THE POTENTIAL TENANT MIX THAT CONTRIBUTES SUCCESS TO THE LATE NIGHT RETAIL ECONOMY

Abstract

The momentous changes throughout the society which Singapore is experiencing today are mainly the outcomes of globalization. This has affected consumers’ lifestyle in terms of their spending power, working time and consumption. Consumers would like to have extended retail hours to accommodate their busy work schedules. However, retailers do not favor this idea as they feel that late opening hours do not generate much operating profit.

Focusing on both the consumers’ and the tenants’ perceptives, this dissertation investigates the demand for late night shopping from Sunday to Thursday and for Friday and Saturday based on demographic profiles. A questionnaire survey was conducted on 450 shoppers to examine if their profiles have any significant relationship on the demand of late night shopping and their preferred choices of the varieties of shops and services for late night retailing. In addition, six retail tenants from the top three categories based on the survey results have been specially chosen for an interview to find out if they are willing to extend their operating hours.

The findings specify that there is a high demand for late night shopping, particularly the ‘Age Group’ category. Using Chi-Square tests, ‘Age Group’ is statistically significant to the demand for late night shopping and types of shops and services, namely, ‘Eateries/Fast Food/Cafes’, followed by ‘Fashion and Accessories’ and lastly, ‘Leisure’ for late night shopping. Retailers who were interviewed also revealed that they are receptive to late opening hours if there is demand thus potentially also contributing to success of the late night retail economy.