租賃趨勢在零售業(yè)興起

The rise of rental over ownership has had subtler effects in retail than in some industries, but can be seen in evolving sales strategies and even how retailers and developers lay out shops and new malls.

租賃(而非購買)興起對零售業(yè)的影響比對其他行業(yè)的影響更加微妙，但是這種趨勢可以從銷售策略的演變、甚至零售商和開發(fā)商如何設計商店和新購物中心看出。

Sparked by a new type of consumer demanding convenience and immediacy, executives and analysts are anticipating a wave of change to business models.

受那些要求便利性和即時性的新型消費者的推動，企業(yè)高管和分析師們預計，商業(yè)模式將會出現(xiàn)新一波變革。

Nearly one in five UK consumers would be interested in renting clothes from their favourite retailer, according to research by Westfield, which owns two of London’s biggest shopping centres and is about to start building a third.

據(jù)Westfield研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，英國每五個消費者中，差不多就有一個人有興趣從喜愛的零售商那里租賃衣服。Westfield在倫敦擁有兩家大型購物中心，并即將開工建造第三家。

That figure almost doubles in the capital, where respondents were willing to spend an average of £200 for a monthly “all you can wear” deal.

在倫敦，上述比例幾乎翻了一倍，受訪者平均愿意每月支付200英鎊來換取“想穿什么就穿什么”的協(xié)議。

Rent the Runway, launched in 2009, offers designer clothes to hire for weddings, graduations or other occasions and has had some success — luring 6m members to date.

創(chuàng)辦于2009年的Rent the Runway (RTR)為婚禮、畢業(yè)典禮或其他場合提供名牌服裝租賃業(yè)務，并取得了成功——迄今吸引了600萬會員。

The model works well for luxury fashion, where the clothes are expensive and worn only occasionally, but the company wants to move beyond prom dresses and suits into more everyday wear.

該模式十分適用于奢侈品時尚——這類衣服昂貴，而且只會偶爾穿一次——但該公司希望把租賃業(yè)務拓展至舞會禮服和西裝以外，納入日常著裝。

Having made more than $100m in sales last year, Rent the Runway now aims to “put Zara and H&M out of business” co-founder Jennifer Hyman said in October, while unveiling changes to the company’s subscription model.

RTR 2016年銷售額超過1億美元。其共同創(chuàng)始人珍妮弗•海曼(Jennifer Hyman)今年10月表示，該公司如今的目標是“淘汰Zara和H&M”，她同時宣布了該公司會員模式的變化。

For $159 a month, RTR members can now borrow unlimited clothes and accessories, from blouses and dresses to coats and purses, and up to four items at the same time. The aim is to become a customer’s full-time wardrobe.

RTR會員如今每月支付159美元，就可以無限制地租用服裝和配飾，無論是女式襯衫和裙子，還是外套和錢包，一次可以租用多達4件單品。目標是成為顧客的全天候衣柜。

There are start-ups doing similar things in other parts of the consumer industry. Companies such as Birchbox, for example, which also tap into the fickleness of consumer habits by allowing people to try out skin and hair products for $10 a month.

消費行業(yè)的其他領(lǐng)域也有初創(chuàng)企業(yè)做著類似的業(yè)務。例如，Birchbox利用了消費者善變的習慣，允許人們每月支付10美元來嘗試各種護膚和護發(fā)產(chǎn)品。

“Consumers themselves are changing, from what they buy to how they want to buy it,” said James Bacos, global retail practice leader at Oliver Wyman.

奧緯咨詢(Oliver Wyman)全球零售實踐負責人詹姆斯•巴科斯(James Bacos)表示，“消費者本身也在改變，從買什么變成想要怎么買。”

Traditional retailers are also taking note. Home Depot, for example, rents out bolt cutters, nail guns, interior scaffolding and other items that tradesmen commonly own but DIY enthusiasts may need only for a short while.

傳統(tǒng)零售商也注意到了這點。例如，家得寶(Home Depot)對外租賃螺絲刀、釘槍、室內(nèi)腳手架和其他商品——專業(yè)技工通常會自己買這些商品，但DIY愛好者可能只是短時間內(nèi)需要使用。

Even Amazon — a hugely disruptive force in retail — is looking at alternatives where customers rent rather than buy. When Jeff Bezos opened an Amazon package and found a flyer advertising Netflix inside, he castigated executives for promoting what was then primarily a subscription DVD rental service — an idea, he reportedly fumed, that could “ruin” his online store.

就連零售業(yè)的巨大顛覆力量亞馬遜(Amazon)，也在針對顧客寧愿租而不愿買的情況尋找替代方案。杰夫•貝索斯(Jeff Bezos)有一次打開一個亞馬遜包裹后，發(fā)現(xiàn)里面夾著一張Netflix的廣告?zhèn)鲉?，他因此訓斥相關(guān)部門的高管，就因為他們在幫助推廣當時主要提供訂閱DVD租賃的該服務——據(jù)稱，他勃然大怒的原因是這個點子可能會“毀掉”他的網(wǎng)上商店。

Amazon, which started out as an internet bookseller, now allows customers to borrow electronic books and films via Kindle devices.

最初靠在互聯(lián)網(wǎng)上賣書起家的亞馬遜，如今允許客戶通過Kindle設備借閱電子書和電影。

Subscription retail does not mean the end of ownership, but it has opened up new channels for consumer goods companies.

訂閱零售并不意味著所有制的終結(jié)，但它為消費商品公司開辟了新渠道。

Amazon’s “Subscribe and Save” system converts a customer’s one-time purchase decision into a recurring revenue stream by sending automatic replenishments every few months.

通過每隔幾個月發(fā)出自動補貨，亞馬遜的“訂閱并節(jié)省”(Subscribe and Save)模式把客戶的一次性購買決定轉(zhuǎn)換為經(jīng)常性收入流。

That tactic worked so well for Dollar Shave Club, the start-up that combines subscription selling with viral video marketing, that Unilever last year paid $1bn for the company.

該策略對于“一美元剃須刀俱樂部”(Dollar Shave Club)如此有效，以至于2016年聯(lián)合利華(Unilever)以10億美元收購了這家結(jié)合病毒式視頻營銷與訂閱銷售的初創(chuàng)企業(yè)。

In clothing, “subscription ownership” is so far having more of an impact on consumer wardrobes than subscription rental. Trunk Club, which is now part of US department store operator Nordstrom, chooses clothes and gives customers the option of a monthly box of them.

在服裝方面，“訂閱所有制”到目前為止對消費者衣柜的影響大于對訂閱租賃的影響。Trunk Club(如今屬于美國百貨商店運營商諾思通(Nordstrom))選擇服裝，并給顧客每月一盒的選擇。

Shopping centre owners — worried about being cut out of the sales chain — are also responding, with talk of shops with separate “to rent” and “to wear” sections. Malls themselves are being redesigned in acknowledgment of other ways consumer behaviour has changed.

擔心被趕出銷售鏈的購物中心所有者，也在采取應對措施——討論把商店分為“租賃區(qū)”和“購買區(qū)”。購物中心本身正在根據(jù)消費者行為的改變而被重新設計。

After a two-year, $1bn renovation of a Los Angeles shopping centre, Westfield — which was this month sold to Unibail-Rodamco for $16bn — unveiled its “mall of the future”. It includes an “Uber lounge”, where shoppers can wait in “sleek seating” for their car share. “We are moving to make the customers’ experience better and take out the friction of shopping,” said Peter Lowy, chief executive.

在斥資10億美元對洛杉磯一家購物中心進行了為期兩年的翻新后，Westfield(尤尼百-洛當科集團(Unibail-Rodamco) 12月以160億美元收購了該公司)推出了“未來的購物中心”。其中包括“優(yōu)步(Uber)候車室”，購物者可以在“時髦座位”上等車。該公司的首席執(zhí)行官彼得•洛伊(Peter Lowy)表示，“我們正在努力改善顧客體驗，消除購物時的不便。”