How to rejuvenate and "retrofit" old malls
As businesses struggle in the post-epidemic era, many chains have cut back on their shops and the number of closures has skyrocketed, but for those old malls, it's the perfect time to dive into renewal and renovation.
Overnight, everyone is shouting "scene revolution", but only a few of them are actually putting it into practice. The "experience economy" has been a huge cry from the first-tier cities outwards, but only a few tiny waves remain when it reaches the more distant and vast third and fourth-tier cities. Today, we would like to share some typical shopping malls that have been upgraded from old department stores, in the hope of giving more inspiration to brick-and-mortar businesses.
Today, we are sharing some typical shopping malls that have been upgraded by old department stores, in the hope that they can give more inspiration to the real business.
Beijing Xidan Shopping Centre
The Xidan mall originated in the 30th period of the last century, its predecessor consists of six large shopping malls such as Houde and Fushou, and then through the Xidan mall staff design and production to build the Xidan mall building, in 1978 announced the opening of the operation to the public, into one of the four major shopping malls in Beijing.
The Wangfujing Group revealed that the preliminary plan for the transfer of the Xidan shopping mall has long been negotiated. As a key commercial planning project in Beijing, after the restructuring, Xidan Mall will be precisely positioned as a "modern urban living attraction".
As a long-established company in Beijing, Xidan Mall will combine the basic principles of innovation with the long-established company, choosing green methods, integrating digital intelligent experience, closely around the four main lines of quality life, sports and health, digital technology, cultural heritage, the property environment optimization, will again create an ecosphere commercial space. It is estimated that regulation will take place at the end of next year or later and will enter the market again.
Shanghai Plaza
Shanghai Square before the renovation
Named after the city's namesake landmark mega mall, Shanghai Plaza, previously opened in the 1990s, is one of the landmarks of Shanghai's Huaihai Zhong Road CBD. This well-known mall system is mainly dominated by traditional retail and food and beverage businesses, which greatly satisfy the consumption needs of the neighbouring residents and office workers. At one time, it attracted famous brands such as Sephora and GUESS to move in.
However, due to serious competition in the industry and the immaturity of the business model, it was unable to keep up with changes in consumer demand. Shanghai Plaza, which started at its peak, has been transferred several times, and after a long period of transformation and development, it has not been able to regain its glory.
In 2018, through a Singaporean company, Xinjiang Hualing Group Company and Sunac Shanghai, the company injected RMB2.5 billion to become the new owner of Shanghai Plaza, trying to develop a completely different commercial layout for Shanghai Plaza than before.
In September 2020, the newly upgraded Shanghai Plaza is now more fashionable and diversified, from the area to the shopping district.
Shanghai Plaza after renovation (facade)
All large shopping malls and has shared offices, fashionable restaurants, retail, culture and art, leisure activities and several other business interdependence. The anchor shops include traditional chain brands Starbucks, McDonald's, the first new and upgraded Huawei Experience Store Plus, as well as the introduction of M-BOX music bar, comedy film set stand-up comedy show theatre, etc. to promote the night market economy.
Nanjing Central Shopping Centre
Panoramic view of the Central Arcade when it was first built Photo credit: Central Arcade official microblog
The Nanjing Central Shopping Centre, the oldest shopping centre in Shenzhen, was completed in 1934 and is now 85 years old. The mall has been in operation for 70 years and has a wide range of shops and restaurants, including department stores, teahouses and restaurants.
The Central Shopping Centre resumed operation on 26 April 1949, the third day after the liberation of Nanjing, and has made a significant contribution to the stable commercial development of the city over the past 70 years.
Although the Central Shopping Centre has passed its "old age", Nanjing is a leader in traditional department stores' companies. Change and innovation have always been a constant theme at Central. In particular, in recent years, a series of enhancements and adjustments have been made to cope with the changing market outlook and to meet the escalating consumer perception.
From the adjustment of branded women's wear and make-up categories, to the placement of double counters for diamond jewellery such as Chow Tai Fook Jewellery and Chow Sang Sang, and from leveraging on food and beverage marketing to exploring new media marketing and other omni-channel changes, Central Shopping Centre in the bustling business district of Xinjiekou is adhering to the premise of department stores' orientation, and is developing at a high speed in the "shopping centreisation" of the mall. The mall has found its own way in the rapid development of "shopping centre".
Shenzhen Tianhong Department Store
Shennan Rainbow after reopening
In 2017, Tianhong's Shenzhen Huaqiang North shop, Tianhong Shennan, made its debut with a new look. This department stores' mall, with a business area of only 20,000 square metres, was transformed into Rainbow Discovery with the main objective of "tailoring fashion trends for post-80s energy women", not only by transforming the old and new space in the mall's facade and atrium, but also by refining the scenes in the mall's content composition through face-value The production and merchandise thematic style editing has added a flashy transformation.
Shennan Rainbow is the origin of Rainbow Mall, and as Rainbow has gone through three key stages: the department stores' from scratch, the embryonic modern department store, and the commercial segmentation of the market. This is exactly the process common to many of the country's leading department stores and is symbolic of the field. Even many years later, the transformation and upgrade of Rainbow Shennan into Rainbow Discovery in 2015, and its accompanying improvement of the nearby business environment and the continued impact of online retailing, this shop is ultimately far-reaching, both internally for Rainbow and in terms of the industry.
The overall target group for Rainbow Discovery is the 'post-80s power woman', and the design and décor, merchandising and visual design are used to create their daily life scenarios.
After the transformation, Rainbow Discovery has transformed from a single large department stores' in the traditional joint-venture model to an innovative mall that is de-homogenised and has a rich and diverse sub-category structure; from a traditional department stores' that is heavily homogenised and sells rigid demand goods to a shopping venue that is presented according to lifestyle standards, creating an impulse for consumers to buy things in a scene.
The hardest part of the old shopping districts is the lack of new supply of quality shopping centres, the difficulty for brands to enter and the slow iteration of the shopping district's format, resulting in a declining appeal to consumers. With the entry of several quality shopping centres into the market, competition has increased on the one hand, and on the other hand, landlords have become more proactive in optimising their tenant mix and enriching their brand mix in response to changing consumer demand. Refurbishment and renovation of hardware is a necessary step in upgrading malls in old urban areas.
Older malls also need to improve their image and positioning by introducing flagship shops of well-known brands, thus attracting more brands of the same temperament to gather and overall improve the image of the area, making the shopping district more youthful and fashionable.