Last week we visited Mapic – The International Retail Property Market. A large trade show which focuses on retail developers and investors. One of this year’s key points was the Leisure Zone: Leisure in retail is the future for shopping malls.
About Mapic
Mapic takes place in Cannes in the Palais des Festivals with more than 800 exhibitors and almost 3.000 visiting companies. It’s a well visited show and we were there this year! The Leisure Zone connected leisure companies in a specific area of the show floor. Retailtainment, a combination of retail and entertainment, has grown loads in recent years and developers of shopping malls are starting to see the benefits of entertainment at their locations. There’s a rising need from visitors for an ‘experience’ instead of shopping only in the traditional way. What kind of activities are already seen in shopping malls? Trampoline parks, bowling and playgrounds are common and offer locations multiple advantages:
– extending the time spent in malls by visitors
– offering visitors an ‘experience’
– generating more income
– stimulating returning visitors
Trends
Pitch presentations were held at the Leisure Zone with useful insights and developments in the market. We noticed there’s a large demand for theming in entertainment activities. Themes like Angry Birds, Mario Kart and Lego are common and offer visitors more than only a playful activity. We also see lots of activities at the end of their product life cycle: laser tag, mini golf and go karting. Ninja courses and sky diving simulators are becoming more popular. Virtual Reality is also something that’s seen more often: again, giving visitors an experience which is virtual and which they can digitally bring back. VR looks like something which will increase even more the next few years.
It was a valuable visit and we would recommend it to every leisure professional.
Would you like to know more about Mapic? Visit http://www.mapic.com/