Bryant Mao

Eastland

Turning a historic district into a future living hub

Service, Space, Branding

Park, river, lane houses, and temple, the Suhe district in Shanghai is a long-forgotten place that holds rich natural resources and cultural legacy. In 2017, Eastland acquired the property, which aimed to build a shopping complex to uncover this hidden gem.

* Name and photo in this case study have been changed to protect confidentiality.

Challenge

Eastland is one of the biggest property developers in China based in Shenzhen. Despite acquired land in Suhe creek, a promising historic area in Shanghai, the team struggled to harness its unique assets to create a vision that stands out from the commercialized market. The local policy further complicates the issue, in which most of the commercial activities need to go underground to leave the existing park open to citizens. The leadership team brought the challenge to us and asked for an integrated way of thinking - leading a multidisciplinary team to build a new landmark that put a strong strategy foothold in Eastern China.

My Role

I worked as a service designer to bring design thinking into strategic planning. Building prototypes and testing to help the client make sound decisions through consumer insights.

The Suhe urban renewal exhibition happening in one of the old buildings.

Process in a nutshell

A strategy filter based on consumer insights

This project involved various stakeholders, including mixed teams in Eastland, partner design firms, and the Shanghai city council. Each party has its own interest, making the decision process slow and inconsistent.

So we kick our process by understanding the existing ideas and assumptions. We invite them to a co-creation workshop, where we highlight the tension and use the prototype to help the group open up conversation and think tangibly.

We then ​test our concept prototype with 11 consumers and 4 experts from various backgrounds to validate the assumption. The feedback helped us sharpen our value proposition and surface what the signature experiences might be. From there, we evaluate, prioritize, and craft the plan of execution with the core team to move the vision forward.

Kickoff

360 review of the current situation

To quickly understand the complexity of the current state, we kicked off a series of interviews with different functional teams, regional leaderships of Eastland, and the design firms in charge of the architecture and landscaping. The outcome helps us to uncover a few key issues to focus on.

Research

Finding the thread in the mess

In the interview, we found the team had gone through rounds of ideation and positioning. They had many great ideas and initiatives, but the overall vision was still unclear. To connect the dots, we collected key Ideas from all parties, including consumer research, space design, leasing, and programming ideas, and distilled them into a set of themes, and concepts with assumptions to be explored. The efforts gave us a kick start and set a cornerstone for future exploration.

Design

Visualizing the experience through journey mapping

To align the direction, we hosted a co-creation workshop with the leadership of different functional teams in Eastland. We playback what we hear, including consensus and tension found in the internal research, common them around exiting ideas, and inspirational case studies to bring provocation into the conversation. We invite the group to imagine what the user journey might be by matching concept cards with different spaces. The exercise helps the team think more tangibly and collaboratively while bringing the vision down to earth to test it in the real world.

Testing

Getting signals from consumers and experts

With the developed storyline and concepts, it is time to see how it resonated with people. To ensure we have broad coverage, we recruited 11 consumers with mixed demographics, lifestyles, and consumption behaviors. We test our concept prototype in various settings, including focus groups, shadowing, and home interviews to probe the needs and preferences in different topics. In the meantime, we also work with experts from art, history, and city planning to draw inspiration from the best practices. The insights uncovered a clear set of consumer archetypes and signaled signature experiences that speak to the value proposition.

Design

Iterating from blueprint to execution

With the positive feedback from the consumers, we start to sharpen our design. By working with Eastland and the partner design firm, we iterate the value proposition and concept through a series of evaluations and prioritization. This process helps the group recognize the strengths that they can play, with trade-offs to be made to push the vision forward. The design went from overall positioning to the actual floor plan, leasing, and programming, providing an anchor for the leadership to see the final resolution of the shopping complex.

“Before kickoff, I doubted why we were spending so much money on a strategy project. Now I see its value and how it can support us in the long run.”

Song Xin

Regional Deputy GM of Eastland

Outcome

Since we delivered the project, we constantly check in with the Eastland team on the development. The team moved fast and has been working more openly and collaboratively ever since. The design of Suhe Center keeps popping up in the local news, which is expected to be open in early 2020. We also create a strategic framework for the retailer to envision the next-generation commercial complex.

Final design

The Suhe Center, once a forgotten place, will be an experimental shopping complex for people in Shanghai to explore future living. The core message- 'Explore to evolve' aims to work with topline brands to curate products, services, space, and activities to fulfill the local’s passion for elevating their lives. There are four modules in the experience design: Exposure, Inspiration, Learning, and Collaboration. Each module has its signature experience that plays on the site’s strengths. Whether it's glamping by the river, exploring the latest exhibition in the temple, or picking up life skills in old houses, everyone can find a place to grow themselves, in their way.

  • 01. Curated exposure
  • 02. Experimental lifestyle
  • 03. Immersive learning

01

Curated exposure

Signature events

People love big events and exhibitions. It expands their perspective with exclusive subjects to bargain with their friends. The sizable area made Suhe center a perfect place to host the event and became the place of happening.

Theme based retails

The commercial city tired its citizens with endless product lineups every day. People are no longer satisfied with variety, but looking into quality and depth. We use space temples as the platform for brands to collaborate and come up with fresh themes and limited products which can not be found in other places.

Boardless discovery

While shops might operate in silos, people’s experience doesn't. We intentionally break the border of retail shops, using different elevations, arts, and space installation to trigger people’s curiosity and guide them to explore abundant details.

02

Experimental Lifestyle

Unique Sceneries

The variety of space with rich natural and cultural legacy is a rare find in Shanghai city. As a growing interest for local people to alternative ways of living, the Suhe creek has the potential to create unique sceneries for people to step out of their everyday life within reach.

The third place

The need to find a third place to relax between work and life has become apparent in a busy city like Shanghai. So we dedicate ourselves to create intimate and discrete spaces for people to unwind and reflect after a long day.

Live with the brand

For pioneers who want to go beyond buying the products and services, the Suhe center can be a safe place to experiment with emergent lifestyles they believed. The brand could provide programs with professional guidance and easy settings for people to explore new possibilities in their life, such as long weekend glamping or meditation camp.

03

Immersive learning

Deepen the passions

Once an upper-class neighborhood, the Suhe creek has a strong tie to the image of quality living. We design the complex to be a one-stop place for people to pursue their various passions. Whether it's craft, cooking, art, music, people can easily get the professional resources they need and learn and interact with their liked-mind peers.

Everyday scene

Learning is always a big thing in Chinese culture, but it doesn't have to happen in class. In the complex, we design the space and shops with a mindset to bring everyday scenes into the shopping experience. People can cook in the supermarket, share their dishes with friends in the bar. Learning can be more fun and effective in real practice.

Personalize journey

Chinese customers are tired of standard format and competition. They want to learn things in their own way, with their own path. With a digital platform, we can connect all the shops in the complex, matching people’s interests and needs with different offerings, creating a personalized learning experience with ease and refreshment.

Reflection

Build on the client’s work whenever possible. It saves time and helps them own the concept without a sales pitch.

It's hard to plan everything for a complex project. Focus on a few key experiences, move fast, and iterate along the way.

A sexy concept is not enough. Giving people principles and examples so they can own it the down the line.

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