Major shopping centres are a new dining destination, says research
New research from Cardlytics, a purchase intelligence platform that helps make all marketing more relevant and measurable, shows that major shopping centres are now a prime dining destination for consumers.
The study, which tracked the spending behaviour of consumers across a range of retailers and food and drink outlets in Westfield London over the course of a year, found that 58% of all visitors to the shopping centre dined out while there. Many consumers were found to prefer eating out over shopping, with 36% of people dining out and not spending money anywhere else in the shopping centre.
People shopping across multiple categories were more likely to visit a restaurant during their visit – 29% of those visiting two categories spent money at a dining outlet, while 28% of those visiting three, four or five categories also spent money on eating out, and who dined in Westfield London spent on average £21 per trip in quick service restaurants and £33 in casual dining outlets.
This research is in line with the increase in footfall seen in shopping centres at night, according to the British Council of Shopping Centres, suggesting that shoppers visit shopping malls during peak meal times.
Patrick Venker, UK Managing Director of Cardlytics, said: “While Westfield London is unique, we believe this research confirms the emergence of major shopping centres as new dining destinations. People eating out in this environment are almost a new category of diner, with different demands and requirements than those dining elsewhere. There is an opportunity for establishments to build an offering to meet the needs of these customers, who may be short of time, but are keen for good-quality, well-priced food.”
