LOS ANGELES — In the city where the cost of doing business continues to soar, business owners are grappling with the impact of skyrocketing prices all-round.
As rent prices for brick and mortar spaces become increasingly unaffordable, a concept called “rolling retail” is emerging as a resource.
It’s not a food truck, nor is it just a vending machine. Rolling retail is an entire store on wheels. As the “Automato” truck pulls up, business owner Laide Olambiwonnu prepares to stock her own products inside.
Olambiwonnu, founder of Pickytarian, which specializes in crafting eco-friendly and compostable tableware, found herself unable to commit to long leases with skyrocketing rents.
“The Automato is such a cool and innovative concept, and it’s also cost-effective for me as a small business owner. The rolling retail option makes the most sense because it allows me to connect with my customers and meet them at their locations,” Olambiwonnu explained.
Sharing space with other brands is another perk of this concept. For Olambiwonnu and many other small business owners, it’s a cost-effective way to cross-promote.
“I typically share with other brands. Eventually, my goal is to have my own full, dedicated rolling retail location. But baby steps,” she said.
A recent retail report by Matthews reveals that Los Angeles boasts one of the nation’s highest retail rents, nearly 50% higher than the national average. This concerning fact was a driving force behind Nanavati Low’s determination to introduce the concept of rolling retail.
Low, co-founder of BIB Technologies which operates the Automato and other rolling retail trucks, emphasized the need for a new approach.
“We looked at commercial and retail real estate utility costs and just the rising costs it takes to have a business. And we said, ‘Why don’t we turn this formula upside down?’” she said.
Not content with mere convenience, Low and co-founder Deloss Pickett wanted to ensure their solution was both tech-forward and eco-friendly. The “Automato” relies on clean energy to drive down operational costs, including refrigeration, electronics, appliances and even contactless payments, all of which cost an average of just $10 a day to run, Low says.
Able to house many genres of products, from food to clothing, makeup and electronics, all housed in a temperature-controlled cube, customers can pre-order or access products by scanning QR codes.
Low underlined the versatility of the mobile storefront.
“One of the advantages you have with the mobile storefront is that you can go to different locations, which allows you to really scale your business across numerous zip codes,” she said.
Low and Olambiwonnu businesses also align on another value — giving back. Pickytarian gives back 5% of their sales to organizations fighting homelessness, Olambiwonnu says, while BIB Technologies is actively working with government institutions to give complimentary meals.
“It’s something that we’re actively looking to scale out so that there’s affordable meal programs everywhere in the city,” Low said.
Currently, BIB Technologies has a footprint in various parts of Los Angeles, partnering with the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, or NHMLA, and serving the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Hancock Park.