Brand NewMark, 45, is the director of development at the retail property development
and asset management specialists, Milligan, who have collaborated with
a number of professional artists, local universities and community groups
to transform the former post office building into a top design-led development.
‘The Metquarter is more about lifestyle than what age category it
is aimed towards. Every retailer we’ve brought here is new to Liverpool,
except Coast,’ Mark says. Retailers based in the Metquarter include
stores such as Armani Exchange, Animal and Levi’s, while anchor
store Flannels and flagship stores Hugo Boss and Hobbs are open soon.
Why did you choose a career working in property?
The building element has always interested me. I think in some ways I’m
a frustrated architect. In school we did these career tests that involved
answering a number of questions, which at the end brings up a profile
of you and mine suggested I should become an architect.
I knew some people who were architects and they told me the courses are
very long, about five years, whereas property courses were a lot shorter,
about two or three years. I was also quite ambitious to make a few bob.
My father also knew one or two people involved in the industry, so I just
decided to go down that route.
What recent retail developments have Milligan been involved in?
We’ve got a project in Barcelona called Maremagnum, which we’ve
taken from what was a predominantly leisure orientated scheme and repositioned
it into a fabulous retail centre with restaurants. I had a very modest
input in that project, but I was very much involved in completely repositioning
The Triangle in Manchester and that was very design-led.
Do Milligan always work with artists?
Yes. It was really The Triangle project in Manchester that put us in this
direction. We met Mel Chantrey, who was head of fine art at Manchester
University, and it quickly blossomed into a very good working relationship.
He is a very creative person. Myself, Paul Hanegraaf, our creative navigator,
and Mel work very well together in terms of generating ideas and moving
things forward. John Milligan is then very good on the commercial imports
and brings in all the brands. Design is very key to our projects.
What do you think the Metquarter will mean to Liverpool?
I think it is the best shopping centre in Europe at the moment in terms
of its design, its tenant mix and the brands that are coming into it.
I really think it’s top quality. We’ve brought elements into
it that aren’t in any other scheme certainly in Europe and possibly
the world. We’ve aimed at creating a space that feels friendly,
inviting, intimate and almost homely.
What’s your favourite feature in the Metquarter?
There are lots of individual elements dotted around the centre. For example,
there is the Paris Wrap, a large printed fabric installation by Debbie
Steggel, the gates in Victoria Street that have been designed to look
like the perforations found on a stamp and are made in powder-coated steel,
which look absolutely beautiful. Each column has a small section of amber
with things that give a flavour of fashion and something relating to the
post office, which is what the building used to be, set within it. It’s
a totally unique building.
How important was it to retain the face of the original building?
We wanted to complement the old building, but we also wanted something
absolutely modern and up-to-date in terms of its design. Lighting has
been very important to us. As it becomes darker, the mall really comes
to life. There are lights under all the bridges that are white during
the day and turn blue as it comes towards dusk. The ceiling is lit by
LED lighting and can change to any colour. We’ve programmed it so
that when it comes towards dusk it turns red and then blue at night. Each
of the big lamps in the mall can also change to any colour as well. Everything
we’ve done has been mocked up and we’ve tried really hard
to get individual bits of detail into the overall design.
Were people from Liverpool involved in the research stage of the Metquarter
project?
Absolutely. We started with about 900 people from Liverpool, asking them
about their shopping habits and what they would like in the retail market.
We then narrowed them down into small ‘focus groups’, about
ten people in each group, and asked them to put together a profile of
themselves. We then gave each person a camera to take pictures of a typical
day in their lives. We wanted them to take pictures of products or shop
window displays they found interesting or exciting. As well as this, they
took photographs of themselves out socialising and even at home, so we
could build up a complete profile of each of them. After that, we then
interviewed them. It was fascinating. But this research made it easier
for us to deliver some of the key lettings to Liverpool, because all we
had to say to them was that the people of Liverpool wanted them here.
Would you like to work in Liverpool again?
Yes, definitely. The council have been very good with us, Liverpool Vision
have been really helpful, and we really love the people here. The people
seem to know how to enjoy life to the full and know how to have fun. There
is still a lot more work to be done, but we’re here for the long
term. We want to keep the interest going and keep the individuality of
it.
What was the biggest challenge about the project?
It was the location of the site. It was an incredibly tight space and
it is surrounded by roads, there is a taxi point, disabled parking and
the buses were frequently travelling through. It has been very challenging
for us as developers, building the building, as well as allowing access
for our tenants to fit out the units. So it has been a real challenge
for everyone involved. But we haven’t wasted any time with it and
we’re really proud having delivered it on time.
Last shopping trip and what you bought?
A pair of jeans from Gap, but it was probably Lego for my son!
MORGAN FILE
Born
1961 Haddington, East Lothian
Education
1983 Graduated Cambridge University
Career
1983 Joined Hillier Parker
1987 Moved to Jones Lang Wootton to work with John Milligan as Head of
Retail
Development
1995 Development Director First Leisure Corporation
2001 MWB Head of Leisure Fund Asset Management
2003 Joined Milligan in November as Development Director
Awards
2005 RIBA Design Award Manchester Triangle Sky Bar