Kim Brewer on reshaping properties for a new era

KIM BREWER

on reshaping properties for a new era

Nearly every company engaged in retail, be it a chain of stores or an operator of shopping centers like UnibailRodamco-Westfield (URW), has been challenged this past year to execute bold ideas and engage in some serious innovative planning for the years ahead. At URW, the lessons learned during 2020 and 2021 were eagerly applied to a very important project of ours which has been “Topanga is a true underway since 2019. That’s when we first bemelting pot. Our gan the modern upgrades remake of Westfield at Westfield Topanga. The luxury enhancements Topanga & The Village included everything from fresh new tile floors, dark attempts to position walnut paneling and finishes, a complete makeover it as theplace to shop, of all restroom facilities and family lounges, to the dine, play, and relax integration of state-of-theart digital infrastructure. for all the people who These upgrades came on the heels of the retail destilive or visit this one-of- nation’s 2018 unveiling of its fully operational 15,000 a-kind place.” solar panel array, the largest installation at any retail destination in California. Now we have embarked upon another ambitious project that will transform the space once occupied by Sears at Westfield Topanga into a 180,000-sq.ft. indoor and outdoor district featuring a chef-driven Food Hall with sit-down restaurants, sleek lounges and cocktail bars, unique interior and exterior boutiques, and landscaped indoor and outdoor public spaces. Sixty-plus new tenants will satisfy new public tastes and preferences in the district, among them a 7,500-sq.-ft. Hermès boutique, a 20,734-sq.-ft. Arhaus showroom, a 12-screen new-format AMC Theatres, and a Pinstripes entertainment center.

Slated to open in phases beginning in Summer 2022, Westfield Topanga will welcome guests with a grand triple-height entryway featuring floating panes of glass and transparent lattices alongside verdant outdoor spaces, giving the entire center a street facing focal point set back from the corner of Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Victory Boulevard.

Located in the Santa Monica mountains, Topanga is a unique community in Los Angeles County and a special destination. Our guests reflect a melting pot of diverse backgrounds, and the reimagination of Westfield Topanga & The Village will make it the place to shop, dine, play, and relax for the community who reside in the San Fernando Valley or those that visit us from surrounding cities.

The additions we are making to the new campus will instill the property with a more intense morning, noon, and night experience. At least five new restaurants—including the bowling-bocci-beerand-bruschetta Pinstripes bistro—are intended to capture increased dwell time. To the evening dinner crowd, we will be making a very large statement with valet parking, an array of culinary options, and plenty of entertainment for our guests to enjoy.

As one of URW’s most prominent flagship shopping destinations in the US, we have focused a tremendous amount of effort to further establish Westfield Topanga & The Village as a vanguard of experience-driven retail experiences tailored to satisfy the desires and demands of 21st Century consumers.

Kim Brewer The Pearl Bar

The new triple-height entryway at Topanga features floating panes of glass and transparent lattices.

Kim Brewer is the senior VP of development for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield.