LAS VEGAS, May 23, 2016 – The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) has announced the winners of the 2016 VIVA Awards, honoring the retail real estate industry’s most cutting-edge properties, innovative solutions, and creative responses to market trends. ICSC presented the awards during a ceremony at RECon, the premier retail real estate convention held in Las Vegas.
The global awards program recognized the following five properties, spanning five countries, for outstanding achievement in design and development, marketing and retail.
- Design and Development Winner: Chengdu IFS, Chengdu, China
Chengdu IFS was honored for its “City within a City” mixed-use design, which incorporates premium office space, a five-star hotel, and luxury residential properties that sit above their flagship eight-level retail and lifestyle podium. The center, developed by The Wharf (Holdings) Limited, has a Family Zone featuring an ice skating rink, food court, and family and children’s stores; High Zone featuring double height shopfronts containing nearly 300 top-tier luxury and lifestyle brands; Sky Zone housing trend and contemporary brands as well as major entertainment and food and beverage anchors; and the Sky Garden–a green roof space with a unique sculpture garden, dining options, and art gallery. Located in the heart of the central business district, Chengdu IFS sets a striking benchmark for mixed-use developments in the Western China Region.
- Sustainability Winner: Mall Plaza Egaña, Santiago, Chile
Mall Plaza Egaña is a new urban center in Santiago and the first sustainable mall in Chile. The center’s mission is to embody the aspirations, identity, and vision of the local community, while also working in harmony with the environment, sustaining a minimal impact on the community and the people it serves. The modern center serves as an innovative prototype for meeting spaces and as a hallmark of viability and neighborhood identity.
- Marketing Winner: “Emporium Reimagined,” Emporium Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Emporium Melbourne’s award winning “Emporium Reimagined” marketing campaign highlighted the 104-year-old center’s renovation, which transformed the property into a cutting-edge architectural milestone, while retaining its heritage and historical importance. The center, owned by Vicinity Shopping Centres, features unique pop-up kiosks, merchandising displays, and large-scale exhibits. The versatile design can easily be transformed during seasonal promotions and events. The multi-dimensional campaign used a diverse range of promotional elements—including trams, stylized and digital billboards, and a specialized LED Cube in the CBD. Moulin Rouge Director Baz Lurhman staged the grand opening event, transforming the center with unique, thoughtful pieces like fairies suspended from the ceiling, stylized dance routines, and live music, generating massive media attention and firmly repositioning the center as a retail icon.
- Retail Store Winner: Walgreens Keeaumoku Flagship, Honolulu, Hawaii
Walgreens Keeaumoku Flagship won the retail category for its locally inspired and architecturally significant design. The new 36,700-square-foot flagship pays homage to Hawaiian culture in a modern and contextually relevant way, using the Ala Moana region’s storied past—a popular fishing area—for inspiration. The flagship represents the Walgreens brand in one of Honolulu’s primary gathering places. The property’s architect was Architects Hawaii Ltd. and interior designer Lester Ng, LEED AP BD+C.
- Retail Restaurant Winner: Kabuki, Shops at Don Mills, Toronto, Ontario
Kabuki executed exceptional branding and design strategies, while developing a loyal following over the past 15 years. The restaurant was designed to reflect its innovative food offerings that combine Japanese cuisine with contemporary techniques. The all-natural aesthetic is a reflection of the raw food offerings, featuring polished concrete floors, mosaic tile, steel rebar, walnut wood panels, and raw hot rolled steel work. All the elements seamlessly blend together to create a space that is warm and inviting with a high-end feel, further enhanced by a customized one-of-a-kind, ten-foot-high koi fish.
Sustainability Honorees
- Armada Shopping Centre, Ankara, Turkey
- Beaugrenelle, Paris, France
- Open Plaza Ovalle, Ovalle, Chile
Marketing Honorees
- “60 Years of Made in Italy,” Pavilion KL, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
- “#live2see20,” Pickering Town Centre, Pickering, Ontario
Retail Honorees
- IllyCafe and Fountain Bar, Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Detroit, Michigan
- Valmont Galerie Gastronomique, Quartier Dix30, Brossard, Quebec
- Verizon Destination Store, Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota
About ICSC
Founded in 1957, ICSC is the global trade association of the shopping center industry. Its more than 70,000 members in over 100 countries include shopping center owners, developers, managers, investors, retailers, brokers, academics, and public officials. The shopping center industry is essential to economic development and opportunity. They are a significant job creator, driver of GDP, and critical revenue source for the communities they serve through the generation of sales taxes and the payment of property taxes. These taxes fund important municipal services like firefighters, police officers, school services, and infrastructure like roadways and parks. Shopping centers aren’t only fiscal engines however; they are integral to the social fabric of their communities by providing a central place to congregate with friends and family, discuss community matters, and participate in and encourage philanthropic endeavors. For more information about ICSC visit www.icsc.com and for the latest news from ICSC and the industry go to www.thecenterofshopping.com.
CONTACT
Noelle Malone
Media Relations Coordinator
+1 646-728-3540
nmalone@icsc.org
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