An Investigation of Shopping Mall Design Requirements ^†

Often the location defines the customer profile that the mall has the potential to acquire since shopping centers receive the most visitors from the nearest areas, between five minutes to fifteen minutes away. Therefore, the income group that is within fifteen minutes from the project land is analyzed, and the brands are positioned accordingly. When renting mall space, the brands make decisions on store positions and store designs according to such data. In terms of location, the important things are the shape of a potential lot, whether there is enough population, and accessibility. When deciding on the location for a mall project, being on the right transportation axes is very valuable. It is not about being in or out of the city, it is about being easily accessible. Accessibility is an essential criterion for the users when selecting a mall over others. The location and the building uses in close proximity of the potential plot are important, but the interview data suggests that it is challenging to describe what is good and what is bad in this context. Architecture and spatial organization may become more important if there are a number of malls in the region. In such cases the malls evolve into spaces that their architecture shapes them into: depending on the qualities such as being new or old, a mall can evolve into a place for more shopping, or socializing, or spending free time. The shape of a mall plot is important since it has to have a suitable depth and size. The ideal shape for a mall site is a rectangle, or a square as a second alternative. The project plot may be large, but the depth of the plot or the floor area coefficient of the land may not be sufficient. If there is a maximum height restriction on the land, you may not be able to have the leased area on the floor and density you want in the shopping mall project. Therefore, the shape and building permissions and requirements for the specific plot are important in shopping mall projects.

A mall-specific shop mix defines a mall, and then the spaces in the mall are rented, and later managed according to this mix. A very important stage in the design is deciding what brands should be in the mall and which stores should be assigned to these brands. A shop mix is a legend that includes information on the sectors and brands that are available in a mall. The brands that will be in the mall are important for the tenants. Some brands may agree to come only if a certain brand is also included. Brands want to work near other brands that can create synergy and improve sales. There is a consumer profile that always uses the same brands and their habits develop like so, and that is why it is important to keep such stores together. A store’s location within the mall, in the sense of whether the space enables them to reach their targeted consumer group, is also an important factor for the tenants. From the retailer point of view, the retailer wants to present his store in the best way possible, and wants his store front and signage to be clearly visible. Therefore, design decisions such as the column axle spacing or the store depth should be suitable for retailers’ requirements. Retailers want the electromechanics to not bring too much load, and the building to be equipped with new systems that will ensure low operational cost. The retailer also expects to make a good turnover after the opening of the shopping mall. In order to accomplish this, he needs to place an ideal store in the shopping mall. The retailers may not be able to implement the ideal store in an incorrectly designed mall, yet this situation is not very uncommon. These decisions are strongly related to who you would like to accommodate or invite to the mall project. Because the purpose for a mall’s existence is to provide a space for the consumer both to spend time and to shop. In order to keep sales going, there needs to be a homogeneous brand mix so that the mall can attract the group of customers to satisfy the brands, in return you create an environment that enables you to keep a good percentage of tenants happy and satisfied. There is more leverage if the architecture is a fit and the location is good in terms of attracting more brands.

One of the biggest problems is to manage a building that is not invested in, in terms of not being accurately planned. The design stage is the most important stage in a shopping mall project lifecycle. It is very important that the design to be up-to-date, that is, if the mall will be opened in three years, the design should be in a way that would still be appealing three years later. There is also the fact that all of the mistakes that will be made during the design phase will cost millions of dollars after the mall is opened. The environment should make you feel good when you enter the mall, and the circulation areas, ceiling heights, and corridor widths should contribute to such feelings. There needs to be space to move freely, to comfortably walk around, and that is why there are currently more free-form designs. It is important to create spaces that people can easily interact. A consumer would notice things like: landscape within the building, decorations, architectural materials used, light, and created corridors that take you in and out. The interior space may be designed according to a target consumer profile. For example, the floors may have a dark color, since dark gives the feeling of luxury, and a dark color has been considered to be more appealing to the upper income-level group. Whereas the floors that can be more easily cleaned, are cheaper, and have more accessible floor surfaces are preferred at malls that have a wider target group and more circulation. In the background there are service spaces that the last users see, and spaces used during operation, such as receiving area for goods, and lifts for loads. It is a very important problem if there is an access issue between the service lifts and receiving bay. Open and closed parking and access to parking is essential. There are similar issues with parking: accessibility issues for the handicapped, circular ramp design, or clearance between columns. Placement of service spaces, like a dining hall, for security and cleaning teams have to be easily accessible, since these teams’ time is already limited. There may also be special designs that users are not aware of but are intended by the management, like the placement of stairs, and the relationships between stairs and lifts. The management would like the visitors to spend time inside the building. It is important to have the visitors to walk towards the corridors in the direction that the management wants. You create a different world where the visitor can rest, shop, eat, and also go to a movie. You create a specific space for fast food, and the location of fast-food stores is important because one of the basics is that the people eat when they visit malls. Movie theaters are similar, you go there and also eat, so the proximity of fast food and theaters is important. You make people reach such places after you show them the whole mall.

There are many malls that go under renovation and change their particular spaces. There may be blind spots that the consumer does not want to visit, there may be back corridors, or areas that make us feel cramped, or there may be areas that are not used due to the physical conditions, or there are areas that are well-constructed but their functions during operation were not evaluated. There may be a space designed for a coffee shop, but that space may not work as intended, and people may not want to sit there. There are malls that have a lot of fast-food areas, but the fast-food space does not work. There may be too many fast-food stores, and people may not feel good in such a space. There may be spaces that are not working because you may have gone up too much in designing a multistory mall. That is why things may change during operations. Although there are formulas for shopping mall design, such formulas may differ internally in time. There was a period when the designers used the idea of a shopping mall where one could become lost inside, and with this method the mall was intended to look bigger than it actually was. Today the malls where the people can understand the plan and layout easily after the first visit, can wander around comfortably, will not become lost, can easily go to the washrooms, use vertical circulation, and have comfortable and spacious parking lots are more prominent. The consultants have formulas for the placement of the anchor stores with big square meters. Depending on the context you may come up with rules or mathematics for creating the right shop mix. According to the interview data, it is not recommended for a shopping mall to have less than 40% of stores that are more than 1000 m². But if there are more than 55–60% of stores above 1000 m², this time the operation will be in trouble financially. Gastronomy units in malls used to be 20–25%, but they went up to 40% over the past years.

While the important thing for users, namely visitors, is to enjoy the experience and be comfortable, the mall design still needs to comply with regulations, laws, and standards related to such topics like job safety and accessibility. Security, job safety, visitors’ safety, creating a secure and safe environment, and creating livable spaces are important requirements. The design of a mall needs to be aligned with environmental requirements. In certain climates it is very difficult to create spaces that are all open, since you may want to control sun or rain. The mall also needs to answer to the tenant-specific requirements, such as HVAC and electrical requirements. Users generally like spacious, comfortable (thermally, lighting etc.) spaces. The design also needs to comply with special bylaws which include design requirements and restrictions, such as the location of the infirmary which cannot be located on a parking level, or the requirement to provide a space for ambulances. During the design phase it is essential to be able to foresee potential issues and develop the project accordingly.

Design without the consideration for Operations and Maintenance leads to extra costs during the lifecycle. Performance during construction and operation, such as the performance of maintenance and cleaning activities, is strongly related to decision making and planning during design and construction. Malls live 24 h a day, and they need to be prepared during the night, and they may be visited by up to tens of thousands of people during the day. Operational requirements such as cleaning requirements are essential, and such activities need to be performed by targeting perfection. The design characteristics have potential effects on the operational performance of a mall. One of the main problems is defined as designing without the consideration of operations, which often leads to additional costs after construction. For example, recessed walls create hard-to-reach, hard-to-clean areas, and they are surfaces that collect and gather dirt, and the hard-to-clean areas require additional chemicals for cleaning. The designer needs to be able to realize and re-evaluate design, when working too much outside certain design limits. Space height is important since the cleaning staff may need equipment to access these spaces for cleaning and maintenance. The design should consider safety and accessibility for maintenance. Roof access through ladders make it hard and dangerous for the maintenance crews to service roofs. For the roof maintenance and cleaning, it is better to have lifelines and the right type of railings so you do not need costly professional cleaning teams. Such operational costs receive immediate attention by the owners, which in turn leads to criticizing the quality of the initial design. Not designing all the required spaces such as spaces to store garbage bins or not including baby changing rooms in design often lead to redesign and renovation during operations.

The use, spatial needs, and requirements of malls evolve and change over time. However, the malls are designed based on the time period-specific needs. However, malls have become a space for socializing, and such changes are reflected in the design of malls as new trends that need to be adopted architecturally. Such changes in mall use trigger the need for new spatial needs and requirements. Over the past years, more malls with free forms, with increased need for terraces and open spaces are being built. There is more emphasis on gastronomy, and the number of restaurants and coffee shops is also increasing. There are more hybrid mall projects with residences and offices, and even amusement parks. There are movie theaters with an increased number of screens. There is also more emphasis on sustainability as well as increased landscaping outside as well as inside malls. There are overall smaller store floor areas than before, whereas the number of incorporated seating and resting areas is increasing. Interviewed experts think that more shopping will be conducted online in the future. But people will come to these comfortable environments to socialize, and malls will be used as support points. Current trends indicate that we will embrace and use technology, and develop more technology infrastructure in shopping malls. A shopping mall has to offer you an experience and promise to attract you there. That is why the shopping malls have to become experience centers and they are evolving into such. There will be entertainment areas for all user groups. Socializing has become the main reason for mall use, and the malls are going to be offering more comfortable environments.