The Sphere in Las Vegas is now the hottest ticket in town. It costs $169 to “experience” the giant dome — sometimes a massive smiley face, other times a concert venue for the likes of U2.
But what happens in Vegas, doesn’t really stay there. Back in the Big Apple, brands, resorts and arts organizations are all transforming spaces into unique experiences that immerse guests into a themed fantasy.
Opening Nov. 5, as an end of year pop-up, Candy Cottage Christmas Magic in the Channel Gardens of Rockefeller Center will bring visitors inside an oversized, sweet-filled tree trunk. Cottage Keepers will help participants pluck candy while the experience includes a personalized Rock Center scavenger hunt concluding with a magical moment and prize.
This is the first event created by We Are Smile Studio, a collaboration between Vance Garrett, a director behind the Museum of Ice Cream, and Arielle Tepper, a six-time Tony Award-winning Broadway producer.
“We really want to create experiences that are grand and transformational,” Tepper explained. CBRE retail broker Matthew Chmielecki furthered the point, “Tenants are always thinking of ways to create an experience to get bodies through the door and, once in, to keep them there. Compare the Gucci store on Fifth to the Gucci store in Meatpacking to the one in Soho — you will see three different stores.”
Since the Italian lingerie shop Intimissimi reopened at 601 Fifth Ave. this month, shoppers are able to “taste and feel the Italian influence” while enjoying coffee and espressos in its new Dell’Aria cafe overlooking Fifth Avenue.
The quirky designer Philipp Plein, who owns a Soho spot at 119 Spring St., has his kicks in boxes with NFTs that start moving when opened.
The new Bulgari Touch product line from the Italian fashion house creates a unique interaction with the owner’s smartphone when activated by an NFC hidden under the handbag’s logo.
To launch a fragrance, Chanel rebranded a diner at 225 Wythe Ave. in Williamsburg as the Lucky Chance Diner where both refreshments like pink milkshakes and lipstick were on the menu of the 1950s throwback.
“It’s fun and it creates a lot of traffic, as well as online traffic,” said Eric Le Goff of Retail by Mona. The experience drew celebs including Lil Nas X and Reese Witherspoon’s daughter, Ava Phillippe.
For those with even more lucre to spend, Aston Martin’s new showroom at 450 Park Ave. is all about designing a vehicle.
“We recognize the growing trend of personalization across the luxury goods segment and see huge value in investing in our customer experience to create the best specification experiences available anywhere in the world,” said Lawrence Stroll, executive chairman of Aston Martin, in a statement.
Those passing by on the sidewalks or checking out the Aston Martins can be separated from an inner sanctum where the buyer can interact with specialists in the British factory and create a bespoke design.
“They are not selling cars out of their space, but it’s about branding and presence and leaving an impression on the visitor and the pedestrians that are moving along Park Avenue and 57th Street,” said Alexander Zilberman, the architect who designed the space. “Technology allows the associates there to cast a 3D virtual vehicle onto the giant 35-foot screen. It’s one-of-a-kind in the world.”
When scanned, a digitally tagged color or interior sample will automatically populate onto the screen and the car that the patron is designing. “It’s virtual that is married with the physical and tactile,” Zilberman said, adding, “Now, the most important thing about store design is less to do with the trends but leaving an impression.”
While having a social media-shareable space is still a trend, Zilberman says, “It is more successful where we create something beautiful and unique and memorable and a sense of wonder and, because of that, someone pauses and takes a photo because it’s so special. That, to me, is an Instagrammable moment.”
Many of those just passing by the 1970s promotional experience at One Wall St. Court for the “John Wick” series prequel took selfies with the original Checker Cab stationed outside.
NBC’s Peacock took over the lower Manhattan building whose curved façade is the movies’ Continental hotel where assassins like John Wick can safely gather and not kill each other.
Guests dressed as assassins were served drinks while cast member interactions provided clues to figure out which “assassin” conducted “business” and would have to be excommunicated. Its luggage room radio blared the Yankees-Dodgers World Series game and held boxes of old New York Posts while a crazy chef comes up with the body and the killer is revealed in a basement finale.
“They made a deal for an immersive experience and they cleaned out the space and painted it and it worked for both monetary purposes and for the renovations they did on the interior,” said James Famularo of Meridian Capital, who represents the 12,500-square-foot retail space. “Just from this one pop-up we got dozens of calls,” he added.
Luxury brands have long teamed up with hotels including Armani, Gucci, Versace, Oscar de la Renta, Bulgari, Ralph Lauren and even Renovation Hardware in the Meatpacking District. Now, Louis Vuitton is redoing a hotel in Paris.“It will be remarkable, and you can spend an entire weekend in the LV world,” said Le Goff.
Some hotels are more branded and immersive than others. Disney created a “hotel” in Orlando next to the Hollywood Studios where it already had “Star Wars”-themed attractions in the Galaxy’s Edge area.
The two-night, all-inclusive “Star Wars” experience was a choose-your-own adventure “cruise” in space complete with Chewbacca and light saber training, as well as a “voyage” to Galaxy’s Edge where guests completed some of their missions.
Since it received the highest ratings of any Disney project, costumed fans who dubbed it a “life-changing experience” jammed every cabin for months before it was shuttered in September. They are now hoping Disney retools its marketing and brings back the Starcruiser Halcyon forever.
As it dawns on more brands they can create emotional loyalty through immersive experiences, more will be headed our way.
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