Who’s Going Back to Retail Stores? 77% of Respondents to ICSC Survey Say They Are
In what might elicit a sigh of relief for some retailers, a majority of consumers said they “will be comfortable” getting back to the normal business of shopping at brick-and-mortar stores after stay-at-home orders are lifted, according to an International Council of Shopping Centers poll.
However, they said that comfort level will kick in two months after consumers get back on the streets. Depending on when mandates are lifted and how they’re done, that could still leave retailers on the brink of financial disaster in a whale of trouble.
Some 77% of those surveyed April 10 through 12 said they believe they will be unruffled walking into physical stores to purchase apparel, electronics and home decor, for example, many of the products they’ve been buying online in recent weeks.
It appears, however, they’re more likely to go to open-air shopping centers, at 74%, compared with 60% who said they’d make a mall visit.
And 71% are willing to get back to their favorite restaurants, bars and other eating establishments. Such dining and drinking places were the first to get shut down in early March when the coronavirus first began to spread rapidly.
It’s unclear what kind of setting would be most amenable — tables further apart than usual or sitting at every other bar stool? — but the readiness to go back to such typically hands-on businesses could be considered a good sign for a post-pandemic recovery. Many industry analysts and market observers have worried that consumers might be less than willing to go back to people-heavy establishments and events.
Activities that more than half of consumers are likely to return to include personal services such as spas, hair, nail and tanning salons and massage parlors at 56%, with other leisure and entertainment complexes, excluding movie theaters, at 54%.
Only 50% of consumers said they might visit movie theaters and fitness centers where people are normally close to each other with a number of touch points.
As for hotels and tourist attractions, 49% see themselves there after two months.
