There are shopping centers, there are luxury shopping centers, and then there is a royal shopping center – Royal Hawaiian Center (RHC), the 310,000-square-foot mall in the heart of Oahu’s Waikiki.

It is built on the land that was once home to Hawaiian kings, and it continues the tradition established by the Hawaiian princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, having among its amenities, offering daily classes in traditional Hawaiian crafts, music and storytelling at no charge to visitors.

Of course, it also provides space to the center’s 90 retail tenants, including such luxury brands as Ferragamo, Hermes, Tiffany & Co and scores of others. No wonder the Center serves 2,5 million visitors annually.

But as we all know, royalty relies on nurturing traditions, and RHC understands this, using traditional Hawaiian motifs in the interior design elements. Additionally, the center features “benches, flowers and furniture everywhere, with landscaping inside so you know you’re in Hawaii.

In addition to visual elements, the traditions are kept in hospitality with uniquely Hawaiian flair. RHC has a “gift with purchase” program, which offers items such as a tote bag or a yoga towel, complete with an RHC logo, if shoppers spend a certain amount.

To assure the visitors – tourists and locals alike – are treated like royalty, RHC generously provides the most important amenity – a 10-story parking garage with spaces for more than 600 vehicles.

In other words, you feel welcome at RHC from the moment you drive onto its territory. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Indeed, it does, but only because it is all well thought through.

The moral of this story is twofold. First, treat your customers like royalty and they’ll keep coming back to you. And second, a corollary of the first, is: Know Your Customers. If you know who they are, you can figure out what they want, and give it to them.

It sounds easy on paper, but in real life it’s quite a lot of work, involving thorough analysis of historical traffic data, traffic count by address, travel times, points of origin, and demographic analysis by address.