Gemini Park Tychy – a centre of power

Gemini Park Tychy is to be the third shopping centre developed by Gemini Holding, the first two being Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała and Gemini Park Tarnów. The shopping centre is being constructed on ul. Towarowa in the town, a location surrounded by residential estates and close to the A4 motorway as well as a number of expressways and dual carriageways. Tesco, Obi and Saturn stores also neighbour the site. These stores and the new shopping centre will together create a new retail destination in the region – a so-called ‘power centre’. The company estimates that the shopping centre will have a catchment area of 1.5 mln people – more than half the 2.7 mln population of the Silesian city, where the purchasing power of each resident is 22 pct higher than the Polish average.

Retail mix as a response to consumer trends

Gemini Park Tychy is to comprise a retail area of 36,600 sqm and over 130 stores. The shopping centre will include innovative formats, with brands representing the strongest market segments. “We have been closely following customers’ expectations and can see the need to simplify shopping to the maximum, to personalise the range and to integrate the sales channels. A unique mix, a multi-purpose area and interactive technology are the foundation stones of modern retail. Our range of retail is supported by the presence of market leaders who are ready to respond quickly to clients’ needs and who follow the latest technology trends and functional innovations,” claims Anna Malcharek, the managing director of Gemini Holding.

The retail tenants of Gemini Park Tychy are to include H&M, TK Maxx, CCC, Deichmann, Smyk, Vistula, Wólczanka, Lavard, Ochnik, Big Star, Divers, 4F, Martes Sport, Triumph, Gatta, Apart, W.Kruk, Briju, Hebe, Piotr i Paweł, Rossmann, Empik, Księgarnie Świat Książki, Kolporter, Swiss, Time Trend, Q&Q, RTV Euro AGD, Jysk, KiK and Pepco. The food and drinks range will include KFC, Olimp, Companeros, Cafe de Grano, Lodomania and Kebab by Olimp. The services segment will be represented by Rainbow Tours, Tui, Itaka, Wezyr Holidays, LuckyLOOK and Vision Express, as well as Orange, T-Mobile, Play, Plus, Smart Connect, Nails Fashion, E-Smoking World, Pralnia Wicher and a Myjnia Samochodowa car wash. The extended centre will also include tenants from the entertainment sector, such as the Fabryka Formy chain of fitness clubs.Consultancy Aspenn is advising on the commercialisation. “Gemini Park Tychy is a centre that has great potential due to its excellent location and its profile. It will not only be a place for shopping but also for entertainment and spending your free time, which is why our activities are aimed at strengthening the leisure section and the layout of the shopping centre to integrate the sales channels and provide customers with a good shopping experiences,” explains Tatiana Spencer, a partner at independent consultancy Aspenn, which provides professional services for the commercial real estate market.

As early as at the planning stage our aim was to develop a centre that would have a comprehensive range of services and meet the requirements of an increasingly demanding market. Customers of Gemini Park Tychy will have a rich and varied mix of leading brands with convenient shopping, and a modern entertainment and recreational zone, while retailers will have an excellent location for operating their business within the power centre,” insists Daniel Słuchocki, the commercialisation director of Gemini Holding.

Such an environment, with leading international brands, is also attractive for smaller local businesses. Their personal involvement, familiarity with the market and their links to the community are an unquestionable asset of this market segment.

“Local businesses under the licence of popular brands can already be found in our other Gemini Park centres – in Bielsko-Biała and Tarnów. Their presence in the shopping centre increases the value of the tenant mix but, just as importantly, it allows these businesses to generate high turnovers and returns on investment in a short period of time. We appreciate the potential of local businesses and we will also continue working with them in Gemini Park Tychy,” reveals Anna Malcharek.

Modernity at every turn

The last few years have been marked by significant changes in the market and advances in technology. This has alsoresulted in a transformation of the consumer. The typical customer is now more mature and demanding and can call all the shots. The customer rules the market and knows exactly what they want. They expect that shopping centres, stores, services and media will have to adapt to them – and not the other way round. Personalisation and a new experience are what they are now looking for and will form the basis of their relationship with a shopping centre. “We have been closely following consumers’ expectations and the changes in their lifestyles – and we can now see the need for the greatest simplification in shopping that is possible as well as the integration of the sales channels,” says Anna Malcharek.

The new type of customer is adept with technology and has constant access to the internet. Interaction with such clients while focusing and responding to the needs of specific groups generates added value, which is playing an increasing role in consumer choice. The personalisation of what is offered and the provision of a high quality customer experience have become the most important battlefields in terms of customer loyalty. By skilfully combining these two factors, through employing the element of surprise and an innovative approach, you can certainly influence the tenant structure. The manner in which people spend their free time and the changes in their shopping habits are already having an impact on the leasable space. The volume of restaurants, services and entertainment has been expanding, whereas hypermarkets have been taking up ever less space,” adds Anna Malcharek.

In concentrating on providing a new, exciting experience, Gemini Holding’s focus is on the customer. Responding to their needs and requirements is a challenge, but the developer is not afraid of e-commerce replacing traditional stores. Omni-channel sales are a requirement of the modern market, but each of the channels plays an important role in the creation of the customer shopping experience. “Customers still want to shop in brick-and-mortar stores, but there has been a noticeable increase in ‘webrooming’– people checking out products online and then buying them in physical stores. Interestingly, young people, who are adept at finding their feet online, are nevertheless eager to shop and spend their free time in shopping centres. Shopping is a social activity and an experience that goes beyond special offers and added value. That is, it is a form of human interaction,” believes the managing director of Gemini Holding.

Integrating with the space

Shopping centres have become important points in the life of a city and a place for meeting up and social events. They are being designed to integrate architecturally with the surroundings, while relaxation areas are more and more frequently being located outdoors. Examples of this include the fitness club and Siemacha Spot that have been integrated into Gemini Park Tarnów, as well as ‘Eko Park – W Dechę!’ at Gemini Park Bielsko-Biała – the first fully ecological entertainment park designed for the development of logical thinking of young people and to encourage them to care for the natural environment. Such integration is no accident, as it is the result of the individual strategies of the shopping centre, which involves its marketing activities, architectural approach and its retail range.

Gemini Park Tychy has been designed to have the character of a fashionable shopping promenade with broad and spacious passageways and large amounts of daylight. It will be a family centre with specially prepared zones for parents and children, extended parking spaces and a modern system for reporting the occupancy of spaces. Cycle paths will connect the mall to the town centre and the surrounding Park of Joy, which will provide added educational and entertainment. Moving around the centre is to be aided by a modern visual information system.