Location. Location? Location!
The precise geographical location of a company’s premises in today’s global society has become, simultaneously, both much more and also much less important. Less important in the sense that most of a company’s business can be carried out by means of the Internet, e-mail and video conferencing and that a physical presence is theoretically no longer necessary to enter into a relevant dialogue with the rest of the world. Undoubtedly the planet is also glad on account of every short- or long-haul flight that can be avoided.
Outsourcing makes it possible for a call centre or branch in India or Poland to provide a long distance service for a fraction of the price. Similar to this kind of geographical ‘declaration of independence’ however, is the fact that there are key strategic locations where a particular brand may wish to be and be seen; locations which in themselves can have a value measurable in pounds and pence. The enormous sums which individual companies are willing to throw in the pot to have their premises exactly there (YES THERE!), and not two streets away, say something about the value of an excellent location.
The shop on the corner
Some business sectors are clearly more reliant on location than others. Adriano Capoferro, a Norwegian with Italian ancestry, started up the convenience store Deli de Luca with his partners and more recently brought the Swedish Espresso House to a number of key Oslo street corners, more or less overnight. The way that these and other chains have beaten the competition to buy their own visible space is a good example of how location can be used in brand-building. Whether consciously or unconsciously, we perceive the high-speed rollout of kiosks and coffee bars as a kind of success factor, something which bestows some manner of high-street cred, at least if the rest of the concept holds water. So an entirely new chain can rapidly establish itself in our consciousness, in such a marked way that we automatically believe it must be a company to be reckoned with.
Find out how physical stores use design to combat online competition.
Street planning
More recently a ‘luxury strip’ has emerged right behind the Storting, where many international luxury brands have settled, turning Akersveien into a more exclusive address and showing just how strategically important it is for luxury brands to position themselves in the right place. The Norwegian branches of Gucci, Mulberry, Hermés, Burberry, Bottega Veneta, Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton lie just a few exclusive steps apart. Even though they are, at times, competing for the same wallets, they are on the whole aiming for the wallets of those individuals who can afford to invest in luxury bags and handbags.
Of more recent date, the "luxury strip" is right behind the Storting, where a number of international luxury brands have established themselves and made Akersveien a more stately address, and clearly shows how strategically important it is for exclusive brands to be in the right place. Gucci, Mulberry, Hermès, Burberry, Bottega Veneta, Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton's Norwegian branches are just a few exclusive steps apart. Although they are occasionally competitors for the same wallets, they mostly cater to the wallets of people who can afford to invest in both bag and backpack. And luxury bag.
The new Apple store on Regents Street, London
But you have to pay the price to play the game, and it is not cheap to take up residence in the most popular shop windows. According to The Independent, the following are the approximate costs of renting a square foot of floor space per year on the world’s ten most expensive retail streets:
Upper 5th Avenue, New York: USD 3,500
Causeway Bay, Hong Kong: USD 2,400
Champs Elysées, Paris: USD 1,370
New Bond Street, London: USD 1,320
Via Monte Napoleone, Milan: USD 1,030
Bahnhofstrasse, Zurich: USD 895
Ginza, Tokyo: USD 882
Myeongdong, Seoul: US 880
Kohlmarkt, Vienna: US 480
Kaufingerstrasse and Neuhauser Strasse, Munich: USD 460
A rainy day on 5th Avenue, New York City
Huddling together
In some business sectors it could be an asset for a company to be the only player in an area, while in others it may be the case that many small players combine to make something larger and more interesting. Thematic groups, or clusters, can also work well. For example, where many doctors and other health-related services congregate in the same area, the place could gain a reputation for exciting medical research in such a way that others setting up in the vicinity will quickly be able to take advantage of the positive atmosphere associated with the area. The Oslo Cancer Cluster attracts leading companies in cancer research and these have congregated in the immediate vicinity of the Radium Hospital at Oslo University Hospital, thereby offering everyone the shortest route to the most important collaborators, customers and professionals within the discipline. Ullern Upper Secondary School, co-located in the same group of buildings, sometimes offers special classes to stage 2 and 3 pupils carrying out research on cancer cells together with teams from the Oslo Cancer Cluster. Similar peer groupings can be found in other fields such as IT, environment, oceanography and energy.
Cracking the code
The companies which set themselves up in Queen Eufemia’s Street (Dronning Eufemias gate), residents, in other words, of the new Barcode development, now appear to be more forward looking and innovative than they did before this part of town was redeveloped. Those companies who took a gamble on locating their head office in the Barcode district can now view themselves as part of the new, modern Oslo, and of a completely new skyline – at least as long as it lasts. A further interesting element in the capital’s nervous system is the ongoing process to form a kind of processional way, leading from Queen Eufemia’s Street, between the Opera Quarter and Barcode, right up Kongensgate and the area around Steen & Strøm.
Whilst some companies are preoccupied with settling in the most attractive street in town, others believe they bring excitement to whichever street they settle in.
At Mission , we work with companies to make them more enticing to old and new customers, and there are innumerable factors which can influence such a perception. Location is one of them.
Our own location is in a wing of the Indeks Building (Indeksbygget) at no. 100 Henrik Ibsens Gate, Solli Plass.
