Placemaking with The Future Laboratory

The public spaces we citizens occupy are evolving fast. Destination Placemaking initiatives are strengthening cultural relevance during moments of global unrest.

We’re proud to work extensively with developers, enabling them to build for the long term. By defining what is culturally relevant to future communities, we can align our clients’ ambition to define the role and mix of the built environment and their specific assets to achieve better engagement.

At the intersection of our six long-range Global Drivers – Accelerating Technologies, Climate Crisis and Resource Scarcity, Evolving Demographics, Fragmenting Societies, Micro-globalisation and an Urbanising World – concepts of identity, belonging and success are changing as people embrace new definitions of self-actualisation and singularity, new forms of kinship and community, and new work patterns while prioritising living both longer and better.

By constantly tracking future consumer habits in the way we live, work and play, we can help shape the places of tomorrow.

2024+. Take the normalising of hybrid living. As remote working and digital visas become reality, the redevelopment of rural and suburban infrastructures will need to reflect and support nomadic lifestyles. According to McKinsey & Co, the demand for office and retail space in cities will remain below pre-pandemic levels, predicted in a moderate scenario to be 13% lower in 2030 than in 2019.

And consider the evolving phygital landscape and the multitude of ways in which the pandemic has affected retail. As the need to exist beyond goods and services prevails for brands, businesses will want to support consumers’ lifestyles and affect the local profile of their cities and towns.

From fast-tracked foresight to comprehensive insight, we translate and integrate trends into your retail and mix strategies and placemaking masterplans to deliver cultural and commercial value in an increasingly complex and uncertain landscape.

Partner with The Future Laboratory to ensure your approach remains relevant and resonates for generations to come.

Published by:

1 August 2024

Author: Rachele Simms

Image: The Red Room at The Connaught, UK

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Left: Leyja wellness resort Neom, Saudi Arabia- Photography supplied by Habitas, Right: Photography by Vincent Rivaud

For our clients who want to build a community, a future-fit sense of place and achieve better engagement with their future consumer/audience, here are our six considerations:

Creativity – driving innovation to reflect the evolving needs and identity of the world around us

Locality – using the soft power of culture, art and design to take a unique approach for local appeal 

Community – collaborating with people to transform spaces into social hubs 

Wellbeing – bringing mental and physical wellness to urban areas

Degrowth – positively re-evaluating how we measure value and the role of commerce within the built environment 

Regeneration – re-engaging with the natural environment to improve the quality of place in the short and long term 

We enable our clients to plan ahead, to capitalise on the future drivers of change and evolving consumer trends to better understand how to revise, innovate and build for the long term.

We enable placemakers to set their ambition with a Bold Vision, to align on future infrastructural needs, and therefore to be prepared to invest in the right opportunities. We Define the Strategic Principle so that developers can continue to take an informed and guided approach to future decision-making across their teams, assets and initiatives. And we create Tactical Toolkits and Action Plans of imperatives and differentiators for the ongoing redevelopment of the built environment.

Bounding Spaces by Anna Dienemann

The Red Room at The Connaught, UK

Our work is powered by Strategic Foresight.

We apply foresight directly to your business through our in-person Strategic Advisory.

At the core of our operations lies LS:N Global, a subscription-based digital platform containing over 20 years of trends intelligence that is the foundation and cornerstone of our bespoke services.

When clients partner with us, they feel more comfortable about the future and have the confidence to act sooner – the mindset needed for change. That’s how we live up to our purpose: making better futures happen.

Recent Client Work

Case Studies: Strategic Advisory

Client: A real estate development company, based in Dubai

Service: Placemaking and Retail Mix Strategy

Future challenge: How do we define a unique positioning for this development, in the eco-system of Dubai malls, ensuring the customer experience is designed to target future customer and tenant needs?

Modules and methodologies:

Quantitative studies | a wide range of consumer in-depth interviews | cultural navigation | Stakeholder analysis | creative direction | brand strategy | toolkits

Region: UAE

Client:  An Emirati real estate and retail conglomerate, with projects in Asia and Africa

Service: Foresight Framework, Brand Positioning and Retail Strategy

Future challenge: How do we establish the way you look forward as an organisation, to re-invent the malls business in preparation for an even more competitive and dynamic regional landscape?

Modules and methodologies:

Stakeholder analysis | cultural navigation | expert network interviews | trend forecasting | data and statistical research | workshops and toolkits | strategic direction and action plans

Region: MENA/SWANA

Client:  The largest commercial property development and investment company in the UK

Service: Consumer Research and Brand Strategy

Future challenge: How can we define futures 2035, plural; the why and how the organisation needs to start thinking about to shape successful cities for the future, today?

Modules and methodologies:

Stakeholder analysis | expert network interviews | data and statistical research | STEEP factor analysis and mapping | scenario planning and future consumer narratives

Region: UK

Client:  A company that owns, invests in, develops and manages residential, commercial and industrial property across Australia

Future challenge: How can we apply and translate the shifts in consumers’ view of luxury and future trends to create a practical framework that can transform Carillon City into Perth’s central hub?

Modules and methodologies:

Expert network interviews | data and statistical research | thought-leadership | strategic framing

Region: Australia

Client:   Property development company in Melbourne creates transformational spaces and experiences for present and future generations

Future challenge: How do we develop a credible retail vision for STH BNK, and differentiate it from current offerings within the CBD?

Modules and methodologies:

Strategic and creative positioning | retail mix vision and index | data and statistical research | Strategic foresight and trend research | stakeholder interviews and working sessions

Region: Australia

Explore placemaking for the long-term

Our Placemaking programme enables developers to build for the long term. By defining what is culturally relevant to future communities, we can align our clients’ ambition to define the role and mix of the built environment and their specific assets to achieve better engagement.

Are you ready to build a community-first and future-fit sense of place to ensure your approach remains relevant and resonates for generations to come?  Contact us here. 