Change is the natural state of business. Looking back in history, no industry has remained static and lived to be relevant into the modern age. This can be seen today in a number of areas of the world economy but an example that illustrates this quite well is the condition of the modern shopping mall. As online retail becomes increasingly popular, malls across the world have adapted to cater to a changing set of visitor demands. To dive further into this subject, we took a look at Manaira Shopping, a mall that has become known for its ability to expand and evolve over time. Under the guiding hand of entrepreneur Roberto Santiago, the shopping center serves as an excellent case study as to the importance of flexibility in business.
Original conception
One of the reasons the shopping center has been so able to change the specifics of how it conducts business is because its founding mission was independent of a specific business model and was instead based around an idea. That mission was crafted by Roberto Santiago, working in conjunction with his father, and centers around the idea of community and supporting group togetherness. The father and son team recognized how places of commerce, such as a market square, can provide so much more than just a location to buy and sell goods or services. Instead they saw how these institutions acted as meeting places for the communities they served.
This fundamental idea has helped Manaira Shopping to change over the years since its goal has never been solely tied to retail. Instead the shopping center’s reason for being has been centered around the best way to welcome in the surrounding community and offer a home for social gatherings, entertainment, commerce, and much more. This ethos can be seen in the mall’s slogan “Always thinking of you.” The power of that message has endured over the thirty years of the shopping center’s existence and has greatly contributed to why it serves as a prime example of an organization changing to accommodate evolving customer desires.
Focuses beyond retail
While the shopping center, based in the Brazilian city of João Pessoa, has built much of its reputation on a vast array of commercial experiences, its offerings go far beyond retail. A main focus in this pursuit has been on dining. With food often being at the center of many social gatherings, it makes sense that the center’s dining options would be vast and varied to accommodate a number of different tastes. To this end, its food court offers options from around the world, allowing each member of a large group to select a meal to their individual taste while still all eating together.
In addition to a wide selection of food, the shopping center also has a number of entertainment offerings available to visitors as well. With an entertainment area that amounts to almost ten percent of the mall’s total area, we again find options to fit a variety of tastes. For families with young children, an arcade area offers digital entertainment with a constant rotation of new arrivals. A bowling alley and lounge offers additional fun for families and adult gatherings alike. A cinema complex replete with eight different screens is also a popular attraction for many social groups.
Construction aimed at change
Shifting focuses such as the ones outlined above are not limited to the types of outlets that can be found in the shopping center, they’re also intricately connected to the construction of the center itself. Since its opening in 1989, the mall’s management team has always thought of expansion and continued structural improvement as one of its top priorities. Over the years this has manifested in five major expansion and many smaller renovations that have expanded the center’s total size from 12,000 square meters to 135,000 square meters. These changes have been put in place to accommodate the changing needs of the mall’s visitors including a desire for increased parking, more retail outlets, and larger entertainment spaces.
On that last point, one of the most notable renovations that has been undertaken at the mall in recent years is the 2009 addition of the event venue known as Domus Hall. The space, which was driven in part by a community need for a location to exhibit performances, has now served as a central gathering location in the city for over ten years. With a capacity of over 8,000, the space is one of the premier options in the city for displaying art, sharing culture, and organizing political assemblies.
Continuing role of retail
Of course, its role as a retail location is still an important part of how Manaira Shopping serves its community. By providing a space for merchants to sell their goods and services to patrons, the center has long contributed to the economic health of its city and the surrounding area. With the shopping center now recognized as the largest mall in the state of Paraíba, it has also become an attraction for those outside the city to visit. This influx of visitors brings with it an additional source of income into the city allowing residents to profit and the overall level of wellbeing to improve. This factor is a key contributor to the community’s economic health and also goes to show how the shopping center is serving its founding ideal through a number of different methods.
While it is true that change is necessary for any business to thrive in the long term, that change does not need to diminish a business’s ability to work towards its foundational goals. As can be seen in the case of Manaira Shopping, the “how” of achieving goals can change while the goal itself can remain the same. With founder Roberto Santiago implementing new features to his shopping center on an ongoing basis, the mall is continuing to draw large numbers of visitors from all over the country. A look at the way he has accomplished this is instructional for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of how a business can adjust to accommodate ever-changing demands.
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