Upcycling retail

Fig: 1 - An image of marketplace in history

TRADITIONAL MARKETPLACES

The world has started moving towards an era of globalization in the wake of technology. This is undoubtedly an ultimate driving force for economic growth. The consumer market playing a vital role in this is speculated to increase more than two folds than the current total per capita consumption in the coming decade. 

One of the evident causes behind this unprecedented growth is the rising urbanization and expanding middle-class population. Over the next 15 years, consumer markets are expected to take center stage in the global economy. 

The origin of the consumer marketplaces can be traced back to merchants and traders, who operated on barter systems in open markets. This had gradually evolved to collective market spaces in ancient times called forums or agoras. Subsequently, arcades, department stores, supermarkets, and malls came into the picture. 

The concept of a physical store has changed drastically over a century, bringing us to the question as to what is next? 

Fig 2: Changing perceptions of retail today - A concept

ADD TO CART

Retailing, marketplaces or shopping today as perception has progressed prominently in the past decades. We perceive, monthly shopping as online grocery orders today. Whereas something like window shopping has now translated as scrolling over your favourite pair of shoes for hours. 

Dining out changed to dining in the home thanks to online ordering apps. This form of advancement at the onset of the internet era was inevitable. Going out and buying things in an urban marketplace changed from being an option to a hassle eventually. The value that brick and mortar stores used to offer is slowly taking a back seat.  

E-retail paved the way for even more convenient methods of shopping, time-saving, and a wider range of options including global products enabling them to thrive to great extents, but are they becoming a terminal solution to consumer experience?
 

Fig 3: Inside the World’s largest e-commerce company before Black Friday - Credits: Vice

RE-TALE STORES

Retail Stores have formed a significant part in shaping marketplaces and public spaces as well as defining a neighborhood and its people. It has served the purpose of not only being an avenue to procure basic necessities but also acted as a sphere for harboring a social spot. As soon as we entered the realm of the digital age, the popularity of online shopping services shifted the transactions from physical marketplaces / retail stores to online. This not only reflected in spending, but our physical spaces began converting to warehouses in prime areas of the city. 

Retail fronts, even after being an open junction for the exchange of ideas, dialogues, interaction and building our societies are still struggling to find their place today. But why?
 

Fig 4: A view of an abandoned Mall

PURPOSE OF MALLS AND CITIES

Malls that began as a collective retail front were housed not only for shopping but were considered a place for social gatherings as well. It attracted all user groups of an urban zone, offering them a shopping experience. They were well lit, accessible, safe, air-conditioned and offered a range of stores for a shopping venture, but had a limited number of options when it came to social experiences in the past. 

As the times changed, people slowly began inclining more towards alternate experiences like cinemas, eateries and leisure activities than shopping or going to marketplaces. This is where malls tried to extend themselves beyond their original function and had to invest heavily to keep themselves relevant.

An already costly affair, malls became more unprofitable and unsustainable with time.

This shifting trend also affected the way people spent their money and time. It was not only the losing appeal of malls but also the incoming of the digital age that turned people to virtual spaces more (read as Facebook groups). 

During a span of 50 years (1977-2017) the number of shopping malls being built in the USA quadrupled, but they were attracting fewer visitors by every passing year. The result of this gap was not surprising, and a lot of them were shut down sooner than expected.

Addressing the rate of development, the future of retail looks highly uncertain. If the digital era is responsible for shaping and reshaping our lifestyle, what is eventually taking a toll is our marketplaces which are being left behind. How can we change this?

Fig 5: A Marketplace is still alive, Hong Kong

 BRIEF OF THE COMPETITION

Retail Collectives, Malls or Mega Markets were largely the heart of public activity in their peak times. They were successful in delivering an “All under one roof” experience for a certain time span. However, it is visible that the model is slowly turning obsolete today. 

This may be attributed to their rigid design strategy with no room for flexibility or lack of comprehension towards changing trends of retail and marketplaces. These limitations and lacking variety eventually repelled people to other convenient forms of shopping like e-commerce.
The battle of online vs offline gives the perception that these forces are fighting for customers, whereas both are trying to deliver a better kind of experience to people. With a common goal in sight, can these two forces play together instead of playing against each other?

The challenge here is to design a marketplace, that is more flexible - evolving - incremental with growing trends of retail in the coming future.

OBJECTIVES

Refer to the objectives below to understand the design expectations of this challenge:
 

• Balance: A balance of spaces in terms of profit (business) and non-profit (public) ventures.
• Inclusive: Offers a wide spectrum for spending, accommodating all kinds of sellers and people
• Engagement: Has a range of activities for social and physical engagement.
• E-Tail Materialized: E-retail brought in physical world through various mediums to deliver better consumer experience.
• Agile: Looks at a flexible/evolving/ incremental strategy to build a marketplace.

 SITE

The part of the site chosen for the design challenge is located near Thompson Ave road at Selma, California, USA. Selma owes its beginnings to farming and to the Southern Pacific Railroad, which began in the 1870s as a branch line of the Central Pacific Railroad. The route of the Southern Pacific through California's Central Valley gave rise to a string of small towns between Sacramento and Bakersfield. Selma was among them.

Site coordinates: 36°35'02.5"N 119°37'15.0"W
Area: 17,474.31 sqm
Height limit: 15 m 
Ground Coverage: 40%

Setbacks (as per CAD plan)

Ground Coverage refers to the ratio of maximum allowed solid/permanent footprint on the site to balance the built and unbuilt spaces. You can utilize the other 60% of the site for any temporary intervention/recreation.