February 18, 2014 – Food has always been an important component of retail destinations. Take your local shopping center for one you have the grocery store, a coffee shop and maybe even a small eatery. In the shopping mall you have the food court. What i’m saying is that in the age of smartphones, food components are gaining prominence, importance, and, as it takes on a more dominant role in the success of retail destinations, it also is going more upscale.
The supermarket is sprucing up because shoppers want to have a special experience when they step into a store. Fresh market and whole foods highlight our sensory relationship with food, enticing us with heightened visual, tactile and taste presentations. In addition to sprucing up, they are breaking out of the supermarket shell and moving up to co-anchor shopping malls. Consider recent developments in south florida malls: fresh market opened in the falls and whole foods will co-anchor the forthcoming palm beach outlet shops. Whereas trader joes, a quirky, specialty grocer, known for exceptional customer service, opened their first south florida store in pinecrest. A second store is under construction in east boca raton, set to open in a couple months, but im sure their growth will continue rapidly in the tri-county market. The combination of size, price, store brands for its products and customer service creates a unified experience that makes going to trader joe’s an experience all its own.
And the good old food court at the mall? Expect to see it go upscale, if you havent already. Food courts are going to evolve into food halls or even artisan halls. Been to new york lately? On a former concourse of the plaza hotel, the hotel now has created a food court -to use the traditional generic term – except that it is a highly curated food court where each food stand serves freshly prepared, distinguishable food with a touch of gourmet in it. Even locally weve seen the town center at boca raton transform their food area into the cafes at boca which includes tossed (a made-to order salad bar( and earl of sandwhich. The grease filled, fast-food food court is a thing of the past.
Palm Beach Retail Report 2014
/in TrendsAverage asking rent in Palm Beach County shopping centers increased in 2013, for a second year in a row, continuing the slow but steady recovery that began in 2011. Occupancy also increased, but only slightly, as some of the county’s shopping centers still contend with vacant big boxes, contributing to the overall double-digit vacancy rate.
The Launch of Tea Bars
/in Trending topicsFebruary 24, 2014 – Coffee shops such as starbucks and dunkin donuts have become something of an obsession to americans since the 70s. Many people are unable to function at the office without at least two cups of the caffeinated drink throughout the day. Whereas others simply enjoy the taste or its natural dietary benefits. But what about the non•coffee fans that would still like a little mid-day pick-me•up? Of course theres the typical sugar loaded fountain drink, but for those looking for a healthier/natural alternative, tea is a great fiti.
Teavanna has quickly become the leader in the gourmet tea market, opening over 330 storefronts in 3 countries (thus far) since its launch in 1997. Starbucks acquired teavanna in late 2012 with some expansion ideas of their own and officially opened its doors to the first full-scale teavanna tea bar in nyc this past october. They plan to do for tea what theyve done for coffee by expanding on this concept to open at least 1,000 new tea bars within the next five-ten years. Not to be confused with teavannas already established sales•based storefronts, the bars are designed to be a relaxing, leisure environment (as opposed to starbucks on-the•go mentality) where guests are invited to truly savor the experience of tasting exotic tea flavors, while enjoying a spot on the couch or casual dining. They also serve a more upscale food menu with the priciest salad priced at $14.95 and a raspberry and apricot cream scone for $3.75.
Taking inspiration from the trend popping up in new york, french entrepreneur damien ceulemans saw an opportunity to enter the flourishing south florida market with a concept all his own ticety, a gourmet tea bar which will serve a variety of organic tea, hot and cold. In addition to tea, ticety will also serve a full french style menu of pastries, sandwiches and salads, as well as introduce alcoholic beverages to its guest all of which will of course include tea at its core. Ticety is expected to open its miracle mile i coral gables location in the next couple months and will be the first of its kind in south florida.
Food is King
/in Trending topicsFebruary 18, 2014 – Food has always been an important component of retail destinations. Take your local shopping center for one you have the grocery store, a coffee shop and maybe even a small eatery. In the shopping mall you have the food court. What i’m saying is that in the age of smartphones, food components are gaining prominence, importance, and, as it takes on a more dominant role in the success of retail destinations, it also is going more upscale.
The supermarket is sprucing up because shoppers want to have a special experience when they step into a store. Fresh market and whole foods highlight our sensory relationship with food, enticing us with heightened visual, tactile and taste presentations. In addition to sprucing up, they are breaking out of the supermarket shell and moving up to co-anchor shopping malls. Consider recent developments in south florida malls: fresh market opened in the falls and whole foods will co-anchor the forthcoming palm beach outlet shops. Whereas trader joes, a quirky, specialty grocer, known for exceptional customer service, opened their first south florida store in pinecrest. A second store is under construction in east boca raton, set to open in a couple months, but im sure their growth will continue rapidly in the tri-county market. The combination of size, price, store brands for its products and customer service creates a unified experience that makes going to trader joe’s an experience all its own.
And the good old food court at the mall? Expect to see it go upscale, if you havent already. Food courts are going to evolve into food halls or even artisan halls. Been to new york lately? On a former concourse of the plaza hotel, the hotel now has created a food court -to use the traditional generic term – except that it is a highly curated food court where each food stand serves freshly prepared, distinguishable food with a touch of gourmet in it. Even locally weve seen the town center at boca raton transform their food area into the cafes at boca which includes tossed (a made-to order salad bar( and earl of sandwhich. The grease filled, fast-food food court is a thing of the past.