Having experience of 20+ yrs, Nishant Goel has Professionally handled several large-scale projects of master planning and Architecture for Corporate Campuses, Industrial Clusters, Public Infrastructure, Industrial, Institutional as well as Commercial Architecture, Corporate Offices, Hospitality, and Healthcare sectors. He is a sustainability focused Architect and urban expert and has studied Urban Design from UCL London.
Concept is the essence of the design project. It is an anchor around which the entire project can be explained. It is important to build a strong design concept because it is based on owners expectations and the designer’s imagination in response to the context. Malls were developed as places for brands to have retail stores for customers to give an experience of exclusivity and ease while shopping. So essentially, these were the evolved versions of market places with enhanced aesthetics, functionality and entourage.
Customer Magnet: Concept of the retail space can be anything, from its structure to the architectural style or just the brands that are going to be there. An attractive building form also makes customers intrigued about the place and draws them to cool down their curiosity of how it feels from inside. Sometimes the main attraction is not the mall itself but the activities that one can indulge in, for example, bull ride or artificial sky diving, ice skating etc.
Identity and Landmark: The outer appearance and scale of the building plays the major role in building the identity for the mall. Sometimes a different facade treatment or structure that is visible from far can become a feature with which people can identify that area.
USP: The concept of the mall can itself be the USP. For example, if the concept is developed to replicate a certain city or trend from another country can be very effective in attracting footfall. It will give the local people an experience of a different city. As another example, malls are there for some very specific audience like a sports mall. Only the sports related brands will get to have a store there and it will attract people enthusiastic about sports. Similar concept is like a wedding mall also, wherein, brands that sell stuff related to weddings only will get to rent a shop there.
Consumers see established and reputable brands in a different light because brands create aspirations in the mind of the buyers. This gives those brands the ability to charge their customers a premium. A consumer more often trusts a brand and its products that are trusted by his or her family and friends. Brands are always associated with luxury. Innovative concepts like Kingdom of Dreams have branding playing a very important role in attracting customers. The larger than life unique experiences offered here are specially curated.
Design language:
Depending on what the concept is, a design language is developed to connect every corner with the customer on a psychological level. If the architecture is inspired from a typical style, then the details of construction will be customized to follow the language of the design. Building the brand of the retail with a key building design element can be the binding thread to connect with the customers. For example, a certain Grand Venice mall is inspired by the city of Venice. It has built in water channel to move through all the stores like it is done in Venice. Las Vegas is famous for many such buildings.