How strongly are your customers bonded to your business?
Lewis Carbone in his post at Fast Company addresses the groundswell of emotion coming from the assimilation of Marshall Fields Department Stores in Chicago by Macy’s.
My .02 were:
“I think the strong emotional attachment you refer to is not so much a reaction to the name change, but rather the devoted customers recognize what the other comments here have referenced: it’s just not going to be Marshall Fields anymore. Keeping the name isn’t enough.
Marshall Fields was more than just a name on buildings, it was a culture all it’s own. Growing up in Indiana, even as a child I knew a trip to Marshall Fields was worth the drive to the Chicagoland area. Whether it was the flagship store or an anchor at a mall, MF had a unique culture which created a unique shopping experience. There isn’t any way to keep that identity intact and separate from other Macy holdings.
Customers know that when the Borg (in this case Macy) assimilate a store, the store will cease to maintain it’s own identity and will indeed become part of the collective, stripped of almost all of the factors that made it “unique”.
Sigh. ”
Sigh indeed. What I didn’t post there, but will here, is that I must admit I’m anxiously awaiting for the pendulum to swing back to community based stores.
But wait, the swing has begun. Wal-mart has begun “localizing” it’s stores. A store in Houston is being revamped and will appeal to Latino shoppers while a store in Chicago is undergoing it’s rennovation into a more “urban” experience.
My husband is a Wal-mart employee, and I can tell you what caused the pendulum to shift at Wally world: the outrageous success of a little store outside of Miami.
If you don’t know Wal-mart’s insides, then you don’t know that Wal-mart provides an excellent opportunity for “entrepreneurial minded” managers. Well, this store manager of this little store outside of Miami…. not a SuperCenter mind you but one of the “old style” Wal-marts. This store is a throwback from back in the days when Wal-mart didn’t sell absolutely EVERYTHING under the sun. Well, this store manager, who is hispanic, has created a culture in his store that refeclts his culture. The banners that hang above the aisles are in spanish. Most of the employees speak Spanish, some speak ONLY spanish. You get the drift. Anyhow, this store manager was honored at my husband’s DC (distribution center) this past December because of his store’s outstanding performance.
In a world where a Wal-mart Super Center on any given day January-September might take 2-4 semi-truck loads of goods to be offered for sale and a “division 1″ store might take 1 load, this store takes 5-7. During the Christmas season, this tiny little store will move up to 10 truckloads of goods A DAY through it’s doors.
This manager has “tapped into” the culture of the area. He’s made his store a hub, a meeting place, a place like the bar on the series “Cheers.” At this tiny Wal-mart, everybody knows your name.
Wal-mart didn’t get to be the biggest retailer in the world by not seeing the writing on the wall. Now, other Wal-marts are being “transformed” into a local hub, just as this tiny store outisde Miami has done so well.
So it is possible to be part of the collective and still have your own personality. However, I don’t see that happening with Macy’s until Wal-mart swallows them as they swallowed MF.
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