Creating and maintaining digital third places: Orchestrating interaction ritual chains at a distance

With online and offline lives increasingly intertwined, hybrid retail spaces are emerging as new social hubs akin to classical third places. Third places refer to spaces apart from work and home, such as cafes and bars, that provide opportunities for social interaction. While prior research has primarily conceptualized third places as physical establishments, it also acknowledges that online environments, such as multiplayer gaming platforms or chatrooms, can fulfil similar functions. Yet, despite the recognized social-supportive role of retail venues, relatively little is known about how third place atmospheres can effectively be orchestrated in online retail settings. This study addresses this gap through an ethnographic investigation of a digital platform that recreates a physical third place online, enabling consumers to gather for long hours, consuming, conversing, and socializing. We find that, in online retail settings, third place atmospheres can be cultivated through the deliberate orchestration of technology-mediated interaction ritual chains. Through three interconnected processes – ritual framing, boundary regulation, and affective synchronization – that unfold before, during, and after the gatherings, the online setting transforms into a digital third place. Both retailers and consumers play pivotal roles in this transformation. Drawing on these findings, we offer several theoretical contributions and managerial recommendations.