Pop-up mall Boxpark opened in Shoreditch, east London on Saturday (December 3rd 2011), offering the capital city‘s shoppers a new retail concept.
The brainchild of Boxfresh creator Roger Wade and developed by real estate groups Hammerson and Ballymore, Boxpark will be home to 60 arts, fashion and lifestyle brands.
Set in a part of London renowned for its trend-setting, youth culture and music scene, the new retail destination is expected to appeal to alternative markets and bring yet further shoppers to the East End following Westfield Stratford City‘s opening in September.
Nike, Levi‘s, Puma and Vans are among the fashion brands to have signed up to the scheme, and the concept follows a “no high street retailers” strategy with the aim of providing innovative operators with selling space at affordable rates.
Rob Fay, Head of Central London – Retail Agency at global commercial real estate group Colliers International, said the development brings “a refreshing twist to London‘s retail offer”.
“I know from speaking with some of the retailers that there is a great deal of excitement about opening and many of them have pulled out all of the stops for tomorrow‘s launch parties,” he told Retail Gazette.
“Not only will the brands benefit from great exposure from being part of Boxpark, its location and design also appeals to a consumer that doesn‘t necessarily want to come to the West End to shop.
“Boxpark adds a further boost to the East End‘s retail offer and with fashion specialists Tracey Neuls and Margaret Howell joining the mix recently on Redchurch Street and Old Nichol Street respectively, there‘s now enough of a critical mass of great retailers for Shoreditch to be considered a retail destination in its own right.”
Similar models to that which opened in Shoreditch this weekend could appear at other locations across the world, according to Boxpark‘s official website.
It said this is thanks to its model of stripping and refitting shipping containers to create “unique, low cost, low risk, ‘box shops‘”.
“Put them together with a unique mix of international fashion, arts and lifestyle brands, galleries and cafés and you‘ve got the world‘s first ‘pop-up‘ mall – so named because its basic building blocks are inherently movable,” it added.
“They can, and will, literally pop up anywhere in the world.”
