Shopping center/ Mall is used to identify a bulding or a set of building on one location which contains various independent vendors or many independent store with variety brands. They are all connected by walk ways that might be closed or opened to facilities malls visitors the convenience of getting to one store from another safety and easy.
The concept of shopping mall is not a new invention, its an evolution from of traditional market place which basically is a location which is visited by many customer to get everything they need. For visitors convenience, security, and comford, open traditional market place then started to have roof to protect is visitors from the weather s elements and others. In the middle east, Isfahans Grand Bazaar is a shopping center that had existed in the century. So was Tehrans Grand Bazaar. A convered 10 km aisle market place, a place with a very long story. Annnother example in Europe would be The Burlington Arcade in London whch was official open in 1819. in the United State, the concept was introduced in 1828, market by the opening of The Arcade in Providence, Rhode Island. In the late 19 century and early 20 centory, big cities all over the world are building more malls and shopping centers.
In the middle of twentieth century, in United States and several European countries, the presence of shopping centers or malls in side the city is felt to have negative impacts, cities became packed and dirty. In addition to that, the opening of real states in the suburbs and the invention of auto mobile give people the need to have a special place in side the shopping centers complex to park their cars. Based on those factors, The United State and European governments, together with their people to improve their lifes quality, they begun to built malls and shopping centers out side the cities and suburbs. This very idea become the base of how a type of shopping center is formed such as suburb mall, super mall, and mega mall.
Shopping center or mall in the beginning has the facilities of attractive and interesting stores and merchandise, food courd, and parking area. Nowadays, to only have those facilities, it is felt not enough to cover the needs of visitors and the users of shopping center or malls. To attract visitors attention, and to prevent visitors from boredom, the shopping center management team has to put in more effort in creating an environment with an atmosphere that is unique, different from other place they have visited. Starting from choosing the buildings and interiors concept. Then adding entertainment facilities such as theater, video game center, stage for disc jockey or live music performances. Day care center in shopping center in United States is already a common concept. It offers the convenience of shopping to customers and mall user, so that they could just shop or work without having to worry about the safety and the comfort of their children. The lack of walking park and open area in a metropolitan city such as Jakarta became the golden opportunity for developers to implement the concept of artificial garden or open garden into the malls interior concept. This concept can be perceived as the substitute of open area that is almost gone.
Shopping centers developments all over the world is booming creating an open competition to all countries, cities, architects, and designers to compete with each other designing and building shopping center that is the largest, with most complete facility, the most modern, and the landmark of the city.
