The mall the merrier for retail highs in Singapore

SINGAPORE – When it comes to a toss-up between clicks and bricks during the Black Friday season, most shoppers prefer bricks-and-mortar stores for checking out the features of a fridge or washing machine, or asking for personalised assistance before splurging.

That happens after doing their homework online for big-ticket buys, comparing prices and festive season freebies in a “phygital” approach that blends the best of the physical and digital realms.

A quick check by The Straits Times with 12 department stores and speciality home furnishing brands here showed that stores such as Metro, Takashimaya and BHG have rolled out a range of Black Friday deals for shoppers, including tiered discounts, gifts with purchases and cashback.

Recent studies overseas show that even Gen Z consumers – those born between 1997 and 2010 – favour in-person shopping at a neighbourhood store instead of the frictionless predictability of online shopping.

In a 2025 report, global financial technology company Adyen found that Gen Z – despite being known as “digital natives” – prefer shopping at physical stores. They favour in-store discounts, location convenience and the experiential value of store visits.

While the Black Friday weekend in 2025 is from Nov 28 to Cyber Monday on Dec 1, the year-end sales blitz started earlier, giving stores a longer runway to clear stocks.

Since 2024, the United States’ “Black November” phenomenon of earlier and longer Black Friday deals has spread worldwide, after e-commerce giant Amazon rolled out a 12-day campaign a week before Black Friday.

Amazon Singapore’s 2025 sales started on Nov 20 and will go on till Cyber Monday.

Beefing up the physical experience

Stores across the island have also been quick to curate experiences that shoppers simply cannot access online.

Take Harvey Norman, one of the biggest names in local retail which operates 12 stores, including its flagship at Millenia Walk. It employs Next Gen AI Experts equipped with up-to-date knowledge to help customers elevate their computing experience with AI PCs tailored to their budget and lifestyle.

The retailer recently opened two new stores: at Lot One Shoppers’ Mall in Choa Chu Kang Avenue 4 and at Punggol Coast Mall in Punggol Digital District.

At Courts – which has 12 stores here, including Courts Nojima, its flagship at The Heeren in Orchard Road – the name of the game for Black Friday is “immersive experiences for customers”.

Among the slew of in-store perks at the revamped Courts Toa Payoh are two Build-To-Order (BTO) flat concept showrooms to help new owners of Housing Board flats visualise their dream homes, and a Sleep Clinic for bedding needs.

These thoughtful curations are what draw shoppers like Mrs Nicola Ransome Goh to physical stores.

The mother of two daughters aged eight and six is on the lookout for practical wellness upgrades for the home, such as an air purifier and storage for managing clutter.

“With two energetic girls, I look for products that help create a calm, joyful environment at home,” says Mrs Goh, 52, co-founder of Celebrate Happy, a boutique creative agency specialising in joyful content, experiential campaigns and community-building programmes. She is married to entrepreneur Mervyn Goh.

The couple’s daughters are at the age where Black Friday shopping is less about discounts and more about the adventure of testing gadgets and soaking in the festive spirit.

There is something magical about shopping in person, she says.

“It’s not just about buying. It’s also about browsing together, letting the kids touch and try things, and being part of the buzz,” Mrs Goh says.

“We love the lights and the smell of Christmas in the stores that create a sense of togetherness. And it’s also about getting inspired, laughing at what the kids are drawn to and making memories.”

Stores are expecting a Black Friday blowout in 2025.

Ms Bernice Kwok, managing director of Harvey Norman Singapore and Malaysia, says the retailer is building on 2024’s hugely successful Black Friday sales by going even bigger in 2025, with discounts of up to 80 per cent across electrical appliances, IT products, furniture, mattresses, home decor and bedding essentials.

Harvey Norman has also seen a growing demand for robotic vacuum cleaners, which have become more affordable. With improved technology, their cleaning performance has increased significantly, making them a practical choice for busy, modern households.

Ms Kwok says: “We want to make everyday life a little easier, as people today want things that simply work better and faster. That’s why we offer a wide selection of smart, AI-equipped appliances that add convenience and speed for a better quality of life.”

Among its immersive in-store experiences is the showcase of Next Gen AI laptops, featuring top brands such as Asus, Lenovo and Microsoft.

Ms Kwok notes that AI is not only for students, professionals and content creators, but also gamers.

To address this, the retailer is planning a series of activities that include the latest Gaming AI innovations, as well as special promotions to engage customers with immersive IT experiences.

“These high-tech devices are like having a personal AI at one’s fingertips, designed to enhance productivity, deliver multi-day battery life and strengthen data security without compromising performance,” Ms Kwok tells The Straits Times.

Harvey Norman constantly upskills its sales specialists and Next Gen AI Experts so that they can cut through jargon and steer shoppers to the smart electrical appliance or AI laptop that best fits their needs and budgets.

To foster community engagement, Harvey Norman will host monthly events at its Millenia Walk flagship, which will mark its 10th anniversary with a celebration on Dec 6 and 7.

Shoppers can enjoy family-friendly activities, voucher giveaways and Christmas promotions as part of the celebrations. There are also vouchers to be won for a cruise to a destination of choice for a family of four worth $10,000, and two more cruise vouchers worth $2,500 each. 

Shoppers who spend at least $100 in a single receipt at the Harvey Norman Millenia Walk flagship by Nov 29 get to take part in the special in-store draw. 

Omni-channel approach the way to go

Over at Courts Toa Payoh, which will have its grand reopening on Dec 6, there is a palpable buzz at the rejuvenated four-storey building at 460 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh.

Its strategic location behind the HDB Hub allows the retailer to provide a one-stop shop for young Singaporeans to start their home ownership journey.

The makeover of the store – launched on Valentine’s Day in 2004 to court heartland shoppers – after 21 years is a significant milestone, observes Mr Harry Higashiura, chief executive of Courts Singapore and Malaysia.

“We want shoppers to have a reason to re-engage with the in-store experience,” he says, adding that various sections of the store will focus on different experiential displays.

For instance, customers looking for a new vacuum cleaner can test models on realistic floor surfaces such as marble or ceramic tiles.

There are also interactive smart home demonstrations, where customers can see how smart switches and devices such as lighting, home security and entertainment can be interconnected.

Mr Higashiura says Courts also believes that the omni-channel approach to retail is here to stay as consumers navigate seamlessly between online and offline channels.

“While online sales are growing steadily, our physical stores remain a significant driver of sales, particularly for big-ticket items such as home appliances and furniture,” he points out.

“Customers often prefer to see and experience these products in-person before making a substantial investment, which is why we have invested in experiential displays for customers to see and try our products.”

Courts’ bricks-and-mortar stores complement its online platform, with a significant portion of online customers choosing to buy or collect their purchases in-store, attesting to the phygital nature of retail today.

“As a mainstay in Singapore’s retail landscape, Courts has weathered many shifting consumer cycles,” Mr Higashiura adds.

“But at the heart of every purchase, we see that customers simply want dependable furnishings and appliances that will suit their lifestyles and last them for many years.”

Retail spaces as micro-destinations

According to Dr Samer Elhajjar, a senior lecturer in marketing at NUS Business School, retailers and mall developers worldwide are looking beyond the transactional aspect of shopping to transforming retail spaces into micro-destinations.

A micro-destination combines the intimacy of a small gathering with the unique backdrop of a destination, creating a more personal experience for participants.

One way to understand this shift is to look at how the notion of “micro-destination” is playing out on the ground.

It can already be seen in Harvey Norman’s tech-driven spaces and Courts Toa Payoh’s relaunch. These reflect overseas examples focused on community-centric interactions, such as American sports brand Nike’s Unite and beauty chain Sephora’s Beauty Hubs.

They are part of a global shift in physical retail which is more experiential, social and immersive.

Dr Samer foresees that physical stores that understand the potential of their roles as part of social infrastructure will do well in 2026.

A mall or physical store that can host culture, wellness, learning and family time becomes more than a retail space, he says. It becomes part of the emotional fabric of a neighbourhood.

In an increasingly fragmented world marked by uncertain growth and rising costs, this matters more than ever.

“It shows a reset of what physical retail represents. Several consumer segments are tired of the loneliness of online shopping. They yearn for curated moments, sensory experiences and human presence.

“Physical stores work today not because they are stores, but because they function as emotional spaces. Retailers that understand this shift will outperform those who treat stores as inventory repositories,” says Dr Samer, who has a PhD in marketing from the University of Strasbourg, France.

He is also a media commentator whose broader expertise encompasses digital marketing, consumer behaviour and strategic marketing.

He believes physical retail will increasingly blend commerce with micro-culture. Stores, he says, will behave more like studios or media spaces, where product, content, community and service merge into one experience.

“Brands that treat their stores as living, evolving touchpoints, rather than static locations, will shape the next decade of retail,” he adds.

He also sees the unique advantage of heartland malls – which “sit inside communities, not outside them”, and can evolve into civic platforms.

They can become informal town squares that host conversations, local creativity, learning and public services. The next phase of mall transformation is about becoming part of a city’s social operating system.

“We’ve already seen this model succeed in Dubai and parts of South-east Asia, where large malls behave like community ecosystems. They blend lifestyle, culture, learning and civic functions into one environment,” he says.

“If Singapore malls embrace this next stage – not just retail plus events, but retail plus culture, services, creativity and well-being – they can become some of the most socially impactful urban spaces in the region.”