The world’s leading wave pool, surf park, and wave technology company, American Wave Machines, use surf pools to increase footfall in shopping malls.
With the growth in online shopping and mall traffic in decline, retail outlets are having to think differently if they want to win back customers.
A recent CNBC article suggests that “American Wave Machines is challenging the idea that anchor tenants need to be stores at all.”
Read the full article: “Retail’s new trick: Using surfing to catch more than a wave” here.
Robert Reynolds, the company’s Chief Operating Officer, told CNBC that their surf pools “encourage consumers to visit a mall, often on a repeat basis. For another, they increase the amount of time people spend on the property. The pools also drive food and beverage sales incrementally higher, as visitors post up to watch surfers master the waves—or wipe out.”
He added: “For malls that are more challenged because of the marketplace or as the economies have changed, they’re looking at this as something they could put across their portfolio.”
Since the company’s first pool opened in 2007, over 3, 000, 000 surf sessions have been enjoyed at American Wave Machines locations around the globe. The company already has outlets in two malls: the open-air Sur Plaza Boulevard shopping center south of Lima, Peru and Quartier DIX30 in Brossard, Quebec. A third facility in New Jersey’s American Dream megamall is scheduled to open in 2016. Reynolds says there are more in the pipeline.
“Experience spending is out pacing goods and services. Surfing is the most aspirational sport and our technology has cracked the code on out of ocean surfing, ” explains Bruce McFarland, American Wave Machines‘ Founder and President. “American Wave Machines surf parks are a proven draw attracting a coveted demographic with a tie-in to an iconic sport.”
