Good News for small retail, 69% of Gen Z and 51% of boomers are fed up with retail giants.* That’s the finding of an ActiveCampaign survey.
ActiveCampaign offers marketing services for small & medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Although the survey may include an SMB bias. My SMB’s limited empirical evidence accepts their finding.
This is great news for small retailers. It’s particularly good if small retail identifies and exploits what the public dislike about giant big Box retailers.
For example, small business retail districts offer outdoor sidewalk escapes from the massive reverberating agitating noise of a generic enclosed concrete big Box.
Parking can be a problem for big Boxes and small retailers; particularly during the holiday season. However, small business district parking, mitigated by sidewalk street-lined window-shopping, offers an entertaining alternative to a long hike on the expansive black-top acreage of big Box parking.
Personal sales are also an exploitable opportunity for small retail. An on-the-floor motivated business owner, plus his knowledgeable staff, holds a huge advantage over a bureaucratic corporate-trained army of big Boxers.
A big Box perceived advantage still lies in their selection and price. However, business district associations can promote the wide selection offered by dozens of retailers. Then each retailer must include a sampling of competitively priced items. Given the dislike toward big retailers, this tandem can be enough to negate the big Box selection/price perception.
Finally, district associations should take the lead in creating a unified campaign.
A campaign that highlights small business district advantages. A promotional campaign that includes traditional advertising, street signage, and point-of-purchase materials. The association should also assist or build its retailer websites.
This plan can exploit the good news. What say you?
*Link to MediaPost: Small Wonder Consumers Dislike Large Stores And Prefer SMBs.