ISCF 2016: Food, entertainment revenues key to survival of malls

Mumbai: In an era where e-commerce and Omnichannel are redefining the way organized retail is evolving, food courts and beverages hold the key to success and existence of shopping malls.
“Food is becoming a fad for the success of retail:” was the unanimous vote of retailers present at a discussion on the second day of India Shopping Centre Forum 2016.
Experts also opined that the contribution of F&B and Entertainment in the revenue mix of a shopping mall in India will increase substantially in next two years.
Currently, In India on an average a 30- 35 per cent business in shopping malls is generated through food plazas and this is set to rise.
Apart from food, entertainment is another key segment that is seen playing a key role in the economic feasibility of shopping malls. Multiplex in shopping malls too survive on advertising and food & beverage much more than the revenue generated from the screening of films.
According to Director & CEO Carnival Cinema, P V Sunil, “The key challenges for the entertainment industry include building a Family Entertainment Zone (FEZ) which consists of cinema, food court, retail and recreational activities in a shopping mall.”
“Even a super-hit film like Bajrangi Bhaijan had a collection of Rs 320 crore based on viewership of 3.2 crore which is only 2.5 per cent of India’s population, because most of the population does not have quick access to the cinema hall,” Sunil said.
Talking about confluence of mall & mobile in an Omnichannel way, Founder & CEO, Pretr, Bhavik Jhaveri said “Consumers don’t buy online because it’s convenient but the alternate way is inconvenient.”
Highlighting the online- offline competition in the market he said, “Competition doesn’t kill the business but failure to adapt quickly to new trends does.”