MARKET PULSE4 December <strong>2012</strong>, EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING 16S&O - Revolutionis<strong>in</strong>g‘space on hire’ for retailactivations and brand<strong>in</strong>gS&O, a retail space aggregation andrent<strong>in</strong>g organisation, have been <strong>in</strong> bus<strong>in</strong>esss<strong>in</strong>ce 2002, and are responsiblefor much of the evolution <strong>in</strong> the mallbrand activations space. Sett<strong>in</strong>g up itsbus<strong>in</strong>ess on the basis of a differentialmodel of retail space sell<strong>in</strong>g, S&O looksto ensure it nurtures its relationshipwith large mall / property owners togrow their bus<strong>in</strong>ess first while grow<strong>in</strong>gtheir own.How it all started...Sanjyot Vaidya, Founder and Partnerat S&O, leveraged his relationshipsamongst the clients he was sell<strong>in</strong>g outdoorsites to, by offer<strong>in</strong>g them solutionfor retail activation space, as their market<strong>in</strong>gstrategies evolved. Vaidya’s <strong>in</strong>itialfew deals set the system for the terms ofbus<strong>in</strong>ess on which the company wouldbe based. This <strong>in</strong>volved a direct andtransparent system of deal<strong>in</strong>g with both,the client / brand directly and the mall/ property.S&O was officially formed only afterthe first deal went through for thecompany and payments needed to bedirected to a recognized entity. Vaidyanamed the company us<strong>in</strong>g the <strong>in</strong>itialsof his name and his brother and nowpartner’s name (S&O - Sanjyot andOnkar Vaidya). With <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g bus<strong>in</strong>ess,and enhanced relationships withvarious mall / retail properties, S&Obegan to exclusively tie-up with thesemalls to manage their entire activationsand brand<strong>in</strong>g bus<strong>in</strong>ess. Today the companyhas 17 properties exclusively tiedup with them and can work togetherwith their clients to offer a vast reachamongst a specific target audiences.Comment<strong>in</strong>g on early beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>gs of S&O, Sanjyot Vaidya, commented, “We owe aresustenance especially <strong>in</strong> the set up stage to the malls that stood by us. It was becausethey stayed committed to us and trusted us with this responsibility, that we were ableto get a foot <strong>in</strong>to this <strong>in</strong>dustry. Inorbit was our first such client, and we respectedand nurtured this relationship prov<strong>in</strong>g our capabilities and that lead to w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>gmore bus<strong>in</strong>ess.”Importance of partnerships:Prov<strong>in</strong>g its metal by perform<strong>in</strong>g for its partners, S&O was bound to become apreferred partner to more malls / retail properties, thereby w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g them more<strong>in</strong>tegrated bus<strong>in</strong>ess. S&O, when tied-up exclusively with a mall, works as a memberof the mall’s team <strong>in</strong> putt<strong>in</strong>g its spaces on hire, offer<strong>in</strong>g brand<strong>in</strong>g opportunities,activation spots, signage systems and kiosks amongst others.<strong>The</strong> idea is to work is a holistic manner and map the property first, and list all thepotential / monetisable areas. Oncethis is done S&O also gets <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong>the pric<strong>in</strong>g model for the mall as wellas makes some suggestions on improvementsthat can add to the attraction foragencies / brands to be present at themall. An end-to-end solutions provider,S&O has a dedicated team for each ofits properties, that works on <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gthis avenue of bus<strong>in</strong>ess for the mall.This system has seen much success andthe relationship established with themall’s team has proved very favourable.So much so that now properties <strong>in</strong>volve S&O <strong>in</strong> the plann<strong>in</strong>g stages itself. S&Oconsults with the property owners on potential avenues of space rent<strong>in</strong>g, brand<strong>in</strong>getc. and these are then built <strong>in</strong>to the space while construct<strong>in</strong>g the property.Vaidya added, “We owe the growth of our bus<strong>in</strong>ess to the malls we work with. Westarted off with just one mall, and then with word of mouth and team members fromone mall mov<strong>in</strong>g to other properties, we had more references, and were brought onboard to work with more properties. Aga<strong>in</strong>, the belief <strong>in</strong> our work and stand<strong>in</strong>g byus, was a key element <strong>in</strong> our gett<strong>in</strong>g to expand to represent more malls.”S&O is also <strong>in</strong>volved with the property <strong>in</strong> improv<strong>in</strong>g and <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g its visitors. Myplann<strong>in</strong>g events and properties based on the desired TG the mall wants to attract,these are implemented to ga<strong>in</strong> more footfalls, and <strong>in</strong> turn improve the brand valueand credibility of the mall. This works both <strong>in</strong> grow<strong>in</strong>g the relationship with the
4 December <strong>2012</strong>, EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING 17A happy team: Sanjyot and Onkar Vaidyamall, while also ensur<strong>in</strong>g a better, moresalable property can be offered to agenciesand brands.back us and support our work<strong>in</strong>g, direct<strong>in</strong>g their enquiries through us. We too haverespected this system and ensure we perform and deliver to the benefit of all parties<strong>in</strong>volved.”Clients’ advantage:<strong>The</strong>ir straight forward approach andeffective work<strong>in</strong>g style was not onlyattractive to malls but also to agenciesand brands. While deal<strong>in</strong>g with brandsfor retail space rentals and brand<strong>in</strong>g,signage opportunities, it was preferablefor them to take advantage of S&O’sportfolio of retail spaces and expertiseon the right TG exposure.S&O works with brands directly andalso with agencies, s<strong>in</strong>ce its exclusivetie up with malls ensure all enquiriesand book<strong>in</strong>g are directed through theirteam. Vaidya expla<strong>in</strong>ed, “<strong>The</strong> brandactivation bus<strong>in</strong>ess lies with agencies.Most brands work with their agencywho <strong>in</strong> turn look out for retail space fortheir activities. We are fortunate to havegreat relationships with agencies who<strong>The</strong> major responsibility of sell<strong>in</strong>g space and ma<strong>in</strong>ta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g relationships with<strong>in</strong> themarket lies with Onkar Vaidya. <strong>The</strong> responsibilities amongst brothers are segmented<strong>in</strong> a way where Sanjyot focuses on ty<strong>in</strong>g up with newer properties, while Onkarfocuses on sell<strong>in</strong>g spaces <strong>in</strong> the market.<strong>The</strong> company works along with the retailers <strong>in</strong> a mall to do exclusive promotionsand also engage them <strong>in</strong> certa<strong>in</strong> retailer programmes, ensur<strong>in</strong>g that even the retailersbenefit from additional footfalls created with these activities. Retailers <strong>in</strong> turn, likeother brands can talk to one central team for many of the properties that S&O manages.And like this, the company has managed to prioritise its relationships with itsstakeholder to ensure success <strong>in</strong> their bus<strong>in</strong>esses, which <strong>in</strong> turn benefits the bottoml<strong>in</strong>e of its own.Future-ready:S&O is <strong>in</strong> the process of ty<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> 8-10 properties more, on an exclusive partnershipbasis. <strong>The</strong> company that now has 17 properties across <strong>India</strong> to offer brands andcompanies look<strong>in</strong>g to activate a relevant audience, is now prepared to <strong>in</strong>crease itsreach to offer even more options to brands and agencies. While an <strong>in</strong>creased reachand variety <strong>in</strong> portfolio is important, S&O always ensures the right profile of mall isengaged with, and works with these properties to build on their visitors, footfalls andbrand associations. promotion
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- Page 44 and 45: Inorbit Mall, Malad, MumbaiInorbit
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