Hasta La Creative!

Forget shopping, come for the experience! That’s what mall operator Westfield Corp. is hoping will ring true for consumers louder than any silver bells this holiday season. Since most people think of “mall” as a dirty word and shopping centers bleed a slow death, Heather Vandenberghe, who joined Westfield as chief marketing officer for the U.S. last year, is trying to change the definition.

“When I first arrived at Westfield, I’d read that the mall is dead,” she says. “But the idea of the mall as a gathering place is what we wanted to harness.” As part of Westfield’s reinvention, the company is pushing itself as the place to be for all activitiesincluding but not limited to shopping.

“We want to take the storytelling beyond shopping,” she says, noting that traditionally shopping center visuals include a shopping bag and highlight consumerism. “This campaign, not a single image is about shopping.”

Continue reading at AdAge.com