The Importance Of Location - The Where & Why Of Location

The way people are shopping is definitely changing. Though the omnichannel model facilitates a stronger brand presence resulting in more conversions, the sheer convenience and inventory that e-commerce gives its shoppers has changed the retail landscape over the years. And let’s face it, the economy may be down but commercial real estate is booming. Buying and renting commercial spaces is an expensive proposition and being judicial and understanding the whats, whys and wherefores before choosing a store location or thinking of opening that second store is more imperative now than before says Vijetha Rangabashyam

- Vijetha Rangabashyam

In a company podcast, Dan Bane, CEO of Trader Joe’s, one of America’s biggest national chain of neighbourhood specialty grocery stores said, “We won’t open a store just because we can.” Half a century, an ownership transfer and hundreds of stores later, Trader Joe’s strategy remains watertight, ensconced with careful considerations of market reality, population density, average income of the people in the neighbourhood, education and other factors. In 2013, Swedish ready-to-assemble furniture company IKEA decided to enter the Indian market around the time when Foreign Direct Investment rules were eased a bit. The initial plan was to set up shops in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. But after a well-wisher from Hyderabad made a case for the city with thirteen strong points centering around its demographic, economic, human resource, commercial and government advantages, IKEA signed an MoU with the city. After a year, the 4-lakh sq-ft Hyderabad store has attracted over 4 million visitors and the strategy of the brand in terms of retail expansion has changed a little – they are more keen on opening smaller stores and debuting online, like they have in Mumbai.

Every business is different. What worked or might work for IKEA or Trader Joe’s may not work for a jeweller or any other business owner who deals in high-value goods, but at the core of any business, location is key and the location you choose will have a great impact on the walk-in traffic, future sales, its ability to further grow and more.

Location, Location & Location