Is India Different?
Shedding Age-Old Stereotypes to Gain a 21st Century Perspective
By Ken Nisch, Chairman - JGA
(Ken Nisch recently presented "Mastering Retail: A Winning Combination for Consumer Domination" at the In-Store Asia Conference in Bangalore, India. The following from VMRD Magazine is a recap of his impressions following his journey.
Click here to read the full article.)
Growing up, my image of India was defined by the yearly coverage of monsoonal flooding and photos of the Gandhi's (Mahatma or Indira) on the cover of Time Magazine. On one extreme it illustrated the faceless mass of misery, while on the other, an individual who stood in to represent the past, present and future of the Indian subcontinent. India was exotic, distant, and impenetrable as a place and a people.
Fast forward to today and we discover how access, and therefore understanding, is much easier to achieve. Prior to the trip, I thought I might read a bit about others' impressions. I selected two books, Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation by Nandan Nilekani to inform; and the novel Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts to entertain. The story was much the same in both, although one advocated challenging the status quo as the only way to move forward, and the other suggested surrendering to what exists and won't change. Each in its own way is probably correct; surrender your biases, prejudices, and preconceptions, and strengthen your convictions as to improvement, progress and the future.
Admittedly, the setting for much of my time on the trip was the rarified atmosphere of In-Store Asia where many at the conference debated the inevitability of "big" retail versus the historical cultural power of small and rural retail, with the two formulas as mortal enemies locked in a winner-take-all-battle.
India is provocative in its juxtaposition of the ancient and the modern, the superstitious and the technical, the spiritual and the commercial, the poor and the privileged, and the beautiful and the neglected. It is proud and confident in its history and culture, but a bit less secure in its openness to collaboration, criticism, and innovation with people and ideas from outside the marketplace. I recognize that ideas are seen as "Indian" or not, clothing is ethnic or western, teams are seen as local or from elsewhere. Breaking down these perceptual and cultural barriers and recognizing the "fusion" on the one hand, while respecting and celebrating the things that make each of us and the places we live unique - not as a series of conflicts, but as a progression of opportunities - will be essential for retail to continue to successfully evolve.
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Toy Fantasy in Kuwait
Leading Kuwaiti toy wholesale and retail company,
Fantasy World
lives by its motto: "Kids deserve the best!" In this case, "the best" concentrates on toy selection, brands and retail experience for kids of all ages (including adults and grandparents too). As the toy industry has evolved and is increasingly influenced by technology and entertainment; this new consumer experience draws its inspiration from digitalization and licensed properties, with a focus on the visual vocabulary of children. Toy retailing, and specifically Fantasy World, positions itself at this intersection of simplicity and a naivete of youth. This prototype maintains the right blend of whimsy utilizing holographic materials, playful graphics and stylized iconic elements inspired by things celestial and imaginative. The store's strong lease line appeal is generated through a series of backlit panels, whose integrated optic elements provide an ever-changing array of colors and visual effects. The fourth location of Fantasy World is targeted to open at The Avenues in Safat, Kuwait later in 2009.
Click here to read more.
Reinvented Brazilian Marketplace Coming to Sao Paulo
The shopping center industry, and the architecture, design, and creative groups that have given form to it, have ridden a tactical pendulum that have produced centers that range from the visual anarchy of street markets and bazaars to the sterile and numbing blandness that have been a byproduct of excessive control and prescriptive regulation. The reinvention of SP Market, and the implementation of its "Brand SPace" concept, will represent a future shopping center which recognizes that retailers pay both for the physical access to transaction, as well as for the branding, image, and visibility that a highly successful retail center will provide. In a way that enriches the center itself through diversity and innovation, SP Market is creating a new shopping experience. Inherently through its design of a courtyard and "neighborhoods," and the placing of social courts for major gatherings, there are also opportunities for decompression zones, some as a coincident with food and service activities or others that will host major programming and marketing events. SP Market will also provide opportunities for major experiential brands to create temporary or permanent corporate interfaces, resulting in an experiential shopping venue that will be vital, renewable, and highly interactive. Complementary to this, in terms of aspects of the center's hardscape, is its unique "Brand SPace" criteria concept that impacts tactical elements such as the storefront, lighting, materials, visual merchandising, and graphics. Balancing the unique personality and character of these various zones will both encourage, as well as demand, the highest levels of creativity on the part of the center's retail tenants. Along with JGA, the new SP Market has brought together a team of global consultants, leveraging decades of experience in development, retail and shopping center design, and food service expertise across five continents and literally hundreds of world class projects. The renovation target completion date is November 2011.
In The News: USA Today: Psychology Is Key in Back-to-School Shopping
In a recent USA Today article about back-to-school shopping that coincided with the launch of its retail reporter Jayne O'Donnell's book Gen Buy, Ken Nisch remarked about the relevance of the student shopping season in the overall retail calendar, "The back-to-school season fills the all-important gap between spring and summer and the holidays, says Nisch, 'even though the consumer in many cases isn't ready to buy.' Many young people want to wait until school starts to detect the latest trends before investing in a wardrobe, and the economy further encourages waiting for better sales, Nisch says. That's led retailers to 'create this mythology' about dorm rooms and gotta-haves for grade school, he says."
In Gen Buy, Jayne and co-writer Kit Yarrow, Ph.D. (award-winning consumer research scholar and professor) reveal how Gen Y serves as a powerful group of consumers and offers actionable tactics on how to capture their considerable buying power. The book includes Ken Nisch's view on teen retail in his essay, "Be True to Your Cool," where he writes, "Today's "fit" for Gen Y involves ethics, social-networking, community involvement, and - a highly influential and deal-breaking issue - the retailer's creating a sense of place."
Click here to read more.
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