For operations staff, planning for the final weeks of the year starts months in advance to maintain smooth operations for customers, employees and guests. Icon Real Estate Management’s experts took a look at the series of steps it takes to consciously prepare for the holiday season.
December is a particularly sensitive time for shopping centers. One of the most important parts of preparing for this is carrying out ongoing, planned and scheduled maintenance. The proper functioning of water and sewage systems, ventilation, escalators and even automatic doors all contribute to a smooth experience and service for customers and tenants. Proactive maintenance keeps systems reliable and ensures a comfortable environment for everyone.
“The weeks of December are a key period for both tenants and shoppers in shopping centre operations. It is conscious preparation that helps. In our case, all the activities related to Christmas decorations are planned with all stakeholders in August,” says Gabriella Szabó, the center manager of Icon, who is responsible for the operation of MOM Park.
She added: “There is no downtime in the retail sector. There is still a huge turnover during the period between the two holidays, and then in January there is no decrease due to the large sales.”
The situation is different in logistics. Snow, sleet, ice and freezing temperatures can disrupt key manufacturing plants and logistics centres in the supply chain.
“We manage vast areas, many of which are also uncovered car parks and roads, where winter de-icing is particularly sensitive. As logistics does not have long downtimes during the holidays, proper planning is of paramount importance, whether it’s manpower or the procurement of the necessary de-icing materials,” said Emese Csongrádi, Icon’s property manager.
Speaking of manpower: whether it’s for shopping centres, offices or factories, securing the right number of security, maintenance and service staff is a major challenge during the festive season.
“Here too, thinking ahead is key. A good long-term relationship with service providers is always helpful, as the festive season often requires extra staff and flexibility. It’s not enough to have a proper schedule that covers peak times and considers the festive holidays, but you also need to have a contingency plan for unexpected staff shortages or emergencies,” said Gabriella Szabó, the center manager of Icon responsible for MOM Park operations.
More customers, increased opening hours and not least colder weather increase energy consumption.
“Flexibility in building energy systems is essential for efficient energy use and environmental protection. A flexible system can adapt to changing energy prices, fluctuations in renewable energy sources and different energy consumption patterns. This can reduce energy consumption, minimise carbon emissions and increase energy security,” said Zsolt Kákosy, property management director of Icon.
Producing journalism that is worthy of the name is a costly business. For over 30 years, the publishers, editors and reporters of the Budapest Business Journal have striven to bring you business news that works, information that you can trust, that is factual, accurate and presented without fear or favor.Newspaper organizations across the globe have struggled to find a business model that allows them to continue to excel, without compromising their ability to perform. Most recently, some have experimented with the idea of involving their most important stakeholders, their readers.
We would like to offer that same opportunity to our readers. We would like to invite you to help us deliver the quality business journalism you require. Hit our Support the BBJ button and you can choose the how much and how often you send us your contributions.
