Shopping centers have a better reputation than ever and have succeeded in meeting people's expectations
Reputation&Trust of shopping centers conducted by T-Media shows that the reputation of shopping centers has improved overall: shopping centers have succeeded in meeting people’s changing expectations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ideapark in Seinäjoki saw the greatest improvement in its reputation.
The reputation and trust levels of Finland’s largest shopping centers were surveyed for the third consecutive year. More shopping centers than ever before had a good reputation (over 3.50 on a scale of 1–5), and no shopping center was rated as having a poor reputation (overall reputation score below 3.00).
Image: Shopping Centers Reputation&Trust Survey. The 12 largest domestic shopping centers, measured by retail space and sales volume, ranked based on reputation scores obtained in the survey. The rating scale is 1–5. The figures presented in the table are averages of the ratings received by each shopping center. The figures are rounded to two decimal places.
The study examined the public’s perceptions of shopping centers across eight categories: openness and transparency, financial stability, effective leadership, innovation, interaction, products & services, employment, and corporate responsibility. Of these, the range of services offered by shopping centers and their financial situation were rated as good on average. Finns’ perceptions of shopping centers’ environmental and social responsibility, as well as their ability to listen to and interact with their stakeholders, ranked lowest.
“I believe that many shopping centers have recognized the importance of sustainability efforts, not only from an environmental perspective but also in terms of people’s expectations. Internal work in this area has been underway for years, but people’s perceptions may not have evolved at the same pace. For many shopping centers, the key question is how to make their internal sustainability efforts visible to the public,” says Elisa Runsas, an expert in data-driven management at T-Media.
“One potential challenge in managing the reputation of shopping centers is the low willingness of people to work there. Although people working in shopping centers do not work directly for the center itself, it is also in the center’s interest that the businesses renting space there are able to recruit staff as smoothly as possible. This allows businesses to carry out their own operations, which in turn contributes to the vitality of the shopping center itself. “During the pandemic, people had to be furloughed from shopping centers as well, which may be reflected in a general sense of uncertainty toward the industry,” Runsas continues.
Raisio Mylly Named Most Prestigious Shopping Center for the Third Year in a Row; Seinäjoki’s Ideapark Is the Biggest Climber
Reputation&Trust of shopping centers revealed that Mylly in Raisio is Finland’s most reputable shopping center for the third consecutive year. Mylly’s score of 3.67 is the highest overall reputation score recorded for any shopping center over the three-year period. With one exception, all aspects of Mylly’s reputation were rated at a high level. The shopping center received excellent ratings for the suitability of its store selection, ease of shopping, and safety.
“We at Mylly are truly proud and honored that, for the third consecutive year, Finns have voted Mylly Shopping Center as Finland’s most reputable shopping center. The result was a pleasant surprise for us; we expected to see challengers and rising stars from other shopping centers, and we did indeed see great progress across the entire industry. It is important to us that Mylly’s stores and partners feel they are part of Mylly’s success, reputation, and customer experience, and we believe this result will encourage the entire Mylly community to develop and grow. “We’re celebrating them with 1,200 Runeberg cakes, which we’re personally delivering to the stores today,” commented Mari Hantula, CEO of Raision Mylly.
Ideapark in Seinäjoki saw the biggest improvement in reputation among shopping centers compared to last year. Ideapark in Seinäjoki managed to improve its reputation score by 0.28 points and moved into the green zone—indicating a good reputation—for the first time.
“It’s great to see our hard work paying off. We consciously make long-term decisions so that we can improve year after year and continue to develop our operations. Ideapark Seinäjoki is, above all, an entertainment center, and our goal is to create memorable experiences. We believe that our approach attracts more visitors and keeps our customers here longer, which is, of course, a benefit for our businesses. “Our intention is to grow, and our goal is to be the most attractive tourist destination in Ostrobothnia,” says Petri Häli, CEO of Seinäjoki Ideapark.
In addition to its overall reputation, Seinäjoki’s Ideapark ranked highest among the shopping centers surveyed in a total of six out of eight different reputation categories.
This is how we conducted the study
T-Media’s 2022 Special Study on Shopping Centers examined the reputation of Finland’s 10 largest shopping centers Reputation&Trust. A total of 12 shopping centers were studied. The goal was to assess the reputation of shopping centers among the general public. By improving its reputation, a shopping center can also enhance its stakeholders’ trust, willingness to buy, recommend, invest, defend it in a crisis, seek employment, listen to, or collaborate with the shopping center.
Data for the survey was collected via an online questionnaire between October 26 and November 9, 2022. A total of 2,049 Finns responded to the survey. The survey targeted Finns aged 15–65 nationwide (excluding the Åland Islands).
Two criteria were used to select the largest shopping centers: floor area and sales volume (Source: Finnish Shopping Center Association, Shopping Centers 2022).
More information
Elisa Runsas, Knowledge Management Specialist, T-Media, Tel. 050 468 8849, elisa.runsas@reptrust-staging.fi-p.seravo.com
Mari Hantula, CEO, Mylly Shopping Center, tel. 050 441 9394, mari.hantula@kauppakeskusmylly.fi
Petri Häli, CEO, Seinäjoki Ideapark, petri.hali@ideapark.fi
