Week 5

This past week I left Sao Paulo and went to Belo Horizonte to see the Malls and Greenfield projects in the area. In Sao Paulo I went to shopping Villa Lobos, Granja Vianna (Greenfield project), shopping Tambore, and Campinas Shopping. The most interesting place, for me was the Greenfield project in Granja Vianna. The site is projected to be completed in early October and as of now everything is on schedule to meet the deadlines. Granja Vianna was interesting to see because I learned more about the development process. The project started in 2007 with basic plans and purchasing of the property. Construction of the mall started at the beginning of this year and has been moving extremely fast. When I was there, the construction team was working very hard to stay on schedule. The construction manager explained that finishing the mall required that the team work on the building everyday until the deadline.

The most interesting part of the building, for me, was the lifestyle construction on the top floor. Looking at the plans, there is an open area on the top floor that will create scenic view of the surrounding area. This area is a perfect area for family entertainment and restaurants. BR Malls is adding high quality restaurants and a movie theatre. The layout of the mall will serve as a providing a very nice experience for the surrounding population.

Shopping Estacao HB is a greenfield project located outside the city of Belo Horizonte. This site has not yet started construction; however, I was able to see the layout and get a feel for what the advantages are for choosing to construct a Greenfield like this one. The mall will be built over a train station and a bus station. The growth of Belo Horizonte toward this area is increasing dramatically. This train station allows for a commute from the downtown area of BH to the outskirts of the city. A new building was built near the Greenfield that local government will be working in. Because the government is looking to move away from the downtown area and closer to this Greenfield, BR Malls is confident that this is a great indicator that the population will continue its trend and move in this direction.

The major problem concerning Shopping Estacao HB is to maintain a safe and accessible environment for those who are using the train and bus stations during construction. Although this is a concern, BR Malls is confident that the appropriate steps will be taken to make sure this occurs. Also, because the World Cup will be hosted in Brazil in 2014, massive infrastructure projects will be taking place. It is crucial for the government and BR Malls to work together to make sure the new infrastructure in this area makes the mall accessible. Coordinating the mall plans and new infrastructure is crucial for the ingress and egress of the center to flow.

Shopping Del Rey is a mall that is positioned well for future growth. Del Rey was the first mall I visited that had abundant parking that can be utilized for other activities or future expansion. This mall, for me, is the definition of family entertainment. Creating an atmosphere of cheap family fun, Del Rey focuses on creating events that that bring in the local population. One example is a comedy show they put on every Thursday. This idea struck me as one of the most innovative and progressive ideas in all the malls I visited. Thursday night was considered a slow night at Del Rey, so they decided to have a two hour comedy show at the food court free of charge. The comedians work in radio and were looking to gain exposure so they charged a very cheap price for a 3 month contract. Not only did it bring more people into the mall to see the show, other people stayed longer and decided to spend more. One example is a group of girls that were going to grab a coffee after work, and instead, decided to buy dinner and watch the show. Fast food sales increased 30% compared to average Thursday night sales. Also, the comedians used themes that marketing decided could help the mall. Last week, the comedians focused on Valentine’s Day, which is in June in Brazil. They not only entertained, but the comedians also reminded the shopper that Valentine’s Day was coming soon and they needed to buy gifts.

I think the biggest weakness of this mall is that there are no sit down restaurants. In order to truly make the Del Rey experience complete, I would add some relatively cheap sit down restaurants that would allow shoppers to stay longer and spend more.

So far my experience here has been great. I have learned some of the basics of the language and I am starting to feel more comfortable communicating. Brazilians seem to be very understanding of the language barrier and appreciate when I make an effort to speak in Portuguese.