USA: 15 – 24 June 2013
36 participants from senior management of prominent malls in Malaysia took off for San Francisco and Los Angeles and visited a total of 16 shopping malls and precincts. US malls were as diverse as they were different – but most adopted extended layouts and the outdoor open-air concepts, taking advantage of the year-round sunny weather in California. Malls had an eclectic merchandise and tenancy mix of established American staple names side-by-side with new and revolutionary brands targeted to the Y generation.
Participants certainly had their eyes opened to America’s culture, lifestyle and mall experience, some of which incorporated an impeccable and exclusive level of concierge services.
The malls and precincts visited included: San Francisco – Westfield San Francisco, Union Square, Pier 39, Stanford Shopping Center, The Shops at Tanforan; Los Angeles – Irvine Shopping Center, New Fashion Island, South Coast Plaza, The Grove, Rodeo Drive, Beverly Center, Westfield Century City, Citadel Outlets, Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica Place and Hollywood & Highland Center.
Comments from some participants:
“The US trip has been fruitful as we are able to expand our networking and also to learn how different malls have their strategy / unique selling point to attract shoppers to their mall.”
“Very well organized trip. Not too rushed. Nice to have time for sightseeing to understand the context of the city / area / locations / tourism market better. Informative tour guides and drivers. Good briefing and sharing by centre managements. Great shopping at the various factory outlets !! Overall, a great thumbs up to the organisers !!!”