Shopping has become emotional

Dr Wee said that traditional bricks-and-mortar retailers are having trouble with the new tricks of e-commerce.

She said: “Online retailing… is accessible any time, anywhere.

“So what a clever retailer does is make shopping an emotional experience for the customers.”

Citing the examples of Uniqlo, Muji and Sephora, she said: “You do not go to the Uniqlo agship just to buy clothes, you go to be excited. That is how Uniqlo brings customers back to its bricks-and-mortar shops.

“The enhancement of its shopping experience and the constant updating of unique product offerings are key to its success.” Uniqlo recently opened its South-east Asian agship in Orchard Road amid a retail slump.

The store is the casual clothing chain’s largest in the region as the brand looks for growth outside Japan to revive agging prots at its parent company.

Highlighting Uniqlo, Muji, H&M and Zara as success stories, Dr Wee added: “These brands have also managed to engage social media and the Internet.”

Muji Singapore general manager Jasmine Sng said that with the rapid changes of the Internet environment, Muji is always nding ways to engage the customer.

“Muji started its e-commerce platform last March and has seen a healthy increase in sales over last year,” she said.

“We use Facebook and Instagram to keep customers informed of each product function, the campaign and promotions we have, and from time to time, change the posting style, or posting of videos.

“We sometimes introduce online-exclusive offers, pre-launch items and also, a fashion look book.”

The Japanese lifestyle brand has planned a new agship store in Singapore, estimated to be around 3,300 sg m, that will have more lifestyle concepts.

Ms Sng said that Muji, unlike departmental stores, produces its own goods, and added: “We are in control of product design, quality and price. We then inform customers the reason and story behind each product.”

She said that since last year, Muji has introduced interior and styling adviser services to customers in the hope of getting closer to customers.

PARADISE NO MORE

Dr Wee said that in the 1980s and 1990s, when Singapore was deemed a shoppers’ paradise, department stores thrived because people did not travel as much and these one-stop shops reshaped shopping habits.

“Tourists ocked here to experience shopping in department stores.
“Singapore was the only place with large one-stop shops, where everything you wanted was under one roof,” she said.

“But today, there are department stores everywhere – in Bangkok, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur. The tourists are not coming and even Singaporeans are travelling to shop,” she said.

Despite the challenges, Dr Wee said it is not true that the big boys will shut down when the economy is soft.

“Those who do not keep up with the times are gone. Others who continue to embrace change and make sure they stay relevant continue to ourish,” she said.

Mr Tan Kee Yong, managing director of AsiaMalls Management, which manages malls such as Tampines 1, Tiong Bahru Plaza and Liang Court, agreed.

“Ultimately, the brands…need to evolve to be relevant to the prole of shoppers they serve. (In a survey we did), it seemed that millennials prefer speciality stores like what we have at Tampines 1, whereas the older generation still likes to have anchor tenants, so that the whole family can nd things they want,” he said.

Mr Tan said the function of malls is also changing, beyond just a place for shopping. “With more community events, malls have become a gathering place for friends and family.”