28 COMMERCIALISATION


Co-ordination is the key to commercialisation


Generating income from the mall is becoming more important but being pro-active about commercialisation management can be a challenge. According to King Sturge it’s all about strategy.


rents and service charges across 28 UK shopping centres each year. In May, the company took the decision to merge its


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commercialisation and marketing teams with the idea that a holistic approach would deliver added value. Nick Beckett joined King Sturge from leading outlet


operator McArthurGlen in 2009 and was appointed commercialisation and marketing manager in June last year. He says early signs are encouraging. “We’ve been knocking on open doors. Doing it this way rather than running things individually improves the whole offer to our clients in that we can present one strategy – it all ties up together.” “It used to be done on an ad-hoc basis but we felt we were


lacking a more strategic approach,” adds John Michell, head of shopping centre management. “It’s about synergy – we don’t


hopping centre management has grown rapidly at King Sturge over the last three years with the management team now collecting over £120m in


want marketing and commercialisation to work independently, they should complement each other. “The asset management strategy and the brand should be aligned


– you can’t have them going off in different tangents, they have to be working in tandem.” King Sturge is in the process of introducing Fishfeet – a fish


pedicure service – across three malls, Queen’s Arcade in Cardiff, Kingsway shopping centre in Newport and Ealing Broadway shopping centre in London. Beckett gives Fishfeet as an example of the overlap between commercialisation and marketing and the results a joint strategy can produce. “Fishfeet is commercialisation but it can also be seen as an event because people like to watch and see what’s going on,” he says. “We’ve had more publicity from Fishfeet than anything else I can remember and it’s increased both dwell time and spend. “If marketing and commercialisation are separate, you don’t get that level of co-ordination.”


Communication is the key to this new approach and retailer liaison


is something that King Sturge advocates. “We have improved the way we communicate including calling


more regular tenant meetings,” explains Beckett. “Retailers are happy as long as you tell them why you’re doing things and we are very pro- active in explaining the reasons and rational behind a new idea.” Driving commercialisation opportunities in retail parks is


one area the team want to focus on. “The scale is huge because there are so many retail parks,” says Beckett. “In shopping centres commercialisation is advanced but retails parks have been slower to realise, so few are maximising potential.” Michell adds: “The opportunities are limited in terms of operators


– it’s things like catering, car valeting and AA windscreen chip repair that are going to work – but you can make a difference very quickly in terms of commercialisation in retail parks.” King Sturge is working with Asset Space and their national


Adlift, involving the fitting of digitally printed vinyls onto lift doors, is one of the three core formats pioneered by advertising specialist, Limited Space. And it’s a great way to maximise revenue as well as adding


vibrancy to the mall. The format can also be experiential. Britvic recently ran a campaign advertising 7up. Using a rainforest theme to highlight the tropical flavour of the soft drink, they wrapped an entire lift interior – floor, walls and ceiling – in one big advert, entertaining shoppers on their journey through the mall. Limited Space marketing and communications director, Rosie


Merrell, says: “Adlift doesn’t go into all the lifts in a centre, only the premier, visible and central areas where we can guarantee good footfall and make the most for advertisers and landlords.”


SHOPPING CENTRE January 2011 www.shopping-centre.co.uk


contacts to bring the best operators into the malls. And as always once an operator has taken space, thought has to be put into placement on the mall. “It has happened that cheap jewellery operators have gone


in outside a major high street jeweller where they’re directly in competition,” says Michell. “You have to make sure you’re managing that in a co-ordinated way. The objective should be to drive asset for the client and for the retailers too – you can’t be at odds with the main retailers. “Making sure commercialisation isn’t impacting detrimentally on mall tenants but is complementary is key to balancing tenant mix.”


Find out more: For more information, please contact the author or visit the website: www.shopping-centre.co.uk/commercialisation mia.hunt@jldmedia.com


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