Unleashing Potential - CallisonRTKL€¦ · Unleashing Potential. Lalaport, Tokyo, Japan. Once the engine of the industry, many malls of the ‘80s and ‘90s retail heyday are now

Unleashing Potential

Lalaport, Tokyo, Japan

Once the engine of the industry, many malls of the ‘80s and ‘90s retail heyday are now looking outdated and run-down, or worse — they have lost the interest and loyalty of their markets. Increasing competition, changing demographics and an industry-wide shift towards more holistic, leisure-oriented and authentic experiences are challenging once viable shopping centers to redefine themselves in the modern context. As a result, many developers of now underperforming centers are faced with a critical question: Cash in or renovate?

Though the former might seem more prudent in today's challenging economic times, the results of reinvesting in your retail center can be extremely beneficial to more than just your bottom line. In today's market — as cities are undergoing revival and leaders are working to combat sprawl — you have an opportunity to negate the mistakes of the past by creating communities of the future.

Underperforming sites still retain infrastructure and customer bases and, consequently, can be recast in integral roles in their surroundings. Smart urban design and planning will ensure that your redevelopment is inextricably woven into its community, thereby creating new job opportunities, establishing a fresh stream of revenue and guaranteeing the long-term survival of the center.

The process begins by recognizing potential. Many old shopping centers are located in high traffic, in-fill areas with latent profit capability. By performing careful market analysis, establishing a solid business plan and undergoing feasibility studies to determine the depth and complexity of the required renovation, you can create competitive, authentic shopping destinations and turn that potential into a well-designed, sustainable — and lucrative — project.

give outdated centers new importance in today’s communities

recasting retail

Retail Renovation

Mockingbird Station, Dallas, Texas

If a center no longer draws critical revenue, it no longer meets the needs of its community. Changing demographics, lifestyles and new markets driven more by niches than numbers make an appropriate merchandising mix and sensitive design essential to today's shopping center. And more than just shopping, today's consumers seek complete experiences — a mix of need-based retail, entertainment and public spaces for congregating. Contrary to the highly themed regional malls of the past, shoppers seek real places that reflect their aspirations and provide them with convenience and calm.

understand the trends

smart repositioning means knowing your market

Careful market analysis holds the key to renewed shopping center performance. What is the appropriate mix of tenants for today's value-oriented shopper? How will design details such as scale, landscaping and lighting factor into the customer experience? Which entertainment and other non-retail uses will strengthen and profit from adjacent shopping? How will your center separate itself from other local shopping options? Answering these questions will ensure that your shopping center both serves and benefits from its community today and in the future.

Retail Renovation

The Streets at Southpoint, Durham, North Carolina

As traditional malls verge on extinction (in 2001, 20 percent of the nation's regional malls were on the endangered list), "demalling" is increasingly leading renovation trends — a departure from the isolated shopping centers of the past. Attracting big-box tenants and providing on-street access engages consumers favoring convenience. Adding new uses like residential or office space increases and varies retail traffic. And aesthetic and functional measures such as more windows, clearer views between levels, better traffic flow that facilitates shorter walking distances and removing the roof can engage shoppers and provide them with more open shopping environment.

demalling the mall

bringing main street to traditional centers

Many of tomorrow's malls are taking lessons from Main Streets of the past. Easily accessible stores and "streets" of retail that capture the messy vitality of a traditional village thoroughfare create the authentic environments today's shoppers crave. Exciting, visually interesting storefronts can appeal to tenants in the spirit of one-upsmanship, while taking theming to a new level. And public congregating places, amenities like libraries or banks, new streetscapes and landscaping further create a holistic shopping environment and ensure the continued survival of your center.

Retail Renovation

Mockingbird Station, Dallas, Texas

At the end of the day, deciding whether or not to renovate and reposition your ailing shopping center comes down to the bottom line. From the first stages of recognizing untapped income potential to the ultimate achievements of buoyed sales per square foot and increased land values, accomplishing objectives on a limited budget means carefully prioritizing needs in terms of the best investment of time and money.

Design and planning are a means to that end. Carving a niche in the market might mean trading to a lower price point or catering to an affluent population with high-priced merchandise, and the surroundings should reflect the new position. In addition, design, planning and tenant positioning are critical to attracting new tenants, retaining the old ones, and incorporating new retail methods such as kiosks or adding an entertainment use to keep things lively throughout the day and into the evening.

the most bang for your buck

planning and design hold the keys to profit

Retail Renovation

Centro Vasco Da Gama, Lisbon, Portugal

Once the decision has been made to reposition an existing center, knowing how best to get there becomes the critical question. While investing a great sum of money into making a project better than any other in the region almost certainly guarantees a long-term payoff, sometimes resources, budgets and untapped market segments mean a complete overhaul is not necessary to establish a viable center.

Understanding the power of the tools available to you is the first step in moving forward with your project — “architecture lite” such as new graphics, wayfinding, signage and identity, can be as influential in changing markets as heavy construction. Look at the value of your real estate at its location, the stability of the established customer base, the zoning allowances, public support, the projected time of turnaround and the possibilities for increased or discounted tenant rents. Whether you decide on expansion, a complete demolition and rebuild, or simply modifying aesthetics, the final product should make the best use of what you had while translating it into modern language.

choose your tool

leveraging what you have into what you need

Retail Renovation

Lalaport, Tokyo, Japan

Retail Renovation ouR woRk

ouR woRk

AVeNTUrA MALL

TowN CeNTer AT BoCA rAToN

ChUrChiLL SqUAre

ChADSToNe

LALAPorT

LeNox SqUAre

CeNTro VASCo DA GAMA

NorTheAST MALL

PLAzA LAS AMeriCAS

rAffLeS CiTy ShoPPiNG CeNTer

More ThAN JUST SiGNS

A New iDeNTiTy

The orchestration of a project goes beyond structural changes and retenanting. Every detail counts — from the overhead lighting to the logo to the positioning of trash receptacles for tenants. Environmental graphics and soft furnishings will have just as strong an impact on an inviting destination as the layout, and will serve as an integral marketing tool for the newly revitalized center.

When every detail comes together, your sales will flourish, whether you're dealing with a complete renovation or simply "fixing" an underperforming part of the mall. Collaboration among planners, architects, graphic designers and other members of the design team at every level of the design process will ensure that the final product is a cohesive experience.

it’s great for business

an “entertaining” addition provides the best solution for a diverse tourist hub

Location: Aventura, floridaClient: Turnberry Associates and Simon Property GroupServices: Architecture, Structural and MeP engineering, environmental Graphic Design

Aventura, a successful, upscale shopping center, sought RTKL’s services to create an entertainment- and restaurant-based environment that would appeal to a diverse and growing tourist population in northern Miami. RTKL set out to meet the challenge by catering to families and responding to a need for a social center that young, affluent couples would find to be as exciting as Coconut Grove.

A three-level addition was designed in a style that playfully recalls the Mediterranean aspects of South Florida architecture. A signature tower, suggested by the seaside mansions and civic buildings of West Palm Beach, rises 12 stories from the heart of the center. Stucco walls painted in bright pink and yellow surround a circular open-air courtyard. Café balconies are cooled by ceiling fans circulating lazily under red tile roofs, and harlequin bands in pastel colors act as decorative trim. Two levels of new themed shops and restaurants — many of which recall the entertainment industry — and a 24-screen cinema complex cap off the project.


Aventura Mall

the best of a popular mall made better

Location: Boca raton, floridaClient: JMB/federated realty Associates, Ltd.Services: Architecture and environmental Graphic Design

Town Center at Boca Raton, a regional center serving affluent Palm Beach and Broward Counties required renovation to improve areas that were dark and outdated by today’s standards and to enhance shopper comfort. Outmoded tenant criteria, uneven floor tiles and an undersized food court contributed to the need for an upgraded design that could attract new tenants and customers. With the center’s successful system of simple volumes of space as a basis, RTKL was faced with the challenge of what to improve and what to replace.

The ultimate plan involved the expansion of the existing anchor stores, the addition of an anchor and parking structures, and the renovation of entrances, finishes and lighting. With features like glass-flanked entrances, a palm tree motif and a new interior lighting scheme, a lighter, airier quality was brought to the center that strengthens the connection between the interior and the surrounding South Florida environment. On-street access to stores and a reconfigured food court help circulation and improve convenience. And environmental graphics, including fabrics printed with vintage floral patterns, enhance the visibility and character of the mall.


Town Center at Boca Raton

Before

the keys to a British mall’s renovation: a roof and a new identity

Location: Brighton, englandClient: Standard Life investments PLCServices: Architecture and environmental Graphic Design

Churchill Square Mall, a 1970s retail development, was anchored at one end by a prime department store. At the opposite end, an open space accommodated promotional events, live performance and civic activities. The owner commissioned RTKL to modernize the outdated center.

To increase the comfort level and provide a more relaxed shopping experience, RTKL began its plans by enclosing the center. To ease access from the surrounding area, including popular and historic streets, circulation paths were reconfigured. Inside the center, smaller courtyard spaces serve as first-rate food service venues. Churchill Square was further enlivened through dynamic environmental graphic design. Drawing on the great tradition of sea voyaging, RTKL endowed the center with a new identity. The signature elements provide clear direction for patrons and recall the town's status as a charming seaside resort.


Churchill Square

a new identity, a new “front door,” an award-winning transformation

Location: Melbourne, Australia Client: The Gandel GroupServices: Master Planning, Architecture, environmental Graphic Designexecutive Architect: The Buchan Group

Melbourne’s Chadstone Centre is one of Australia’s largest regional shopping centers and one of the region’s highest revenue-producing retail properties. To sustain this exceptional growth and stay competitive in the market, a master-planned expansion program turned the center into a 1.45 million SF award winner.

A new two-level fashion district at the center’s southern end brings more than just additional retail space. Landscaping, detailing and a glass spiral culminating in skylights provides a distinctive landmark identity and a front door to the project. A second-phase entertainment zone at the center’s northern end provides another entry with direct access to cinemas, restaurants, and other entertainment venues. The existing eight-screen cinema is expanded to 19 screens on two levels, and two new parking structures increase capacity from 5,600 to 8,000 cars, accommodating the scores of new customers attracted to the revamped center.


Chadstone

appealing to a younger, trendier demographic

Location: Tokyo, Japan Client: Mitsui fudosanServices: Architecture and environmental Graphic DesignAssociate Architect: fujita Corp. / Mitsui Construction

Lalaport Shopping Center, Japan’s first “American style” retail center and the country’s most successful shopping destination, began to show its age after two decades of popularity. RTKL repositioned the center with an expansion aimed to attract a new group of young, trendy, entertainment-oriented consumers, without alienating the Baby Boomers who had shopped there for years.

Following a multi-year, long-range repositioning effort, RTKL integrated the center’s original enclosed structure with an open-air, entertainment-oriented High Street. Along a reconfigured shopping pattern, shoppers are drawn to a new three-level retail and fashion specialty mall, a food court and a free-standing, three-story, harbor-side restaurant. A 10-screen cinema and two-screen drive-in theatre, plus an outdoor sports complex, all encourage a broad customer base to linger long past normal trading hours.


Lalaport

once the catalyst for a booming community, a regional center changes to keep up

Location: Atlanta, Georgia Client: Corporate Property investorsServices: Architecture and environmental Graphic Design

Originally constructed as an open-air retail mall in the 1950s, Lenox Square is the acknowledged regional retail center of the Southeast and the catalyst for Atlanta’s thriving Buckhead residential and commercial district. Over the years, various expansion and renovation programs undertaken by a series of owners left the project visually disjointed. The phenomenal growth rate of surrounding commercial development, completion of the Lenox Square MARTA Station and recent major expansion of the neighboring (and competing) Phipps Plaza necessitated a comprehensive expansion and renovation program.

RTKL’s initial planning and urban design component of the project included a thorough analysis of the Buckhead business and residential districts with respect to area influences, land use relationships and site dynamics. Key to the program is a second-level overbuild running the length of the center and adding 170,000 SF of retail GLA. The project also includes new interior town squares at each anchor store entrance, connecting galleries, an expanded food court, new exterior arcades and garage entrances, and a comprehensive graphics and signage program. RTKL’s design emphasizes the infusion of natural light and light-colored finishes, stronger expression of the center’s street presence and improved pedestrian linkages from neighboring hotels and office buildings.


Lenox Square

a shopping center becomes a shopping experience

Client: Sonae imobiliariaLocation: Lisbon, PortugalServices: environmental Graphic Design and interior design

Centro Vasco da Gama, an urban retail and entertainment center in Lisbon, required an identity that would engage visitors and reflect indigenous iconography and motifs. RTKL created an "experience plan" that taps into the spirit of the area, while enlivening and energizing the center.

Working with an international roster of design disciplines, RTKL created a journey of exploration from the cosmos to the bottom of the sea that permeates the graphics, interior design, signage and wayfinding. The main entrance was themed to become an appropriate gateway and symbol for the project. The material palette, parking lot identification, color, lighting, paving and ornamental elements are part of a visual journey through the project, which results in a dynamic, authentically human environment that is captivating to the visitor.


Centro Vasco da Gama

a sophisticated theme attracts a new high-end shopper

Location: hurst, Texas Client: Simon Property Group, inc.Services: Architecture and environmental Graphic Design

NorthEast Mall, built in the 1970s, was originally marketed to a middle- and lower-end clientele. As demographics in the region changed, however, the owner sought a renovation that would offer higher-end stores, continue serving the current market and transform the relatively non-descript mall into a unique shopping experience. RTKL, taking advantage of the mall’s good physical state and optimal location, transformed it into the largest regional mall in Texas without losing the owner’s vision for a cohesive design image.

Encompassing low-end retail, high-end retail and everything in between, the redevelopment brought three major department stores to the mall and gave it a wide appeal to a broad range of consumers. The project’s modern, minimalist theme is based on a storyline of a garden party, complete with abstractions of trees, grass, flowers, light and breeze for a variety of textures and colors. Each wing of the mall — including a new third wing — received a different palette of colors and imagery, which aid in orienting the customers. The mall concourse ceiling was replaced, with a blue “sky” treatment that matches the tiles, panels and flooring based on the garden theme. The resulting mall has significantly broadened the array of offerings available in the center, making it as much a fashion center as a general shopping outlet.


NorthEast Mall

Before

a comprehensive identity package reinvigorates a market leader

Location: San Juan, Puerto rico Client: empresas fonalledasServices: Architecture and environmental Graphic DesignAssociate Architect: Arturo J. Garcia AiA, Architects

Plaza Las Americas, the dominant shopping center in Puerto Rico, offers the widest range of shopping, dining and entertainment options in the Caribbean. In response to population and demographic changes, the owner wanted to renovate and expand the center to maintain and enhance its position in the market, bring cohesion to a patchwork of past renovations and to attract upper-scale tenants.

RTKL, who had worked on a prior renovation of the center, was commissioned to unify the disparate spaces and bring a consistent Puerto Rican feel to the center. First, the L-shaped structure was extended into a loop to encourage circular navigation. Ceilings throughout the project were changed into a unified vaulted look, and architecture and environmental graphics spruced up the center, blending sculptures, paving, graphics and other decorative features to celebrate climate, culture and heritage. This new identity assists shoppers in navigating the 2.1 million SF of space and contributes to an overall sense of place. Landscaping and exterior lighting cap off the project, contributing to a unified concept that has been very successful in attracting new tenants and shoppers.


Plaza Las Americas

a new look with respect for a famous original

Location: SingaporeClient: raffles City Pte. Ltd.Services: Architecture, Structural engineering, MeP engineering, environmental Graphic DesignAssociate Architect: Architects 61

Raffles City, a large mixed-use project designed by I.M. Pei, comprises three hotel towers, an office tower, a convention center and a shopping center. RTKL was retained to infuse the retail portion of the project with a stronger identity and a more welcoming personality, while respecting the philosophy of the original design. The work entailed a total renovation of the three-story shopping center, and the addition of 50,000 SF of retail space and exterior site graphics.

RTKL's redesign creates three distinctly themed main courts that define the center and orient the shopper. Similar to an urban plaza, City Square reflects the culture and energy of Singapore, with a campanile water feature and room for events and exhibitions. The Garden and Water Courts reflect the natural beauty in and around the city, with planters, torchieres, banners and 15 types of granites and marbles. The shopping center renovation and expansion — accomplished over a three-year period without closing a single shop — accommodates new high-end fashion retailers and tenants desiring to expand, while also increasing shop visibility. All shop fronts were renovated using RTKL's tenant criteria, which added color and variety to the overall environment.


Raffles City Shopping Center

wayfinding systems forge deep customer relationships

Like identity, wayfinding plays an integral role in drawing customers into a retail center and helping them find what’s important to them. As traffic and parking concerns become increasingly problematic in outdated centers, today’s customers demand clear, well-signed paths to and from parking. As new uses are added, or centers expand to include different types of retail, signage is a cost-effective way of weaving old and new into a unified, easily understood environment.

Although it can’t save an unworkable plan, an effective wayfinding system can go far beyond just signs to serve as an extension of a center’s image. Beyond allowing customers to formulate an action plan that feels comfortable to them, wayfinding functions as one of the most immediate means of communicating with guests, conveying your core values and creating a deeper relationship with your customer.


More than just signs

know who you are and where you are going

As the basic building block of any commercial enterprise, identity has the power to change customers’ perceptions of a struggling shopping center. It forges fresh connections with shoppers — in support of a marketing campaign or through branded merchandise — and provides an incentive to explore and experience a project on a deeper level. For owners, developers and tenants, a new identity also provides a common thread that runs through both design and business. And for those seeking to avoid massive renovations, a new identity can go a long way in helping to boost sales and profits.

Far more than just a new logo, identity is a system of communicating with your customers, your staff and your competitors. It has the capacity to move across media to appear in marketing materials as potently as in environmental graphics. Most importantly, it puts a fresh face on a center, providing a unique experience for those who rediscover it.


A new identity

Pentagon row, Arlington, Virginia

Since our origin as a two-man office in Annapolis, Maryland in 1946, RTKL has grown into an internationally recognized planning and design firm with 750 professionals, 11 offices worldwide and projects in over 60 nations. But whether we're designing architecture, engineering systems, communities, environments or telecommunications systems, we always envision the end-user: how they will live, work, rest or play in an environment RTKL designed. It affects your bottom line.

The key to our seamless, responsive design approach is the firm’s orientation by practice group, rather than by geographic location. Specialists from our Retail/ Entertainment, Hospitality, Public, Workplace, Health and Residential Sectors collaborate laterally on all projects. From the initial client meeting through occupancy and beyond, RTKL’s creative services focus on all aspects of the project: from property evaluations and economic viability, to web development, logo design or directional signage. In short, our diversified expertise allows us to design your project with an efficiency that promotes on-time/on-budget delivery while considering award-winning approaches that make places real.

tHe BaRe eSSentialS

Retail Renovation tHe BaRe eSSentialS

RTKL’s success has always been propelled by an understanding of how people want to live. Our clients and end-users benefit from a matrix of expertise that overlays a thoughtful consideration of the human experience. Paying attention to industry trends is the beginning. Your improved bottom line is the end result. Knowing how to make the extraordinary seem real ensures repeat visitors. And we provide innovative, customized business solutions and seamless delivery across the hospitality, commercial, cultural and governmental realms. Our passionate pursuit of excellence, the application of creativity to solve our clients’ challenges, our technical expertise that transcends concept and occupancy issues, and our collaborative spirit are all the measures of our success.

• Architecture• Planning & Urban Design • Environmental Graphic Design• Branding • Interior Architecture • Historic Preservation• Structural Engineering• MEP Engineering• Landscape Architecture • Telecommunications Systems

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Unleashing Potential - CallisonRTKL€¦ · Unleashing Potential. Lalaport, Tokyo, Japan. Once the engine of the industry, many malls of the ‘80s and ‘90s retail heyday are now