On June 11, 2020, ULI Charlotte hosted a Zoom meeting to discuss the future of retail in a post-COVID world. As retail centers and restaurants have adapted over the past few months to meet consumers’ needs for safety and convenience, some are seeing success with changes while others continue to struggle. Businesses need to reimagine the experience from what retail and restaurants have been to what they need to be.

Here are some key takeaways from the panel:

• Although consumers crave community and connection, they realize they can’t return to business as normal so there has to be more of a reward for returning to retail centers – activations such as art, live events, community plays or movies will help.
• Safety is front and center on consumers’ minds. They want to see that retail stores and restaurants have been cleaned and disinfected up to standards. Clear and consistent communication on safety protocols is important.
• E-commerce has taken a giant leap forward in terms of the share of total retail sales but having a brick and mortar presence is still an important driving factor.
• Consumers are open to trial and error during this time such as testing outdoor fitness classes or expanded outdoor dining, so businesses can experiment and analyze what works and what doesn’t. Outdoor spaces and alternative venues aren’t going away anytime soon.
• Many tenants are working together to create spaces that draw customers back such as coordinating umbrellas in sidewalk spaces or purchasing items together in bulk.
• Most retailers are open in South End, which has dense residential, while less than 50% are open in Uptown, where the business model is based on office workers who are no longer there, requiring more coordinated efforts.
• There’s a strong desire among consumers to shop local. Although local retailers may not have deep pockets to make adaptations, their strength is that they have an ear to the ground which can be used to their advantage to drive business.
• Particularly during this time of social change, people crave content with connection and want businesses to have a point of view to interact with. It might open opportunities, but it might also push others away. Businesses need to know themselves and their own values to understand how they fit into the conversation.

As the retail environment continues to transition as a result of COVID-19, we’re recognizing that many of the changes we’re seeing today are positioning businesses for accelerated growth in the future. Many of today’s biggest brands came out of the last recession because they made adaptations to respond to consumers’ needs – who will be the ones to rise to the top in a post-COVID world? Thank to you to our panelists: Robb Brown, Strategic Leasing and Development, Principal with Denver Retail Group; Amy Finn, Founder of Agency by Others; James Labar, Director of Economic Development with Charlotte Center City Partners; Maggie Leonard, Retail Strategy with Asana Partners; and Kathleen Jordan, Principal at Gensler, who served as moderator.

Notes provided by Angela Vogel Daley, Director of Strategy for Yellow Duck Marketing.