Marrickville Metro presents a two-day celebration of culinary culture, community and connection, proving it’s more than a mall.
Remember the good ol’ days when malls were the pinnacle of all things social? Well, Marrickville Metro shopping mall brought that energy back by leveraging traditional retail’s secret weapon: real-world connection.
Not your average mall, Sydney-based Marrickville Metro is a reflection of the vibrant community which surrounds it. Now, if you’re imagining another lacklustre, cookie-cutter, mass-retail shopping experience, then think again. Marrickville Metro does more than serve the local community. It embraces, engages and is designed for them.
So, when we were briefed to showcase how Marrickville Metro is as colourful, exciting and interesting as the community that surrounds it, we knew that’s where we’d find the solution. Instead of focusing on the place and how it serves the audience, we knew we had to connect with people to make them want to truly experience the place.
Our answer: Festiville. An immersive two-day event designed to make Marrickville Metro part of the beating heart of the community. The event was curated with everyone in mind, featuring a vibe-filled lineup centred around family-fun, live music and plenty of culinary entertainment for the foodies.
To spotlight the diverse retail offering, Festiville featured several themed pop-ups: Beautyville, Kidsville and Marketville. Each pop-up showcased specific retailer offerings, creating a well-rounded and engaging experience for visitors.
Beautyville invited guests to indulge in some self-care, offering free hairstyling, lash application, nail art, hand massages and more. Kidsville provided face-painting fun, story time and interactive games designed to captivate the imaginations of the young’ns. Marketville served as a platform and hub for local vendors, helping them promote their unique products and foster community support.
Pete Campbell, from MasterChef fame, served up a cooking demo that showcased fresh produce and hardware sourced from Marrickville Metro, while a Bluey & Bingo Live Interactive Experience was a huge hit among little ones and parents alike. To spread the community love, the programme tapped into local musical talents, choirs, dance groups and even a special guest appearance by the deputy mayor.
The event was strongly promoted through an integrated mix of OOH posters, door drops, in-centre signage, PR and digital platforms, ensuring a great turnout with an increase of 15% foot traffic on the Saturday, and a huge 37.5% increase on Sunday in comparison to last year’s event.
Now, as much as technology-charged digital experiences have their place in connecting people, for a local community like Marrickville Metro, nothing beats real-world experiences when it comes to engagement and impact. Hats off to our ANZ team for pulling together another inspiring, well-executed and memorable event.
Wrapping up:
Festiville is a great example of how you can focus less on the functional, and rather connect with people through the emotional. By engaging customers’ senses, it allowed Marrickville Metro to create a truly immersive, tangible brand experience. Something we know a thing or two about 😉
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