The Question.

Over the last several days, I have been thinking about the four topics I discussed in my previous post:

• Ruin Regeneration / Historic Preservation
• Biophilia in Hospitality
• Integration of Health and Wellness in the Urban Landscape
• Importance of Empathic Design

I have listed possible topics and angles for each one. While that task has resulted in solid leads, one has come to mind that I am not only interested in, but I am very excited to research. It beats out the other topics by a long shot.  

New topic: the conventional shopping experience. Who doesn't want to talk about shopping! When I lived in Dallas (2004-2012) and found myself in my apartment bored, I would go to Northpark Mall, a high-end indoor shopping center. And I mean HIGH END. They have Tiffanys, Carolina Herrera, and Oscar De La Renta storefronts. It was my usual weekend hangout as a place to stroll about the mall's central circulation with my Sonic drink in hand, doing a lot of window shopping. I was fascinated, never brave enough to step into Roberto Cavalli, but instead could be found in Anthropologie or Forever21. Much more my price range. The mall had various end-users, shops and restaurants, a movie theatre, and outdoor spaces.  The mall has direct access to Interstate 75, the main drag, running north and south through Dallas. They have a bus stop on-site and is a short walk from the above-ground tram, known as the DART.

 

     

Fast forward to 2014; we move to Northwest Arkansas, where the only indoor mall is a 40-minute drive from where I live in Fayetteville, home of the University of Arkansas. I was aghast to find the mall nearly abandoned by retailers and visitors. Of course, the exception is when Bath and Body Works has their semi-annual sale or Dillards non-publicized, end of the year sale. Let's face it. No one can resist those. But still, this mall, like many others across the country, is failing to bring in new end-users and struggling to keep their current ones. I want to explore why this is happening and what solution can remedy and reinvent?

 

Possible questions within this broad topic could be the following:

 Question 1:  The rise and fall of indoor shopping centers. How can the architecture and design field reinvent the in-person hospitality/retail experience as it battles online shopping convenience?  

Exploration:  Look at the master plan of the real estate development and identify key point indicators, otherwise known as KPIs, to determine improvement opportunities. I will also explore the interior design qualities such as layout, access, and lighting to identify additional user-centric opportunities.

Question 2:  How can the conventional shopping center reinvent its business model to attract cross-generations and various end-users' interests? What are other in-person shopping prototypes doing that are successful?

Exploration:  Investigate the tenant demographics, compare retail and hospitality offerings, and active vs. rest destinations within the footprint. Additionally, how will owners accommodate in-person and online retailers within the real estate footprint? Is there a compromise when looking at the return on investment and cost per square footage?

Question 3:   What influence does the site selection have on its future success? What KPIs are the key to ensuring a profitable and sustainable destination for current and future generations?

Exploration:  Explore local demographics, purchasing trends, and other shopping prototypes to determine how the site selection plays a role in the success of the business model.

Stay tuned for next week's post "The Question: Part Two - The Power of RE: re-imagine, re-purpose, re-brand."