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People love shopping at International Retail Malls and Stores. Weekends are often spent with family and friends shopping and spending entire day out at the malls. The Stores are designed to attract, entertain and engage the consumers. Therefore the Stores are designed, keeping in mind the visibility aspect as well as ease of use for consumers and utilities in mind in addition to the operational and functional requirements. Architects and designers are guided by the Design principles which lay emphasis on Totality, Resource, Time, iteration as well as serviceability aspect of design while finalizing the layout and design for Retail Stores.
Retail Store design comprise of physical as well as functional, utilitarian as well as perception and responsibility aspects which have a bearing on the entire model and business. While attracting and engaging the Customers is the primary goal of the Retail business, the Retail Company is often required to manage larger platform of public good as well as social responsibility too. Essentially the Store Design is required to take such elements into consideration and build the design accordingly.
When we refer to public good and social responsibility, we are not referring to the community service or any such activities. Many stores do allow various NGOs to set shop temporarily at their premise and thus support some public causes. However on the design aspect, they might adapt to the local environment and blend with the local tradition. Liberty of London and their Regent Street Store is one such example where in they have continued to maintain the overall ambience and the store design in line with its heritage but continued to modify to usher in modern concepts too without sacrificing on its history.
Take the case of Prada ‘Guggenheim’ in New York, the recipient of several awards including GE Edison Award for Merit for lighting. The building is futuristic depicting a super luxury brand. Though the entire interiors enhance and bring to light the architecture of the building, the designers have ensured that the building design embraces the social and cultural aspects of the local community. Accordingly the building which is essentially a retail outlet during the business hours turns to a venue for social events by evenings. Several Retail Stores tend to extend and blend into their surroundings and it is not unknown for the Retail Company to maintain nearby locations of public utility.
ASDA Hamilton of Scotland has exhibited creativity in its Store Design in a way that the adjoining public space that is used by the local residents for recreational as well as for trading purposes seems to be a natural extension of the Store and the border lines are not visible.
The entire set up including the parking, seating as well as the architecture of the building blends in with the open space and the utilities are open to both Customers as well as non-customers.
Most Retail Companies do associate themselves with some social cause or promote events in order to further their brands. However there exists similar scope for them to lend themselves to specific local environment and adapt their Store Design in a way that it is able to service one and all. Herein, the Architects are guided by Principle of Serviceability while designing the International Retail Stores.
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International Retail Store Design Principles – The Principle of Totality
February 12, 2025
