Repositioning retail through experience

et potential in different market contexts and across different types of assets. Forest Hill Chase: Repositioning Level 1 around fresh food Forest Hill Chase has served Melbourne’s eastern suburbs for more than 60 years. The centre is undergoing a considered transformation to ensure long‑term relevance. Central to this strategy is the repositioning of Level 1 as a fresh food‑led precinct that anchors the centre’s broader retail and lifestyle offer. The introduction of the Market Hall rethinks the traditional food court model as a contemporary fresh-food and dining destination designed to support both daily shopping and social interaction. Fresh produce, dine‑in and take‑home options, are brought together in an environment that prioritises quality, accessibility and dwell time. Fresh food is positioned not as a complementary amenity, but as a core driver of frequency and customer engagement. The Market Hall adopts a disciplined design language inspired by the forest. Natural materials, warm timbers, textured finishes and layered greenery create a cohesive backdrop that reduces visual clutter and allows tenants to stand out through their offer. A suspended timber feature ceiling forms the architectural centrepiece, introducing warmth and scale while helping to zone the expansive floorplate. Subtle changes in floor finishes reinforce circulation paths and seating zones, supporting intuitive movement and uninterrupted sightlines. Seating is arranged in flexible groupings, including communal tables, banquettes and family‑friendly settings, accommodating a range of dwell times and customer needs. Integrated planting softens the environment and reinforces the precinct’s role as a shared community space. Forest Hill Chase – Market Hall Tenant curation has been carefully considered to balance national brands with strong local operators. Melbourne‑based fruit and vegetable retailer Colonial Fresh occupies a prominent tenancy with visibility across the precinct. Consistent canopy structures and signage guidelines introduce rhythm and clarity across kiosks while maintaining a cohesive overall identity. Level 1 repositioning extends beyond the Market Hall itself. Enhanced vertical connections and upgraded entry experiences strengthen connectivity across the centre. Together, these changes reinforce Forest Hill Chase’s evolution into a community‑first destination grounded in fresh food, daily convenience, and local relevance. Westpoint: Delivering a destinational entertainment experiences in Western Sydney At Westpoint, repositioning has taken a different but equally considered form, with premium entertainment leveraged to strengthen the centre’s role as the leading entertainment destination in Western Sydney. Through partnership with HOYTS Group, Westpoint now offers a differentiated cinema experience that enhances the centre’s point of difference from competition. HOYTS Westpoint now features a suite of premium cinema formats, including IMAX with Laser, SCREENX, Xtremescreen and D-BOX, creating a level of choice and quality unmatched elsewhere in NSW. This concentration of large format and immersive technologies further enhances HOYTS’ appeal to customers seeking high-quality, out-of-home entertainment experiences. The cinema investment supports our broader strategy connecting entertainment with food and beverage offerings, contributing to a more active after‑hours and weekend economy. This evolution demonstrates how targeted investment in entertainment infrastructure can drive relevance, resilience and long‑term value. ScreenX at HOYTS Westpoint Importantly, the cinema upgrade has broadened Westpoint’s affluent customer base, appealing to audiences willing to pay for enhanced leisure experiences. The impact is evident in performance outcomes. Following the introduction of the IMAX and SCREENX large-format screen technologies, HOYTS Westpoint materially outperformed the Australian cinema industry, delivering strong year-on-year growth in admissions and market share, also contributing to a halo uplift across dining, dwell time and after-hours activation. Beyond performance metrics, premium cinema plays a critical role in reshaping the perception of Westpoint. It strengthens the centre’s positioning as a contemporary lifestyle destination and reinforces Westpoint as the market-leading destination for dining and entertainment in Western Sydney. A shared philosophy with tailored execution Together, these projects show how experience-led repositioning, when applied with purpose, can deliver measurable commercial results while strengthening a centre’s role within its community and beyond its traditional trade area. This article by Layne O’Neill was first published in SCN magazine – CBD Guns edition