The beach opened early. The news of the early opening of Haeundae Beach in Busan on the 1st of last month signifies that people are continuously seeking opportunities to go out following the endemic.

However, this has not led to opportunities for businesses operating offline stores to the same extent as before the pandemic. According to a report released by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in April, retail industry leaders across 12 sectors worldwide identified rising commodity costs, declining consumer spending, and supply chain volatility as factors hindering a return to pre-pandemic levels. Furthermore, industry leaders across nearly all regions, including Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America, responded that they are addressing these negative market factors with short-term, unsustainable strategies similar to those employed previously. The three major department stores in Korea are investing hundreds of billions of won in revamping their existing stores, focusing on providing experiences, as the rebound consumption that started last year has stalled due to high prices and recession.

Stores are open spaces where consumers and brands build relationships. Companies have invested in the digitization of offline stores in the wake of the pandemic, and customers have become accustomed to the convenience of online shopping. Now, the two entities that build relationships have a chance to reunite in the same space, but their expectations of each other have changed. A prominent example is the growth of the offline non-face-to-face payment market. According to the “Domestic Payment Trends” announced by the Bank of Korea, simple payment usage, which amounted to 4,492 billion won in 2020, increased to 7,326 billion won in 2022. Apple Pay, which launched in March, advertised that consumers have more options for ‘faster payment’ functions. Traditionally, the moment of ordering and payment was a valuable point for brands to build relationships with customers, but it now signifies that the strategic role of ‘people’ who used to approach customers with kindness and empathy is becoming weaker. In this changing dynamic, what is the new clue needed to strengthen relationships with customers?

We often associate ‘sense of belonging’ with family, friends, and tight-knit groups. However, this is merely a fraction of what reveals how and where we belong. It is the sense of belonging that we feel at a neighborhood coffee shop on a Saturday morning, or on the subway during our morning commute. Similarly, we may experience anxiety in an office or government building, feel depressed in a gloomy subway station, and feel out of place in a high-end store or a hip cocktail bar. These feelings are all related to our sense of belonging.

Today, we gather more around individuals than institutions or organizations. Many institutions that we used to feel a sense of belonging to have declined, such as the decreasing university enrollment rate or the feeling of not being able to trust the government system. People now have the ability to follow individuals at their fingertips, and they can scroll through Instagram at 2 a.m. and feel like they are part of something. But the moment they leave the display, they are alone again. As of 2021, the percentage of socially isolated individuals in Korea is 18.9%, ranking among the highest among OECD member countries. Given that the absence of a sense of belonging has emerged as a social concern in the post-endemic era, we need to think more intentionally about the power of ‘physical spaces’ in amplifying ‘sense of belonging’. People are seeking new social opportunities that familiar places offer as a solution to the disconnection they have experienced over the past few years.

And these can be considered ‘a new strategy standard’ for brands that have reopened their stores.

However, the approach of designing store environments with a specific purpose in mind, such as inventory storage, payment, or experience provision, has its limitations. This arises within a hierarchy where designers act as architects of the entire environment, aiming to create a perfect world that guides people to perform intended activities.

In this regard, anthropologist Tim Ingold’s ‘research on how people relate to the environment’ can provide valuable clues for developing stores that offer a sense of belonging. Ingold distinguished between physical environments and environments encoded with social meanings. He argues that the environment must have a certain degree of plasticity, emphasizing the importance of people leaving their presence in the environment and becoming a contributing factor in shaping their surroundings.

In other words, it represents an ecological approach where both the organizer and surrounding members participate. In fan clubs formed by individuals who become fans through a particular artist’s music, people create spin-off communities that engage in conversations about their shared experience rather than the starting point, the artist, and they confirm their meaning within that community. Companies can aim for this. Ben Valenta, author of ‘Fans Have More Friends’, stated in an interview with local media that fandom provides a foundation for connection with the wider world.

“Ultimately, what matters most is not what happens within the stadium, but what happens among the people in the stands or in their living rooms. We want to feel like we are part of something, and we want to connect with the people around us.”

*This article is the original content from the Electronic Times columnpublished on June 13, 2023.

References

“The beach is open”… The long weekend, already crowded with vacationers

Amid Uncertainty, AI Gives Retailers a Path to Resilience

'Rebound Consumption is Over'... The three major department stores are overcoming the situation through 'store renovations'

Domestic Payment Trends in 2022

“I used Apple Pay when I ran into my ex-girlfriend by chance”

Korean happiness, 7th from the bottom in OECD… Only 32.9% “trust people”

The Perception of the Environment

'Fans Have More Friends'; Finding new friendship through sports fandom