Changes In Business Strategy Are Important Amid The Onslaught Of Rojali And Rohana At Shopping Centers

JAKARTA Business actors are also encouraged to change strategies to survive in the midst of changing consumption behavior of the Indonesian people who are now switching just to take a walk to a shopping center until they are called rojali or the group rarely buys.

Recently, the terms 'rojali' and 'rohana' have returned to the attention of various groups. Rojali is an acronym for the group who rarely buys, while Rohana is a group only asking.

The term appears because of the large number of visitors in shopping centers but is not proportional to existing transactions. In other words, shopping centers or malls are still crowded but the number of shopping is not proportional to the number of arrivals.

According to a number of observers, the rojali phenomenon occurs because people's purchasing power is indeed decreasing. But on the other hand, business actors are also required to rack their brains so that they can survive in the midst of the onslaught of rojali and rojalana in shopping centers.

Chairman of the Indonesian Shopping Center Management Association (APPBI) Alphonzus Widjaja said that the rojali phenomenon is actually not new.

"Visitors come to shopping centers but little or no shopping is not a new trend. This always happens all the time, but the number depends on various factors, as is happening today, namely people's purchasing power which is still not recovering, especially the lower middle class," he said when contacted by VOI, Saturday, July 26.

However, Alphonzus said the level of visits to shopping centers had actually increased. "In the midst of declining purchasing power conditions, people still come to visit Shopping Centers. The average level of visits to shopping centers increased by about 10 percent compared to last year," he said.

"Because currently shopping centers are one of the public facilities that meet the needs of the community not only in terms of shopping but also other things such as entertainment, education and so on," continued Alphonzus.

Contacted separately, the Executive Director of the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELISO) Bhima Yudhistira confirmed that the rojali phenomenon was not new. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, an uncertain economic situation has hit the Indonesian people, especially the winning class.

This middle class group is decreasing. According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the number of middle class has decreased from 2019 to 2024. In 2019, the number of middle classes reached 57.33 million people or 21.45 percent of the total population. The number of middle class continues to fall to 48.27 million or 17.44 percent in 2023.

They, said Bhima, are increasingly squeezed by living expenses, especially food and housing inflation, as well as high interest rates. Not only that, they are also trapped in debt installments, while income that can be spent or supported income is reduced.

Shopping centers, said Bhima, often provide secondary and serial needs such as luxury items. So that for the middle class group this mall becomes a place to wash their eyes or just looking for entertainment without making large purchases because consumers focus on basic needs.

"Finally, this middle class ended up shopping for just recreation, just for refreshing," explained Bhima.

On the other hand, this rojali phenomenon also makes Bhima highlight the roles of changing consumer behavior. People now tend to use e-commerce to shop because the prices offered tend to be cheaper, and are mined for shipping discounts and other promos that malls don't offer.

The rojali trend is predicted by Bhima to last a long time, especially with the existence of a trade war that has the potential to trigger layoffs (PHK). For this reason, he encourages business people to adapt so that his efforts can survive in the midst of the onslaught of robust and rojali.

"Shopping centers have to make adjustments by shifting, which previously provided a lot of clothes outlets, outlets related to secondary needs. Now many have shifted to F&B (food and baverage) centers, food and beverage centers, then family recreation. That's what is now in demand," explained Bhima.

He gave an example of how several old malls in Jakarta managed to change this concept so that they were able to survive with supported income from consumer spending on recreation.

Similarly, Lecturer of the Management Study Program of the Faculty of Economic and Binary Education, University of Indonesian Education, Heny Hendrayati, also assessed that the phenomenon of rojali and Rohana should be a strong alarm for business models that are unable to adapt to changes in consumer behavior.

According to Heny, this cannot be separated from the increase in digital literacy and advances in information technology. Consumers in today's era prefer to do research, compare prices, and seek references before buying, both online and offline.

Heny explained, on a global scale this phenomenon is known as showrooming and webrooming. Showrooming occurs when consumers see products directly in physical stores and then buy them online. Meanwhile, webrooming is the opposite, doing research first on the internet before buying in stores.

According to a Google and TNS survey in 2023, more than 80 percent of global consumers do showrooming, and more than 85 percent do webrooming. This shows that physical stores are no longer the main places for transactions, but are part of the consumer consideration process," said Heny.

This claim is reinforced by data from Indonesia's internet penetration. According to a report by the Indonesian Internet Service Providers Association (APJII) until January 2024, there were more than 185 million internet users in Indonesia.

"This means that most of the population already has access to information and the ability to compare products more critically," he added.

With challenges like this, Heny also encourages business actors not only to give up, but to adopt an automanichannel strategy that combines physical store services and digital platforms. This strategy allows consumers who have seen goods in stores to continue online purchases, for example through scanning QR codes connected to stores-commerce.

According to the Accenture report in 2023, companies implementing teaching and technology could increase customer conversion by up to 30 percent. So this is not an option, but a necessity, "said Heny.

Business actors must also be able to adapt visitor data, such as collecting visitor contact data that comes to the store (via digital platforms,giveaways, or coupons). The goal is that business actors retarget marketing, namely targeting consumers who previously had not purchased.

In addition, business people must also be able to provide a positive shopping experience to consumers. According to Hany, now consumers come to the store not only to buy, but also to feel the atmosphere, try direct products, or just enjoy the atmosphere. Therefore, shops and malls are required to create a pleasant and immersive experience.

"This can be a demonstration of products, photo areas, or community events that strengthen relations between consumers and brands," said Heny.

In today's digital era, the key to business success does not depend solely on promotional aggressiveness, but on the ability to build strong relationships with consumers. Interaction, trust, and experience are the main pillars.

"The question is no longer why they don't buy it now, but what can we do so they want to come back and buy it later," he concluded.