A common narrative across all three of our roundtables was the shift from transaction to experience, fuelled not only by the closure of hotels and borders during lockdown but also by wider changes to how and where we choose to spend our time.
Creative brand strategist Philippa Wagner unpacks five key topics that emerged across the roundtables, highlighting best-in-class examples that demonstrate change and draw out questions from our discussions. Some of the topics are already well established, while others are more nascent. One theme they all have in common is flexibility – be it flexibility of space, resources, mindset or services.
01. The linger effect – Looking beyond footfall to retention
As customers’ relationship with retail shifts, retailers are moving beyond transactional modes of selling, broadening their scope to incorporate hospitality, dining and relaxation into the retail environment. Similarly, hotels are evolving into multi-purpose places to sleep, meet, work and play. Both retailers and hotel brands are levelling up the concept of placemaking, creating destinations where people are incentivised to stay the whole day.
The metrics of success in retail and hospitality have largely shifted away from footfall and towards the retention of customers. Operators are keen to capitalise on the so-called 'linger effect', leaning on partnerships between retail and hospitality to create ecosystems that encourage people to linger all day.