Forbes retail forecast & DJ’s newbie are worlds apart

About 25 years ago, a Texan friend shared the advice passed onto her from a stylish Aunt who enjoyed a successful career in a service role. Her advice was simply ... "Darlin' put on some lipstick, smile and be nice".  Whilst retailing is a complex business in 2013 being nice is not a bad starting point for a service mantra. As such, I thought I would share a precis of this Forbes article and then some pics of the new David Jones store at Malvern Central.

Forbes: It's the Customer, Stupid!

A survey of stores and customers, conducted by TimeTrade (July 2013), gleaned insights from over 1,000 customers and 60 retailers including CVS, Neiman Marcus and Macy’s found that the key to winning in the retail game is to treat people well ie. ‘happy customers buy more' .

Customers surveyed said the number one thing missing from their shopping experience is the personal touch that in-store personnel offer (or could offer). 33% of customers want a more personalized experience; 30% want smarter, more helpful employees and 29% want faster customer service. 80% will abandon an in-store purchase if they have to wait more than five minutes for services like helping them find products, answering questions or checkout.

Of the retailers surveyed, 80% revealed that sales increase by 25 to 50% when customers are assisted by product experts. About 10% to 12% of shopping is conducted online and they expect this to continue. Mid-way through 2013 retailers reported that 83% of their sales took place in the physical store.  About 3% of their sales came from mobile phone purchases and expect that metric to almost triple in 2014.

TimeTrade does not forecast the end of retail, rather an upgrade to the shopping experience. In the future customers will be treated to service reminiscent of the Apple Store, with knowledgeable, attendant customer service reps and scheduling.

“If you’re a shopper and you’re going to (spend) the energy and effort to go to a store, you’re probably going to walk into that store and get that Genius Bar experience where they know you’re coming, they know you’re in the store, they’ve allocated someone to service your requests, they know all about you ... we have Retailers telling us that there will be retail locations that they create that only serve customers who have arranged to come in".  TimeTrade thinks that’s the way it will work in future.

Source: www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/09/22/its-the-customer-stupid/#!

David Jones - Malvern Central

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Is it any wonder DJ's sales performance continues to plummet. Their newest, smaller format store at Malvern Central (ground floor - ex Target site) appears to be the same as any other store (cosmetics, apparel, accessories, homewares, childrens ware etc).  I did a quick walk through yesterday. Not a 'meet or greet' or "service pulse" could be detected. I spotted the usual suspects ... staff behind counters failing to engage with (potential) customers, not one of them spoke to me or made eye contact.

Wifi is the entry message. A desk with two computers can be found instore to look/buy on line (poorly executed at that)  ... really ... that's it for innovation? This 'lack of service' format will surely become a fossil in the future. Maybe the well-healed Malvern set will keep the DJ's dinosaur limping along for a bit longer? Who knows? What I do know is they should have read about my shoe experience at Lord & Taylor in NYC and be using technology on the floor to make the shopping experience a whole lot more convenient along with providing engaging experiences in store (couldn't find any of those either).  As a general rule I only report on positive and engaging retail finds and leave it to others to dish up disappointment. Soz about that.

As an aside note, AMP have done a rather nice job of the centre ambience upgrade.  #davidjones  #malverncentral  #amp  #podfinds

Restaurant Empires in Crisis

I am posting this article that appeared in The Sunday Age yesterday regarding the Melbourne restaurant scene. I am sure it is useful information for POD readers who have retail projects under development.

Given that food and beverage is a daily driver for foot traffic and that legislation largely controls labour costs, perhaps rent structures need to be revised it we want this sector to continue to thrive and add to the fabric of a fabulous city.

Some of Melbourne's most prominent hospitality figures have been forced to close venues or dramatically restructure their debt-ridden empires as the industry faces the biggest upheaval since the introduction of the controversial fringe benefits tax in 1986.

Almost 1500 Victorian restaurants have closed their doors over the past 12 months, which has been blamed on soaring labour costs, corporate belt-tightening and the ''Masterchef effect'' that has inspired a generation of home cooks.

Restaurant and Catering Australia chief executive John Hart said the industry was gripped by a ''systemic crisis'' that had forced some owners to flout award wage laws and avoid tax.

''And that just creates unfair competition between the businesses that do the right thing and those that don't,'' Mr Hart said.

Fairfax Media can reveal that a company associated with prominent restaurateur Paul Mathis, who sold Transport Bar and Taxi Dining Room in Federation Square for $20 million in 2006, is facing liquidation action in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The company is alleged to have traded while insolvent for more than two years at Mathis' defunct Soulmama restaurant in the St Kilda Sea Baths complex.

Corporate liquidators found the company owed millions of dollars to the landlord, suppliers and the Australian Tax Office. It had also failed to pay some superannuation benefits and workers compensation insurance.

Between 2008 and 2010, the company lent more than $470,000 to five other businesses linked to Mr Mathis, which were unable to repay the loans and have been shut down or placed into liquidation. ''Based on my examination of the books and records of the company, it is my opinion that the company was insolvent at all times during the period of 1 July 2008 to 15 December 2010,'' said liquidator Philip Newman of PCI Partners in documents filed in the Supreme Court.

Mr Mathis declined to comment other than to say the allegations of insolvent trading made by the liquidator were ''his opinion''.

Mr Mathis announced his latest venture, a 250-seat pizzeria set to open in Southern Cross Station last month, despite recently walking away from four other restaurants - Bangpop and Akachochin in South Wharf, Henry and the Fox in the CBD and Hawthorn East's Firechief.

Mr Mathis' co-director in the four restaurants, Frank de Rango, did not respond to requests for comment.

Food writer Richard Cornish said Melbourne's struggling hospitality scene was having a knock-on effect for suppliers of meat, fresh produce and alcohol, with many winding back credit terms or only accepting cash.

He said many restaurateurs had been skewered by soaring labour costs and high rents. ''In Australia wages are high, penalty rates are a big issue and passing on the cost of labour at the weekend is incredibly difficult. On top of that, you have big rents. Australian landlords are some of the most rapacious in the world,'' he said.

Nick Zampelis is another high-profile entrepreneur who is scrambling to save his hospitality empire, which has included more than 60 bars, restaurants and nightclubs over the past 25 years. Mr Zampelis has sold or closed six restaurants over the past six months, placed his Elsternwick mansion on the market and is poised to sell CBD nightclub Silk Road at a massive loss in a bid to stave off creditors.

Mr Zampelis has an offer of about $3.5 million for the Collins Street venue, after spending more than $10 million on a lavish refurbishment.

He denied he was under financial duress. ''Times are obviously tough, but I'm doing fine. In fact, I have plans to open three new restaurants. I'm getting out of nightclubs because I'm sick of the industry,'' Mr Zampelis said.

Melbourne Pub Group is also under mounting pressure, after acquiring the Albert Park, Middle Park and Newmarket hotels before spending about $5 million on St Kilda's Prince of Wales Hotel in 2011, with the financial backing of prominent businessman and racehorse owner Gerry Ryan.

Executive chef and director Paul Wilson resigned two weeks ago, following the departure in March of the group's operations and marketing manager, Julian Gerner, who oversaw the rapid expansion. At the time, Mr Gerner told Fairfax Media he lacked the drive to continue running the pub empire in the face of increasingly difficult trading conditions.

''I've been the marketer and the driver of all the businesses to date, but these days you have to micromanage hospitality and the margins are very slim. I don't have the energy to work 100 hours a week under the scrutiny and pressure of others,'' he said.

Australian Hotels Association spokesman Paddy O'Sullivan conceded that Victorian pubs were doing it tough in the face of savage discounting of packaged liquor by supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths.

Mr O'Sullivan said licensed venues now accounted for only 25 per cent of all alcohol sales, which had fallen from about 50 per cent a decade ago.

Tough times have also come for Mario Scerri, who famously bought Croydon's Dorset Gardens Hotel for $44 million in a deal scribbled on the back of a napkin in a corporate box at the 2005 Boxing Day Test Match.

Last month, the Scerri Hotel Group collapsed after amassing at least $485,000 in debts to the North Melbourne Football Club and defaulting on a commercial loan to a major liquor marketer. Mr Scerri is also facing bankruptcy proceedings over a failed loan guarantee.

Despite its debts, Mr Scerri said the group was just a ''shell company'' whose failure said nothing about the health of his wider business empire, which include interests in the Anglers Tavern, Sloaney Pony and The Nixon.

''It basically did nothing and I was happy to let it go into liquidation,'' he said. ''It's very tough out there at the moment. Wages are up, super is up and prices are down with all the competition. But none of those [hotels] are in trouble.''

Mr Scerri said he was unaware of the bankruptcy proceeding.

Ownership of the Dorset Gardens Hotel, which was controlled by another Scerri company, was transferred into the name of his brother, Joseph, in late 2011. Both brothers deny that Mario has had anything do with the Dorset since at least 2007, despite ASIC documents showing he was the sole director and shareholder until late 2011.

via http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/restaurant-empires-in-crisis-20130803-2r6gd.html

Food Melbourne
05/08/2013

Oh Boy

POD_bing boy_melb central Bing Boy is a newbie on the quick service food scene. It is the Asian version of a French Creperie. Omelette is cooked to order, filled with yummy things like BBQ duck, cucumber, sweet & sour carrot, salad and hoisin sauce, then wrapped and it's good to go. I particularly like the clean graphics and easy to read menu format. Look for it on the lower / station level at Melbourne Central.

Fun Way Finding

POD_QV_column Loving Kat Chadwicks line work. It gives this column some cute street cred. Spotted at QV, Swanston Street Melbourne.

VM Melbourne
29/07/2013

Entry Statement

POD_FRONT FENCE MELB Vertical gardens have sprouted all over retail land in recent years.This front fence caught my eye recently. It's the first time I've seen the idea in a domestic format. Spied through the car window in Armadale, Melbourne.

VM Melbourne
29/07/2013

Miss Chu x 2 (Melbourne)

POD_Miss Chu_Sth Yarra I met Nahji (a.k.a Miss Chu) a few years ago at her first tuckshop off William Street in Sydney. Since then she has evolved the concept considerably and now has outlets in both Sydney and Melbourne (and has sold Miss Chu licenses into New York, London, Paris and the rest of the country according to the fabulously flamboyant floor boy in the South Yarra store). It was good when I bit into the first rice paper roll and remains so.  Retail evolution and store growth is not an easy road so I am more than delighted to report the brand and offer is better than ever (particularly love the graphic and store design direction too ... it's honest and on trend).  Kano Hollamby is the designer for this South Yarra store (happy snaps above).  Bring on Brisbane and the rest of the country I say!

Miss Chu Food Melbourne
23/07/2013

Stick ’em up!

POD_DFO_SW_Hoarding_Food

POD peeps have been up ladders late at night again. This month we transformed blank construction walls into colourful compositions for DFO South Wharf. Adding some interest to the long lengths of vinyl were 3D pizzas, donuts and sushi in the food court. Upstairs the Homemaker level was given a mid-century make over and decorated with 3D home wares. Big thanks to all the install lads and our lovely client Jess Harney. POD is v. pleased with the total transformation (if we do say so ourselves!).

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Life in Colour … behind the scenes

POD peeps pulled an all-nighter at Highpoint (Melbourne) to deliver fashion activations and some seriously long hoarding treatments for the launch of the GPT development this morning. Running with the 'Life in Colour' theme, POD picked up on the vibrant campaign developed by the tres talented Paper Stone Scissors and got to work with our creative crayons and over sized paint brushes. Here are some behind the scenes snaps, taken at various stages over the past 48 hours, plus a very happy looking Mardi Ashkine (Regional Marketing Manager for GPT & our savvy, stylish client) with the lovely Carrie Bickmore who MC'd this mornings launch activities. If you're out West today or tomorrow, pull up a pop coloured chair and check out the lastest runway fashion from new retailers including Top Shop, Miss Selfridges and David Jones. Amazing job by my production team - thank you all. If you like what we've done, click Like below! (Professional pics will be shared soon).

Highpoint VM Melbourne
14/03/2013

Design & the Bottom Line

Mid way through last year the owners of a 'run of the mill' cafe in Kew decided they wanted to 'get a bit groovy' and appeal to a more urban bod / 'Yummy Mummy' type living in this well-heeled leafy suburb. Some good advice from a regular coffee client (an architect) was ... "engage a good interior designer and work with what you've got". Comer & King got the gig along with very modest budget (nothing new there, but in this case spent with maximum effect ... which is why you call in the expert in the first instance isn't it? ).

Once a new name, brand identity and colour palette was established and the interior concept agreed the C&K team got busy. A couple of dodgey old doors were replaced bright blue new ones (hard to miss as you are driving down High Street and the owner's loved the idea ... "we thought it was brilliant - we really stand out on the street now"). Freshly painted tones of steel blue, charcoal and taupe gave the dining spaces definition. A side board was painted and relocated.  Popular pop blue Tolix chairs, new tables, some fab light fittings, an oversized clock, a collection of plates with friendly food motives (hand drawn by Cameron Comer) and a bicycle bolted to the wall completed the transformation. Seating was reconfigured to provide 20 more seats (70 in total).

The owners are delighted with the results, both aesthetically and from a customer perspective (they are voting with their feet and wallets ... which was the intended outcome of the exercise).  Without wanting to appear too nosey about their business, I understand they are now grinding through a lot more kilos of coffee each week and a strong Saturday trade has been established (a poor trading day before the make over) (FYI there were also line ups out the door and down the foot path in the first few weeks after re-opening which has now settled into a solid, sensible pace!)

Initially regulars thought the cafe was under new management. They soon figured out it was the same owners and same chef serving up their familiar favourites. Within a week or two word had got around and they were back ... along with a whole swag of new customers who had not considered it an option previously.  I do love the pulling power of good design. Done well, it makes a big difference to the bottom line. Nice work by Comer & King who did both the branding and interior.

Fat Penguin, 713 High Street, Kew East, Melbourne.

To see more gorgeous interiors work go to www.comerandking.com

And for a peek at what it looked like before the make over ...

Folded Fashion Fabulousness

Melbourne shook off her winter coat on Saturday and served up a balmy spring day which was just  perfect for a stroll through the CBD and a spot of 'retail eye spy' ... and having just picked up a brand new zoom lens I went off in search of the good stuff. Colour is everywhere in retail land this season. Melbourne's GPO was running with a striking desert inspired installation to celebrate spring.  Made from folded paper, garden beds of cacti showcased the season's 'must haves' amid the blooms. Right next door to GPO the Myer windows had gone to Mecca (the cosmetic variety that is). Again, folded paper delivered another 'make you stop and look' moment (I also happened to chance a snap of that young lady with fabulous red hair in the distance  - the new lens works a treat!)

Sportsgirl was the last of my top 3 VM picks in the Bourke Street Mall. Ply wood palm trees in pastel and citrus tones promised a fashion paradise awaiting in store. This retailer always delivers an eye catching entry statement and is worth a look if you're in that part of town.  As for the other big brands in the vicinity ... well it was all a bit dull really (a bit like their share prices). Sigh.

VM Fashion Melbourne
23/09/2012