Elements mall expecting brighter prospects with cultural district on horizon
In a city where you are not permitted to walk on the grass in public parks, and where shopping is the leading pastime, it makes sense that one may commune with nature through a shopping mall.
At the base of the 118-storey ICC, and directly above the Kowloon MTR station, rests Elements shopping mall and entertainment complex, built to serve the developing district of West Kowloon and beyond.
The mall opened last October, and prospects looked good, with institutions such as Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank set to open in the ICC, bringing an influx of banking residents and their ready dollars. But one year on, there is serious uncertainty in the sector, although a cautious sense of optimism pervades.
The W Hong Kong in The Cullinan is now open; and The Ritz-Carlton will occupy the top 15 floors of the ICC when it is completed in 2010.
So how have Elements mall and its parent company, the MTR Corporation, managed during the first year of operation, and what lies in store for the conceptual property dubbed the 'green shopping experience'?
Understanding Elements and its place in the complicated Hong Kong shopping mall landscape is not easy. It boasts a 40,000 sqft skylight and 700,000sqft of landscaped garden. It houses about 125 shops, a skating rink, and the city's largest cinema, with 1,600 seats. The mall is a favourite of many who have been there - 'comfortable', 'stylish', and 'it feels good' were comments made by shoppers on a recent weekend - but the 1million sqft of shopping, dining and entertainment space can be difficult to navigate.
The shopping mall is themed around the five Chinese elements: metal, wood, water, fire and earth. Each element dominates a nature-themed zone in what world-renowned designer Benoy calls the 'experiential destination' of Elements, inspired by its waterfront location. The zones represent luxury (metal), dining (water), entertainment (fire), fashion (earth) and health and wellbeing (wood). Elements is primarily about shopping, but entertainment and public space are major influences. Public art takes pride of place in each zone, working into each architectural theme inspired by the elements.