Stores create pleasant ambience to attract "child buyers"

Stores create pleasant ambience to attract "child buyers"

Debbie A. Lubis
Contributor
Jakarta

It was not even the weekend, but a group of housewives was
seen swarming around the children's section in Metro Pondok Indah
Mall.

"I was fetching my children from school when one of the
mothers asked me to browse here. The place has a discount of up
to 50 percent, so I didn't have to think twice," said Nurita, a
mother of two daughters.

She added that taking along her children when shopping for
clothes was also a good idea as her children could select items
based on their own preferences.

Metro provides an array of internationally branded outlets for
kids' clothes and babywear, like Elle Poupon, Oshkosh B'Gosh,
Hush Puppies, Contempo, Le Monde, and so on.

Other department store chains, such as Matahari, Ramayana or
foreign chains such as Sogo, open special counters to cater for
the growing demand in children's apparel. The stores provide a
special space for a wide range of products for children and
babies, such as clothes, accessories, bags, hats, shoes, toys,
and sometimes, books.

Especially for garments, the department stores offer a
complete collection of jumpers, dresses, slacks, jackets,
sweaters and sportswear. They also offer coordinating sets of
skirts, slacks and tops for girls, and slacks, shirts and T-
shirts for boys. The end users of this apparel are boys and girls
up to 14 years old.

Many of the department stores also create a pleasant
atmosphere by playing children's songs or placing animals or
cartoon pictures on the walls or floor, or by hanging them from
the ceiling.

Take, for example, Oshkosh B'Gosh outlet at Sogo, Plaza
Indonesia, Jakarta, which occupies three-year-old Ditto, who
follows a children's song playing in the store and places his
feet on the picture of a train on the floor.

Some department stores also place the children's section
near a games area, bookstore or food court. Ramayana and
Robinson, located at Depok Plaza, have used this strategy as the
key to attracting more children and parents. The children can
have fun "bathing" in small balls or riding a toy horse, car,
train, ship or plane.

Meanwhile, the parents were buying every item of discounted
children's wear scattered around the second floor of the plaza.
"I can still keep an eye on my children as I shop, as there is no
partition between the children's section and the
game arena here," said Ricky, the father of three sons.

Meanwhile, Matahari department store at Town Square, Cilandak,
South Jakarta, also provides a venue for children younger than
five to play and listen to music. The place, called Gymboree,
provides facilities for children to develop their motor
skills, intelligence and ability to relate to others through
songs and play equipment.

The store is designed to create a pleasant atmosphere for
parents to shop. Its state-of-the-art lighting and stock of local
and international brands mean that parents stay for hours
browsing for children's wear and accessories. Low-end, midrange
and top-end items are on offer here. The retailer also sells its
own fashion line, Little M.

Another marketing strategy adopted by the department store is
to offer special designs. A Jasmine costume (a character in the
movie Aladdin) at Kidz Station, Sogo, Plaza Indonesia, has
enchanted Wisnu to buy it for her niece. "Next week is her
birthday and I believe her eyes will light up when she sees
this," he said, referring to a silky dress produced by Disney.

To attract children, the store has also set up a miniature
carousel and several toy horses in the space in front of the
entrance. It also provides a space for customers to enjoy
refreshments.