Globally Revolutionary New Retail Concept Unveiled for Bangkok's Siam Center

BANGKOK, Nov. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --  

• "We are pioneering a revolutionary new retail development concept where the developer works collaboratively with retailers and brand owners to give the entire venue a consistent visual identity as well as a consistent promise to the visitor" – Mrs. Chadatip Chutrakul – CEO, Siam Piwat Co.,Ltd.
• US$60 million investment in Siam Center by Siam Piwat and 200 brand owners is biggest collaborative initiative in retail development ever undertaken in Thailand that aims to lift the stature of Bangkok as top global shopping destination
• Readies to open January 11, 2013 with pioneering new retail concept

Siam Piwat, the owner and operator of Siam Paragon, Siam Center, Siam Discovery and Paradise Park, today, unveiled sweeping plans as part of its total rejuvenation of Siam Center for the introduction of a revolutionary new retail concept that promises to put Bangkok among the ranks of the world's most innovative shopping destinations when it opens on January 11th, 2013.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121128/HK20006 )

Mrs. Chadatip Chutrakul, CEO of Siam Piwat Co., Ltd., the owner and operator of Siam Center, said, "Right here in Thailand, we are pioneering a revolutionary new retail development concept where the developer works collaboratively with retailers and brand owners to give the entire venue a consistent visual identity.  Brand owners and retailers have agreed to conceive their store designs to reflect an overall theme that is clearly and distinctly Siam Center, even for the stores of the biggest of big-name international and local brands in fashion as well as in food and beverages."

"Next to that, brand owners and retailers are collaborating with the retail developer to ensure the delivery of a consistent promise to the visitor: that, no matter which store one visits, or whichever restaurant one patronizes, one will meet with unexpected products and services, and which will be unlike anything available at any other venue," she said. 

In addition, most stores will also carry special product selections that are unique and only available at Siam Center, including the provision of innovative and exclusive offerings extending to special menus in food and beverage outlets, too.  These exclusive collections will be around 20% of their total collections, whether they be in fashion, stationary, or home decoration.

"Big, fast-forward international brands have also agreed to present their latest new-arrival collections in Siam Center before they are presented at other branch," Mrs. Chadatip said.

"In fact, we are no longer a shopping centre but an 'ideaopolis' – a place where great new ideas are presented, where art, fashion, technology, lifestyle and entertainment converge to create the unexpected and an inspiring experience for every visitor, and at every visit," she said.

"We're creating the new Siam Center through a novel, collaborative effort and jointly investing more than THB 1,800 million [US$ 60 million approx], with THB 1,000 million [US$ 33 million approx] being invested by Siam Piwat, and the rest by the retailers and brand owners. 

"Over 200 shops are working with us to create these totally new experiences for visitors. Their decision to work with Siam Piwat to build prototype stores for Siam Center required from them significant additional investment in design, construction, and management time.  But, because of that, visitors will gain hundreds of new experiences from all the individual stores that are quite unlike any of their sister stores around the city. This is the biggest collaboration ever undertaken by retailers and brand owners in Thailand," Mrs. Chadatip said.

During the last 18 months Siam Piwat has been working with shop designers as well as both local and international brand owners to develop new product lines. We challenged each brand to rediscover themselves with us, to be daring, and to explore and tap into rich, new potential for their own brands through new ideas, new line extensions, signature labels, and innovative product variations," she said.

"We are collaboratively creating a unique 'Absolute Siam' experience at every possible level.  Retailers are very excited.  Many have commented that this was the most powerful phenomenon in the retail industry that they had seen, and that it was something which has never been done anywhere else," Mrs. Chadatip added.

The SoHo district of New York is one of the inspirations behind what Siam Center is about to offer.

"In SoHo New York, you see a timeless and invigorating mix of art, fashion and technology presented in a way that matches the unique character of the district. It is, perhaps, the only place in the world where stores have designed their shop to suit the distinct style of the district.  They have adapted themselves to fit the unique character of their environment while still preserving all that makes their brand special and their particular equities unique. And, for the first time, at Siam Center, all of this is now being done under one roof," she said.

"Siam Piwat is the pioneer of retail development in Thailand, and we intend to keep re-defining and pushing the boundaries in taking retailing and retail development to new places in the future.  When the first Siam Center opened its doors, forty years ago, and became the first modern shopping centre in Thailand, it was nothing like anything that had come before it.  The new Siam Center we are building, and the new retailing concept that we are pioneering in Thailand is also nothing like anything that has come before it," she said.

"You often hear in Thailand of a desire to make Bangkok a shopping capital like New York, London, or Hong Kong.  Now, perhaps, other countries will be looking at Bangkok to see what a progressive shopping capital should be like," Mrs. Chadatip said.

Siam Center has a gross floor area of 40,000 square metres, with 250 metres of street frontage.  It is located at the crossover station between the city's two major overhead mass transit rail system routes.  It is also at the heart of Bangkok's retail zone with visitor traffic of around 150,000 people a day, of which approximately 60% are local residents and 40% tourists.

Siam Center has an iconic place in Thailand's retail environment, with a worldwide fan-club built over four decades of repeat visits.  The passionate loyalty of its visitors pushed visitor numbers up to 350,000 people a day during the final weeks before its closure for rebuilding.

NOTES TO THE EDITOR

Design Themes and Technology

The design theme of the new Siam Center is "twisted": a combination of industrial chic with the ultra-modern, creating contrasts and surprises, playing with dark and light, as well as being experimental and surprising.  Even the lighting, which in other venues tends to be generally very neutral, has been specially designed and purpose-built as an art piece for its own particular space in the building.

Technology plays a vital role in delivering the Siam Center promise to the visitor and is inseparably integrated with what the venue has to offer. There is a lot of emphasis on connecting and interacting with visitors through technology, and over THB 70 million has been invested with more than 500 LED screens. There are to be no more posters or billboards, but interactive digital walls and surfaces as well as 'digital stylists' and even 'digital closets' from where people can do 'digital fittings' for clothing to see how a particular garment might look on them without having to physically wear it.  They will be able to get personalized top tips, know the hot items to see and experience, and be guided to the top ideas and to new collections. 

Collaboration as a strategy for the future

Collaboration has been forged with world-class designers and artists. Among them is Mr. Hirotoshi Sawada, the Japanese artist who creates magnificent works of art and installations for 5-star hotels and iconic stores in countries around the world. He will create spectacular art pieces for Siam Center. Mr. Santtu Mustonen, the accomplished Finnish illustrator whose works are well recognized in Helsinki, Amsterdam and New York, agreed to develop illustrations to appear in Siam Center's advertising campaign and on a collection of exclusive souvenirs for shoppers.

New Layout of Siam Center

• Floor 1: Fashion Avenue.  It includes flagship stores of globally famous brands.  They will be spacious and decorated in a free-form look that is easy on the eye with their storefronts using curved or angled glass, or clear acrylic.
• Floor 2: Fashion Galleria. This floor houses international brands for clothing, accessories, and cosmetics.  It has the look of a concept shop where all stores are decorated in ultra-modern style and with black and white tones predominant to make them striking and unique.
• Floor 3: Fashion Visionary.  This floor has the most comprehensive range of Thai designer brands in the country.  All designers agreed to give their outlets a whole new design and decoration.  Most of them are flagship stores with the most comprehensive range of product offerings.  All project exclusivity.  The floor is decorated with an organic look, using wood, steel and copper.
• Floor 4: Food Factory.  Here is a new trendy city hangout complete with international restaurants and food shops offering a wide range of delicious dishes in an original, industrial style environment.  It is a fun place to meet people.  Service hours are until midnight.

For further information, please contact:

Siam Piwat Co., Ltd.
Sireetorn Niyomsen
Tel: +662-658-1000 ext 234

Bangkok Public Relations Ltd.
Pairoj Pachanapreeda
Tel: +662-664-9500 ext 115

SOURCE Siam Piwat Co., Ltd.