The posh, monster Westfield shopping mall opens tomorrow in Shepherd's Bush with who knows what consequences for the competition, from Oxford Street to Bluewater to those smaller west London traders praying for an end to the c-charge zone's western extension. I've driven past the site dozens of times in recent months when heading home from visiting my mum, noting its slow evolution from girders-and-concrete skeleton into a mighty retail edifice on the point of being unveiled.
I've mixed feelings about these palaces of shopping. At one level I'm drawn to their luxury, their kitsch and their outrageous decadence. At another, I'm appalled by their grand vacuity. But such seductive confidence! From the Times:
Under the eco-conscious glass roof sit 265 outlets from Top Shop to Tiffany – a name more high-end than the mall norm. Similar shops, such as children's wear, are grouped together, to lessen the stress that causes a shopping trip to be curtailed. There are no food courts (a bit downmarket) but 50 restaurants on three levels of dining, including the Southern Terrace, a street lined with cafés. Sitting there, it would be easy to pretend that you had not broken your vow not to go shopping at all.
And from the BBC:
KPMG retail analyst Helen Dickinson says it could face a tough first year or two. However, she stresses that the developer is in it "for the long term" - and that Westfield has advantages over older developments.
"Lessons learnt with earlier centres - some of which can tend to be ghost towns after 6pm - have persuaded developers to make these schemes more vibrant," she says."At Westfield there are a range of upmarket bars and restaurants, which will be open until midnight, while a 14-screen cinema, gym and spa are planned for 2009." Ms Dickinson also argues that "lifestyle and demographic changes" mean consumers now see shopping as a leisure pursuit, and the more pleasant the environment, the longer visitors will stay and the more they will spend.
Is resistance futile?
