“After February 2022, the traffic and the average check of our customers went down. There are no increases, everything is stable. The traffic is not falling any more, yet it is not increasing either. Back in February, within the first two weeks after the beginning, the decrease was 25-30% of the traffic last year. After that, people came back, but once the mobilization was announced, the tenants reported a decrease in their sales. Even Black Friday did not help, there were no crowds. This year, people are afraid to spend money as they are not sure what to expect in the future. They mostly buy everyday goods, such as food, necessary clothes and shoes,” explains Kudryavtseva.
As for Okhta Mall in St-Petersburg, the growth started already on November 21, while the weekend of 25-27 November was especially active.
Chelyabinsk experienced an increase in the traffic even one week before Black Friday: November 14 - 20 were more visited that November 21 - 27. “We believe it is about the way salaries are paid and also because of some tenants starting their Black Friday a bit earlier than the consolidated deadline. At the same time, we can see that both, the traffic and the turnover, did well,” says Aleksey Glebov.
Aigul Safina adds that the traffic of Yuzhny Shopping and Entertainment Centre usually grows 20-25% during Black Friday period, while the average bill does not, as the goods are on sale. However, the number of purchases grows and customers return to the shopping centres.
“This is because Black Friday is gradually replaced by New Year preparations when the traffic traditionally grows reaching its peak rates. Yet to bring a customer back again takes a lot of efforts at every step of the way, from the guest service to the shop assistants’ work. In our shopping centre, repeated customers after Black Friday within the following month make close to 60%,” argues Safina.
She also says that the turnover grows in line with the traffic, that is 25-30%. The most popular goods are household appliances and electronics, jewelry, shoes, children’s goods and clothes.
“In 2020, the turnover in our malls increased from 20% to 35% depending on the region, while the traffic increased by 15-25%. In 2021 this numbers doubled,” explains Tatiana Korsakova. She had no results for the year 2022 at the time this issue was made, but the expert was hoping the positive trend prevails.
According to Oxana Fedulova, Black Friday brings 15% more money than average weekends depending on the goods.
Summary
In general, this Black Friday showed that Russians are trying to avoid spontaneous decisions and are generally buying fewer items than before. Clothes and shoes are the most popular categories while household goods are the least popular ones. The second place goes to cosmetics and personal hygiene supplies.
By Svetlana Kulikova / Vera Kozubova
72 I SHOPPING CENTERS RUSSIA I декабрь 2022