the future", at least this is how Schimmelfeder sees things. Health unites all those people with time on their hands looking for others with similar interests.

What sounds simple enough, is, however, not plausible for every investor. Investors want only one thing: "guaranteed" security for at least ten years. "That's feasible. The more information we have on customer groups, purchasing behaviour and catchment area etc, the more precisely we can move forward", Schimmelfeder goes on.

Whilst working as a consultant he has seen how many investors miss the finer opportunities for instance, the potential of their staff in a shopping centre. When shoppers take lunch and dinner, fitness studios and wellness centres are empty; these are the times when staff should be encouraged to do fitness or take a massage by means of a discount card. And a tip on the side: Centre management could also found a "health club" for staff and - as club - could avoid VAT. In terms of the service received by the member, nothing changes here.

Whoever is planning wellness areas in shopping centres should concentrate on passive, indulgent services - primarily "quick wellness" - a quick relaxation massage for the bank employee next door. "The quality level needs to be set at around 3-stars plus. Neither too high nor too low," Schimmelfeder advises, one of the few wellness experts in Germany. "And that also means, no experiments with exotic offers!" Even in terms of price, a member fee of around 30 to 40 Euros per month is likely to be more successful than a discount or exclusive price policy. Now assuming that each club member is likely to indulge himself in one treatment per week, wellness business will significantly improve. The opportunity to earn money with wellness in shopping centres lies in the possibility to swim with the mainstream.

In the new landscape of fitness, wellness and shopping, quite opposing fields can find a harmonious co-existence: "The shopper comes from afar but seldom, fitness enthusiasts, on the other hand, come more often but from the immediate vicinity", Schimmelfeder summarises. He estimates that of the 60 shopping centres already mentioned, about half have managed to successfully integrate wellness. Benchmarks for this, on the other hand, are not known.

In Schimmelfeder's opinion, investors are still quite slow to react to creative concepts for leisure and shopping. In general they lack the knowledge and of course the benchmarks. He can give one piece of solid advice though: "If the basis data are analysed carefully and if Centre Manager and Branch Expert sit down together, things become clearer: for instance, that the figures on how often such shopping/leisure facilities are frequented are generally only of secondary importance. It's the potential that decides. This makes it possible to conclude turnover dependent lease contracts."

The specialist "Dialog" will take place on 25 and 26 October in the honorary guest area of Munich's Olympic Stadium. Further information can be found on Heuer Dialog's website at www.heuer-dialog.de . / map

 

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