Places of comfort and aspiration; protection from the elements; third places to connect and live; a haven from the surrounding, constant city created through disruptive growth. At its heart, the shopping centre is the city centre. Yet, radical changes are coming as malls reach their existing limits and are directed to the accelerated desires of consumers. The best will continue to thrive—the rest must adapt, fast.

 

As cities urbanized rapidly, with influxes of people and migration, traditional patterns became displaced as new formats emerged. Retail centres cannot instantly absorb the shifting proportion of F&B, entertainment, and work. While financial projections are predictable, the orchestration required of centre operators now are far greater, with constant curation and anticipation of future concepts in demand. Dubai, Riyadh, Jeddah, and Doha are not in competition with one another, but vie for attention with Europe, America, India, East Asia; they race against Macau Cotai, Singapore Marina Bay, the Las Vegas Strip, 5th Avenue New York, for preeminence.