Bringing public realm to retail

Designing for retail requires not only a detailed understanding of the tenants’ needs, but also to see beyond the tenancy, to how it sits within the context of its surroundings. The spaces in-between are important.

We’ve always been passionate about placemaking – understanding how design can profoundly influence the experience of a place.  All great civic places allow people to feel comfortable. They invite you to linger, to sit, watch, wait, meet, talk, play, eat, drink and simply be a part of a place.

Retail opportunities are essential for attracting people and making safe, vibrant public places. But tenancies on their own do not necessarily make a successful public realm. In order to invite people to feel at home, the commercial nature of a space should ideally be balanced by a civic attitude. An invitation or offering to the public might be as simple as introducing natural daylight, providing a shaded seat, an injection of landscape, or a small gesture of creativity. Simple gestures can create relatable, lovable spaces that connect people to a place.

A lively public place has multiple faces, comfortable edges and always the possibility of a social exchange. Places of respite, places for meeting, landmarks, way-finding and circulation pathways are all important factors to be considered in the design process. Capturing breezes, good solar orientation, material textures, soft landscape, opportunities for play, folly and delight can all add layers of memory and experience.   

The measure of success of a public space relies ultimately on how comfortable the end user feels within it. When retail spaces are designed with this principle, they will contribute to the wider community and can be embraced and supported by the public.