Over the years Guadalajara’s “Battle of the Malls” has left a legacy of derelict and half-empty shopping centers, most having met their demise due to improvised planning or inadequate market research.
Contrary to some prevalent thinking, there is no sure-fire recipe for a successful mall. No longer is it a case of mixing together a movie-theater complex, a casino, a couple of anchor stores, a food court, a few restaurants, some local and international retail “names” and adding a dash of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lime. Ingredients alone can’t guarantee a culinary masterpiece.
There’s a good reason why there’s no retail space going begging at Zapopan’s three-year-old Plaza Andares, while other recently opened malls – Centro Magno and La Ciudadela to name but two – have a glut of spaces boarded up and available for rent.
So is it that vision thing so often talked about nowadays?
Yes, but more specifically it’s an innovative approach to conceptual design, plus marketing and promoting the mall as more than a shopping, eating or movie-going experience that has rapidly propelled Andares to the exalted heights of being the current benchmark of the city’s plazas comerciales.
First things first. The bottom line for any profitable mall is to fill it with a good number of recognized brand names. Andares boasts department stores Liverpool and Palacio de Hierro, and electronics giant Best Buy – all three need little introduction in Mexico. Likewise the fashion conscious will be fully acquainted with Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Benneton, Brooks Brothers, Dockers, Bershka, Guess, Lacoste and so on. Locally-grown big retail guns include Maskota (pets), Gonvill (books), and Mixup (CDs and DVDs), while a dozen top-quality restaurants offer tempting international variety. Add to this mix an obligatory multiplex and casino (Play City), plus a host of specialist outlets such as Mac Store (Apple computers and goods), Juguetron (toys), Natural Scents (beauty products), Photofolio Gift (creative and original gifts), and the retail equation rounds itself out nicely.
Place these outlets in a very pleasing open-air architectural design, punctuated by lush green vegetation, colorful flower beds, comfy chairs, benches, shade, a playground, a golf putting course, a performance arena and mind-relaxing fountains (also, importantly, impeccable bathrooms) and you’re definitely on the right track.
It didn’t require a Madison Avenue hotshot to see the aspirational pull of Andares to dub it a lifestyle center. Those with a loathing for the abstruse usage of the English language might roll their eyes at the “lifestyle” connotation but fortunately Andares’ vision goes much further than an overworked moniker.
The mall’s marketing concept is based around four basic “pillars,” says Adriana Menchaca, Andares’ perky, U.S.-educated marketing director, who leads a nine-person (yes nine) team spearheading the creative part of the enterprise. The “pillar” concept might sound over-elaborate but actually makes good sense and helps clarify the overall focus.
To begin with, there’s Andares Verde (Green Andares). In its short life, the mall has already been awarded prestigious international gold medals for developmental sustainability. And Andares isn’t only treating its own wastewater, using biodegradable products and sophisticated energy-saving technology, it actively promotes ecological causes by hosting workshops (the next ones are scheduled June 24 and 25), collecting used batteries and cell phones and holding conferences on environmental issues.The Andares Sonrisa concept underscores the mall’s commitment to helping social causes. “We work with 38 asociaciones civilies (non-profits) by allowing them to hold events in the mall, publicize their charities and raise funds. It’s the area that gives me the most personal pleasure,” says Menchaca. (This program has also been recognized with an international prize.)
Then there’s the cultural emphasis with Andares Arte: “Every day of the year we host an artistic event, whether music or dance in the forum or some other kind of presentation.” Right now the mall is an eager participant in the May Cultural Festival and will showcase circus acts from Quebec on Saturday, May 19 and Sunday, May 20 (6:30 p.m. on each day). Fashion shows, crafts expos and art exhibits are also regularly held in the mall.
Another original concept is Andares Concierge, which offers 38 personalized “hotel-style” customer services ranging from basic valet parking to bill paying, restaurant reservations, umbrella and wheelchair loan, shopping safekeeping and a 24-hour paramedic on call. Some of the services are more inspired than others, even groundbreaking one might say. For example, Andares is the first pet friendly mall in Mexico, boasts Menchaca, with 6,000 dogs already signed up as welcome visitors. All owners have to do is agree to a set of rules, carry a poop bag with them and acknowledge that outlets have the right to deny entry to the animals if they wish. (One only hopes all 6,000 owners don’t decide to show up on a given day.)
Another innovative and popular Concierge idea is providing reserved pink parking spaces for pregnant women, or moms with infants,
These and other projects “in the works” are among the reasons why Menchaca rejects the suggestion that Andares is simply a leisure space for the well-off.
“You don’t have to spend any money here if you don’t want to. You can buy a bag for thousands of pesos or an ice cream or nothing at all,” she says. “You can come just for the experience and enjoy a day out.”
Which is exactly what many Mexican and foreign tourists are now doing – although most, presumably, are flashing some of their cash.
Catering to a growing number of international visitors, the concessionaires that provide sales tax (IVA) refunds to foreign tourists in Mexico opened a booth in the mall last year. This allows the refund process to be done immediately after purchases are made and saves time and hassle at the airport.
Many Lake Chapala area residents have been won over by the charms of Plaza Andares. Tour buses from the lakeside area regularly visit the mall – their profits helping to support the Chapala Red Cross.
Andares may look the finished item but the project is still a work in progress, Menchaca points out. While the mall’s 187 luxury apartments – located to one side of the mall’s main boulevard and immediately recognizable for their staggered, unconventional design – are all sold, at least one-fifth of the office space in the two recently completed corporate buildings is still on the market. And work will shortly begin on the final phase of the mall: a top-of-the-line hotel, which Menchaca confirms will be a operated by a well-known international chain.
Plaza Andares is located at the intersection of Avenida Patria and Acueducto. Check out their excellent website, www.andares.com, where you will find information on upcoming performances, events and workshops. You can also browse the mall’s stores in the easy-to-use ground plan. Andares personnel are also very active on social networks, chiefly Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.