Phipps Plaza Mall Analysis

Mall Analysis: Phipps Plaza

How exciting malls are in terms of architectural and interior design! Just by going around the heart of any major city and seeing new steel and glass structures stretching towards the sky, many people may feel that shopping malls are a perfect destination for a combination of shopping and entertainment.

As the largest city in the Southeast, Atlanta along with its vast history and historical museums, also offers the region's largest selection of shopping opportunities. Among these shopping opportunities is the Simon Property Group. Simon Property Group is the US's number 1 shopping mall owner and one of the nation's largest publicly trade real estate companies (www.hoovers.com). It owns some of the area's better known malls, including Lenox Square, Phipps Plaza and The Mall of Georgia.

Perhaps these could be the reasons that Phipps Plaza was chosen to be one of the most luxurious designed mall in Atlanta area. It boasts a diverse array of men's and women's apparel shops, specialty retailers and dining opportunities, in addition to a 14-theater movie complex. Phipps Plaza affords shoppers opportunities to buy everything from fine jewelry at Tiffany & Co. to high-tech home electronics at Bang & Olufsen Of Atlanta; from crystal pigs at its sophisticated Ross-Simons to state-of-the-art athletic footwear at Niketown. Sports fans and even the most casual athletes who have yet to visit a Niketown store might want to take advantage of this store's many accessories. Part museum, part retail outlet for all things Nike, each Niketown is a monument to marketing like no other, specially located at Phipps Plaza.

Target Market:

Walking through the mall I noticed that the target market was mainly high-end customers and people who where not worried about spending a little more for a great product. There were a lot of galleries and the atmosphere was very sophisticated with marbled floors and stained wood accents that gave the overall appearance of catering to professionals as well as young adults. There were a few stores for men, but the majority of the stores were focused more towards women, with also some children stores.

Tenant Mix:

There was a great mix of stores, from men and women's apparel like Chico's, Parisian, The Gap, Bebe and Gucci to decorative accessories like Frontgate and Jewelry stores like Tiffany & Co. The overall Tenant mix consisted of over 100 upscale stores that catered to those who were looking for unique items not carried by other chain stores. There were some specialty stores like Niketown and Tommy Bahama's. The Food Court consisted of well-established chains like Johnny Rockets and Moe's Southwest Grill. Also The Mall featured the AMC Phipps Plaza 14 conveniently located next to the food court. And for those who wanted a more elegant eating atmosphere there were restaurants like The Grape Wine Bar & Cafй and The Tavern at Phipps available on the first level.

Ambience:

The atmosphere is very inviting with rich marble floors, softened lighting and warm colors. Phipps Plaza mixed stone with state-of-the-art technology to distinguish it in the retail sector. One can see that the upscale look of this plaza is very evident throughout each individual store design, with columns and shapes that represent elegance. The trim and accents are done in a cherry wood finish, and the surrounding colors are tans, browns and soft creams giving the space a warm feeling and inviting the customers to stay awhile and explore the mall. Also there are beautiful flowers that accent the rails throughout the mall. As you walk toward the Monarch Court, you are greeted with a beautiful waterfall. The Court of the South features a beautiful double staircase and also an elegant, chrome elevator. A unique thing I noticed was that the bathrooms were very clean, well decorated and they even hung classy pictures on the walls. This detail only enhanced the ambience of a mall that caters to high-end customers.

Location:

Phipps Plaza is considered a prime stop in the center of Buckhead area. It is located at 3500 Peachtree Road, Buckhead, GA across its cousin, Lenox Square Mall. With Its new store, Nordstrom, it will attract people from all the areas of Atlanta. The phone number is 404-262-0092. Mall shops are open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5:30 p.m. Sunday.

Layout:

There is plenty of walking space so it does not seem crowed. One feature that I really liked was that there were plenty of stairs and escalators available, so I could travel to other floors easily without having to walk the whole mall to get to the next level. I also liked that there were plenty of areas to sit and that there was lots of open space that allowed me look on to the other levels. The unique thing about some stores was that once I entered a particular store, I felt like I was no longer in the mall. At Tommy Bahama's for instance, as I entered this store I felt as if I was somewhere in Hawaii or some other tropical place next to the beach. Another example was being at the Frontgate store, I felt as if I was in California with their fresh outdoor furniture atmosphere. Each store had its own atmosphere that pulled me in and made me feel like there were no other stores around. The movie ticket sales was located on the second floor with the movie theaters on the third floor. This element I feel was smart because it helps the flow of people in and out of the movie theaters and allows for