Maureen Crampton has been with the Forum Shops at Caesars since the mall’s infancy.
As the director of mall marketing, she’s seen the retail and dining center flourish during good years and withstand bad ones, remaining the nation’s top-selling mall.
With the Forum Shops’ 20th anniversary approaching, she recently sat down with VEGAS INC to talk about the mall’s past and present.
How long have you been with the Forum Shops?
Almost 20 years. People ask if I ever get bored, but the truth is I never do. Things change, people change and business strategies change. I just think, “Things had better be changing, because times are changing.”
The recession hit the hardest in 2008-2009. How did it affect the mall?
We held our own, but there were not a lot of transitions within retail. In some cases, shops grew; it was really quite remarkable. Stores like Gucci and Versace took advantage of lease renewals as they moved to other bigger locations within the mall.
What was your role during this time?
I came up with new business strategies and assisted individual retailers. It’s hard for some of these luxury brands to offer “discounts,” so instead we labeled them as “special offers.” Retailers had to do something, because if they didn’t, they would lose business to the neighbors who did. It was my job to help figure out what that “something” was.
How did shops that were hit hardest by the recession change their appeal to consumers?
Luxury brands saw consumers were more conservative with their spending. After watching buyers’ habits, retailers began displaying more mid-priced items, like accessories or wallets, and stocked them in larger quantities. This way, the consumer was able to feel comfortable making purchases without feeling intimidated by the higher-end products.
In general, what did the mall do differently to prevent a dramatic drop in sales during the recession? Have any of the strategies continued?
The recession made us work and do business smarter. International traffic was down, so we had to regroup and focus domestically. We started advertising more locally, regionally and nationally. When international visits began rising, we came back stronger than ever. We used this synergy to continue to be the top performer.
Do you know of any plans that might be in store for the 20th anniversary?
We’re in the middle of planning it at the moment, but we are going to kick it off in January. The celebrating will continue into May, when the Forum Shops can really celebrate its 20 years. We’re thinking of doing some fashion activities that start in 1992 and progress into 2012. Kind of like a blast from the past in fashion.