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BUSINESS Wednesday 12 december 2018
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Brands born on the internet embrace physical stores

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO cal location could acquire
Associated Press customers more efficiently.
SHORT HILLS, N.J. (AP) — “This gives you an oppor-
Online retailers are getting tunity to reach customers
physical. who are not shopping on-
A growing number of line,” Harries said.
brands born on the inter- In fact, Fabletics enjoys a
net are now opening brick- two-and-a-half times in-
and-mortar stores and crease in revenue from
moving into the suburban its most active customers
malls once considered within a 30-mile radius of a
doomed as more Ameri- Fabletics store. Customers
cans shopped online. who live near a store are
But they’re taking it even more likely to return an on-
further by doubling-down line purchase at that store,
on the tactile experience. Harries said. That creates
Online mattress retailer more opportunity for an
Casper, for instance, is extra sale. The sportswear
opening stores that allow company also electroni-
customers to book naps cally tags items in its stores
and test out mattresses and tracks what went in
before buying. Indochino and out of the fitting room
— the online tailor — de- In this Nov. 2, 2018 photo, a patron at the Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, N.J., passes the Boll & so it can learn which items
cided to borrow from the Branch furniture store. Associated Press shoppers were most likely
old Savile Row model to try-on but not purchase.
where customers can be petition for eyeballs has in- to quadruple the number tal college student Calev Online retailers are also
measured face-to-face creased the cost of online to 100. Glick, 20, stopped by Indo- finding that they can pro-
for custom suits.“Online ads on Google and other For a brand that’s less than chino on a recent Friday to vide a fuller, more im-
brands have embraced platforms. At the same 10 years old, new store get measured for a suit for mersive set of customer
clicks-to-bricks,” said Faith time, opening a store has openings mean a 45 per- synagogue. He considers services at physical stores
Hope Consolo, chairman become more affordable cent increase on aver- himself an “Amazon guy” than they could on web
of Prudential Douglas Elli- as higher mall vacancies age in online traffic, says because he doesn’t have browsers.q
man’s retail division. “Shop- have prompted landlords a recent survey by Interna- much time to go out shop-
pers love to touch, interact to offer flexible leases and tional Council of Shopping ping.
and try on in person and other perks. It can be 10 Centers. “At a traditional depart-
malls are upping the ante times more expensive to But not every mall is ben- ment store, you kind of
by offering immersive ex- acquire a new customer efiting from the shift by on- hope it fits,” Glick said.
periences that are exciting online as it is with a physical line retailers. Digital brands “Here, I am getting all the
and memorable.” store, said Jim Ward, who are clustering in top-tier help I need. I am going to
The store openings mark heads up recruiting for on- shopping centers, driving be here two hours and I’m
a major shift for formerly line brands for mall owner an increasingly large gap going to get it shipped to
online-only brands that just CBL. between the poshest of my house.”
a few years ago believed Others are following suit. malls and those struggling Digital natives still account
they didn’t need a physi- Casper plans to have to fill vacancies. for a tiny fraction of overall
cal presence to generate about 200 stores in the next While many online brands mall tenants, yet they could
robust sales growth. two to three years, up from are planting stores in tour- soon have a “material” ef-
Digital natives are now the current 20. And Fablet- ist destinations around fect on mall revenues, says
finding that the cost of ics, an active sportswear New York and Los Ange- Bill Taubman, chief operat-
acquiring new customers brand co-founded by ce- les, they’re also launch- ing officer of mall operator
online is soaring as com- lebrity Kate Hudson, aims ing stores in Oklahoma and owner Taubman Cen-
City and Birmingham, Ala- ters.
bama. Ron Harries, head of re-
CBS sells Television The physical stores often tail for Fabletics, said that
provide a level of conve-
opening physical stores
City for $750M to LA nience that the web lacks. wasn’t in the company’s
At the upscale Mall at Short original plan in late 2014,
developer Hills in New Jersey, pre-den- but it realized that a physi-

Associated Press be based there for at least
LOS ANGELES (AP) — CBS five more years.
says it has sold Television CBS said Monday that the
City, its Los Angeles head- buyer is Hackman Capi-
quarters and production tal Partners and that it will
facility, to a real estate de- have the right to use the
veloper for $750 million. Television City name in
Shows on Television City connection with its future
sound stages include “The operations on the property.
Late Late Show with James The media giant says the
Corden” and “The Price is sale will increase its “finan-
Right.” They will continue to cial flexibility.”q