Why Indigo Should Close The Festival Hall Store
A retail warrior I know talks all the time about the WOW. He says big box retail is predicated on delivering WOW to each and every customer, each and every time they visit. With no WOW, the casual bookstore customer won’t be convinced to buy when they wouldn’t otherwise. If the casual bookstore customer doesn’t buy, the square footage and infrastructure supporting a mega-chain like Indigo collapses.
I thought of this recently when I was in the Indigo owned Chapters bookstore at the corner of John and Richmond here in Toronto.
The store has been open since early in the decade — the hey day of big box expansion around the country. It has three stories — with a small footprint on the first level and the layout gets bigger as you ascend the escalators. It is also smack dab in the entertainment district downtown. The funnel shaped layout and the clubkids that trash the store every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday make the store a challenge to manage. It is hard to get books on the shelves efficiently.
Traditionally, you staff a store based on your busiest times. At Festival Hall, an incongruent number of staff are on-hand when the foot traffic is at its peak but the sales are the weakest. This is a reality the store’s management has valiantly dealt with for years. Their labour costs must be all out-of-whack with the revenue.
The WOW has suffered. The store looks and feels tired.
An inspired thing to do would be to close at that location and relocate a block south to the new Festival Tower at John and King (pictured right).
Reduce the footprint. Keep a presence in the neighbourhood. Keep the store name even.
With Indigo reporting growth, when BAM, B&N and Borders (expected) all posting losses — it is now or never. They could retrench in the market before their downturn, effectively reducing their square footage.
They have already consolidated their real estate after taking over the Chapters chain. This is the next step.
I love the Festival Hall store. I appreciate their staff, but Indigo should downsize them for their own good.
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