KUCHING: Soon to be opened retail destination, Publika recently held the fi rst of a series of seminars which featured American professor Dale Achabal as part of its efforts to create value for retailers to ensure that they are equipped with knowledge for business success.
RETAIL GURU: Professor Dale Achabal shares his ideas and trends with participants during the seminar held in Kuala Lumpur
Entitled ‘Keys to High Performance Retailing’, the seminar focused on empowering businesses through the understanding of current and future retail industry trends. Participants of the seminars included Publika’s tenants comprising food and beverage outlets, fashion boutiques, home furnishing shops and beauty salons as well as potential retailers.
“Retailers today need to fi nd creative solutions and channels to keep up with the modern consumer who is more knowledgeable and discerning.
“I found the case studies easy to understand, relevant and most interesting,” said Home Treasures director of furniture/interior decoration retailer Greg Bain in a press statement.
Publika, when fully operational in the second part of 2011, would create a living art and cultural hub wherepeople could add art to their leisure activity or be exposed to art by just being in an environment where art thrives. Not in a gallery, but in a public space.
Earlier, Publika introduced Ben’s Independent Grocer (BIG) as its anchor tenant, andFood Culture, a spacious Shanghai-inspired food court. Other lifestyle retailers were British India, Just B, Monocle, Rakuzen, Marmalade, San Francisco Coffee, Overtime, Ichiban Boshi, Caring Pharmacy and Hallmark.
Publika is also home to MAP, the arts and cultural platform that serves as a meeting point between artists and the public. MAP’s facilities include White Box, an open exhibition gallery for art and fashion showcases, as well as Black Box, a 200- seat experimental theater for staging of plays and recitals.
With approximately 230 retail lots, Publika was ideally suited to the various lifestyles of the community with ‘The Boulevard’ – a vast triple volume skylight atrium, ‘Publika Square’ for arts and cultural events, ‘The Park’ and ‘Linear Park’ for exercise and recreational activities.