It's not a mall world after all

Most people shop in shopping malls in Hong Kong. Retail experts say these cavernous emporiums have become the central meeting points for social interaction and landmarks for orientating in the city. But, given their significance, malls fall frustratingly short of their potential to enrich our lives.

'Shopping centres are what I call the urban living room,' said Terry Waterhouse, a retail designer and director of Redgoodss. 'A replacement for what the town square used to be.'

Jolyon Culbertson, director and general manager of Swire Properties, agreed. 'Malls are in many ways the cosmopolitan living room of high-density cities like Hong Kong. We are not sure if they could replace a real town centre.'

While some are larger than others, open all night, or with a newer cinema, there is little difference between the competition. 'There are signs of overexpansion, thus the observation that Hong Kong has too many malls all looking similar to each other,' Mr Culbertson said.

Yet, the expansion continues with competition heating up in the past few years. We have seen the development of new retail locations away from the traditional city core, and the regeneration of neighbourhoods. Examples are the developments in East Kowloon and Mong Kok. When done well, these regenerations are positive for the city and for our experiences of living in it.

Herein lies the problem - too few shopping centres offer the consumer something special. Mr Waterhouse suggested looking at the Philippines where he believes some of the best designed malls can be found. The Ayala Centre Greenbelt in Makati City, Metro Manila, for example, is a multi-use building, which provides open space, alfresco dining, educational outlets, an indoor children's playground, entertainment venues and, of course, retail shops.

Ayala serves as a town centre where neighbourhood residents can converge to find everything they need. This idea of creating destination shopping was the way of the future, Mr Waterhouse said, and that, coupled with constant innovation, was crucial to the longevity of the mall.

Shoppers are lured by new experiences, not just new products, and that is where the connection between the mall and the customer grows. The retail environment was lacking in this regard, Mr Waterhouse said, but certain local developers were waking up to this idea and making changes.

'We don't think shopping mall design should be stereotyped. All shopping malls should have their own special personalities, reflecting their position and target audience. The whole idea is to provide a special experience to its desired patrons that differentiates it from its competitors,' Mr Culbertson said, who noted that the Swire Properties' Pacific Place mall's renovation would create a 'new generation' in luxury design.

But are shopping malls in Hong Kong going far enough to create spaces that are truly responsive to our needs?

Simon Blore, managing director of Benoy, the retail design firm responsible for Elements, APM mall and I-Square, said that for shopping malls in Hong Kong to improve they must increase brand identity, improve public facilities, create experiential places, integrate with media and technology, incorporate sustainable shopping, and embrace public art.

Hong Kong malls have movie theatres, ice skating rinks and restaurants, but imagine if they also had art centres and parks. When asked to design malls here, a few designers said they always incorporated these ideas into their plans, which were well received, but then nixed by the developers.

'It's the weather,' Mr Waterhouse said. That's the excuse he hears for why Hong Kong doesn't have outdoor areas in its malls. The problem with alfresco dining in Hong Kong is that where it is done. 'A lot of them are not centrally managed, thus they suffer from a lack of co-ordinated mix and management of a pleasant environment,' Mr Culbertson said.

He agreed that many malls were hampered by an inherent lack of outdoor dining experiences. As a result, malls tried to offer 'stripes' of food and beverage outlets around the retail space 'for lounging purposes'.

'Unfortunately, when efficiency is a concern due to high land [prices], it is difficult to dedicate sufficient breathing space around these outlets for a relaxed dining experience,' Mr Culbertson said.

It is also a problem of Hong Kong licensing laws. If these laws, that restricted alfresco dining in Hong Kong, could be rectified, Mr Waterhouse said, shopping malls would have another drawcard.

'In Hong Kong it is internal, not external. It is a missed opportunity,' Mr Waterhouse said.

In addition, shoppers are missing out on educational opportunities. One example of a key retail anchor was the National Geographic store, a shop that sold not only multipocket safari vests and camping equipment, but housed a travel agency selling custom-made tours, a bookshop, and offered educational presentations to attract customers, Mr Waterhouse said.

Retailers such as this will be an important drawcard to bring return visitors. Other likely candidates include museums or art galleries. The point is that the shopping mall becomes a destination in itself.

'High land premium is a major reason preventing Hong Kong malls from providing educational outlets,' Mr Culbertson said.

The high land premium is also driving developers to build more vertical shopping centres such as APM Mall, Times Square and MegaBox.

Perhaps as malls extend upward they will free up space for more cultural interaction.

Building retail centres upwards created a problem though, Mr Waterhouse said.

'It's psychological. It is not in the psyche of Hong Kong people who live in high rises. Shopping in a high rise is totally different.'