Dawn of the Dead (Retail)

  So, it turns out my local, relatively recently deceased Circuit City is now a Halloween Store.

I noticed this driving by a couple of weeks back. At first, I put it down to some local entrepreneurial type taking advantage of what I always thought was a pretty good piece of real estate. But, as this article in the Boston Globe proves, it’s actually part of a more fiendish strategy. (Apologies in advance for any and all Halloween references throughout--'tis the season after all.) Now I was a pretty big fan of Circuit City in its later years. I liked the last few designs they put together, and thought they were truly trying to compete in the category by differentiating themselves through new store concepts. It was difficult to see them go, as it has been for a lot of retail in this latest round of economic woes. And yet, despite that seeming to be the final nail in the coffin, this latest incarnation gave me pause for thought. It's not just Circuit City--there are some great spaces out there right now. In fact, I just wandered by a Smith and Hawken the other day and thought, "Who's going to take that?" And if nobody has the need for a whole portfolio of properties, why not give them up to the opportunist? Okay, so it's not the greatest of retail designs--some of the merchandising is, frankly, a bit weird, and I have a sneaking suspicion the newly shrouded Circuit City disk isn't illuminated at night, lest the old logo shines through the pumpkin that replaced it. But that aside, for a few weeks at least there's been an event going on in my hood that feels like retail should feel-- impromptu, spontaneous and actually pretty fun. As the article puts it, Spirit--the company behind this little refit--has raised 83 of the Circuit City stores from the dead. Well, if not maybe raised them from the dead, perhaps breathed a little more life into what was starting to feel a bit like a graveyard.

Of course, every positive angle has a darker evil twin lurking in a closet just waiting to pounce. And this one is no exception, as it seems there is another side to this tale. Turns out these seasonal shops are putting a serious hurting on the year-round costume businesses that rely on Halloween for a big chunk of their annual revenue. And perhaps, justifiably, these stores can claim to be a part of their wider community for the 320 days of the year when Halloween shopping is not a big deal. In their words, the pop-ups "show up, make their money and leave." Spirit has countered these claims by citing the almost $1 million they have raised this year alone for children's hospitals in each of the communities they enter. Any thoughts on the good and evil around this particular story? Is this type of seasonal retail entering the mainstream? Or is it, as Paul Ivice wrote in the TC Palm, just another bloodsucker for mom-and-pop stores already under stress?

--Christian Davies, Guest Blogger

 

 

Comments

[Chimbo]

Do the year round costume stores have to compete with supermarket seasonal promotions as well? The party shops here in my part of the UK have always been very busy when I've tried to shop there at Halloween, even though the supermarkets have all sorts of merchandise on offer, so they must be doing something right.

My feeling is that specialist shops may take a knock if they're caught off-guard by this, but maybe they can offer better value in the long term with specialist knowledge and stock? After all, you get dressed up and buy props at Halloween to meet up with friends, and surely it's then that the wise partygoer turns up in the killer outfit that they rented from the costume shop and wins out looking best in the snaps when they turn up on the social networking website?

Meanwhile some of the people who find themselves *owning* a one-night-only themed get up the morning after the party might be tempted to shop locally, look groovier and save space in their wardrobes next time it's fancy dress night...