Empik gives up over 40 stores in shopping malls

According to the management board of the Empik Group, an outbreak of coronavirus will reduce the attractiveness of large shopping centers. Therefore, the group decided to withdraw from more than 40 lease agreements for their showrooms in shopping malls.

Shopping centers and galleries will start operating on May 4, as part of the loosening of the bans introduced in connection with the COVID-19 epidemic. The Empik Group does not believe, however, that Poles will decide so soon to return to their normal lives, hence the decision to close some of their showrooms in shopping malls.

Empik stores in shopping malls

In the official announcement we can read that Empik has decided to withdraw from over 40 lease agreements. The exact number of salons that will be closed or their exact location has not been provided. We can only read that the decision is dictated by the predicted decline in shopping center visits.

It is also possible that Empik will decide to close more of its stationary outlets. For now, however, no details have been disclosed in this respect either.

New reality versus shopping malls

At the end of 2018, the Empik network had 291 stationary points of sale. Since the introduction of legislation on the fight against pandemics, most of them have been closed. Only free-standing outlets and those located at stations were open - the Empik network has only 25 such outlets.

It should also be emphasized here that the opening of shopping centers scheduled for May 4 does not mean that these outlets will return to normal operation. Cinemas, fitness clubs and restaurants inside these centers still remain closed, which will certainly translate into a decrease in interest in visiting the gallery from customers.

Not without significance is the fact that during the quarantine many Poles have certainly become accustomed to the convenience of online shopping, ordered directly home. The combination of these factors may mean that the slow end of the attractiveness of shopping centers and galleries , which have long since ceased to be any novelty in our country, announced for more than 4 years, will be a little faster. Or it will make these places change their character significantly.

This thesis is partly confirmed by the growing share of the e-commerce division in the financial results of the Empik network. Data from 2018 shows that online sales recorded an increase of 30.1 percent, which translated into 17.9 percent. increase in overall sales revenues of the Empik network. This may mean that Empik, following the example of Amazon in the coming years, will begin to focus more and more on online sales.

This does not mean, of course, that all stores plan to go the same way. For example, MediaMarkt announces the full readiness of its showrooms to welcome customers who will visit them on May 4. We will learn in a few months about which of these strategies gives more benefits.

Empik gives up over 40 stores in shopping malls