Shoppers ready for brick-and-mortar 2.0

"More stores need to adapt the role of these stores to support omnichannel needs, as showrooms, hubs or fulfillment," he said.

Xintiandi Plaza, a commercial property in downtown Shanghai developed by Shui On Land, has taken one step further－enhancing connections with consumers.

Its latest social endeavor is to host World Music Asia, an eight-day music gala scheduled between Oct 1 to Oct 8 in seven locations across China. The extravaganza is expected to see 37 bands perform in the first major offline music festival since the COVID-19 outbreak.

"As shoppers pursue cultural and spiritual consumption, they have exhibited a stronger desire for social experiences," said Zhang Bin, executive director of Shui On Land and China Xintiandi.

"We regard music as a natural fabric connecting people, thus injecting impetus to the offline commerce and driving consumption."

While a lot of goods in its store displays can be purchased online as well, it has debuted a talk show studio as its latest attempt to tap into the surging "shoppertainment "fashion.

The introduction of FunFactory, which hosts live talk shows popular with younger consumers, is the latest addition of social elements to the iconic Xintiandi complex, said Chen Chun, director of commercial property oversight and also head of the content innovation department at Xintiandi.

"Following coronavirus-related lockdowns, the dominant sentiment of shoppers boils down to a sense of being 'reborn'," Chen said.

"What we aim for is to harness people's needs to combine spatial experiences with consumption, which constitutes a core pillar for business revival and the sustainable development of commercial spaces."

Over 90 percent of Shui On-operated lands in Shanghai have now resumed business activity, Chen said, adding that two malls had even registered up to 20 percent year-on-year growth during a promotional campaign in July.

The Xintiandi Plaza operates Social House－a multifunctional social space infused with the concept of New Retail, or the transition of online to offline shopping using a variety of technologies.

To quench a growing thirst for an immersive shopping experiences, Chen said the mall is incorporating elements like design, social activities and gourmet offerings which serve to "reinvigorate the interplay among people, product and place".

Chen saw the silver lining of the pandemic to be 'propelling business entities to resort to digital capabilities, interpret data and make faster and more accurate decisions.

"Customers are no longer categorized in traditional categories like age or profession but the true 'social circles' they belong to," she said. "The trove of data is critical to constructing content and marketing to make our offerings unique."