Architecture and Design are ever-changing components of the world. They are dynamic and adaptive to the needs of the hour. Along with social community aspirations, architecture offers innumerable designs of buildings of which real estate and housing are the most in demand. The past few decades have witnessed a boom in the real estate sector. It has grown by leaps and bounds and holds a major share of the construction industry making it a very powerful entity in determining, reinstating and practising conventions that can bring striking changes in visionary approaches of the future. With countless real estate projects being completed worldwide, the construction of experience centres has become a mandate that is followed seamlessly everywhere. But when keenly observed it happens to be a mismanaged section of real estate that is much smaller in scale yet massive in volume and has the potential to turn into greater things or completely ruin the industry in due course. The irony here is alarming! Contrasting with the ongoing sustainable practices in materiality and adaptive reuse, architects and designers aim to achieve global sustainability but tend to overlook that small experience centres designed in association with larger real estate projects for a smaller time are often dismantled or kept unused and dilapidated soon after the mother project is completed and handed over. It is a tricky trail and needs rapid attention and understanding of the posing impacts of good design and management of these smaller projects in terms of cost and energy efficiency to foster a resilient future.
The Understanding of Experience Centres
As the name suggests, Experience centres are physical spaces where companies allow their customers to get an experience of their products and services through interactive exposure. It allows one-to-one conversations and experiences of the stakeholders with the company representative to better understand, try and opt for the product or service that the customer is looking for. Experience centres can be designed for any product or service. It has multi-sensory presentations that help the user to better understand the company’s vision and products. Real Estate has a widespread demand for Experience Centers where clients can experience the original space with authentic design and materials, lighting and the overall experience of the project they are willing to invest in, making it a part and partial of the real estate industry.
The Design Expression and Expenses
Globally, plenty of experience centres are being designed that exhibit several scales and styles of products and services. Particularly in the Indian Context, the market of Experience Centres is dominated by Housing and Township projects. Statistically, seven major cities of the nation witness approximately 4.35 lakh housing units being developed which explains the overwhelming units of Experience Centres that must have been built for promotion and sales of these housing units.
Highlighting the design process of these Experience Centers, it completely runs by the theory of “What you see is What you Get”. Hence every developer and Construction Company competes to create something more appealing than what the market currently offers. In this very process, architects create remarkable designs with explicitly unique approaches, materials and techniques. With stunning execution comes the opulent expenses of construction and maintenance. They can be considered worthy if they at least survive their self-life. Unfortunately, the shallow will to want NEW every single time drives the stakeholders to chase the latest and forget the existing radiant treasures.
Not to forget, the completion of an Experience Centre refers to a package of space comprising civil work, interior finishes, lighting, drainage, landscape, furniture, artefacts and ornamentations. Manpower to execute and maintain the same is in addition to that. Each of these elements are best of their quality and can sustain several decades. However, even before they are worn out they are just dismantled as the purpose of the building ends soon after the mother projects are sold out. All of it demands heavy cost and energy consumption followed by wasting of priceless resources.
Worthwhile Constructive Use of Built Experience Centers
Practicing the techniques of adaptive reuse, built spaces can be reused for a different purpose and function with the same elements, furniture and ornamentations, probably with slight modifications. Using experience centres as work pods, mini libraries, cafeterias, galleries or Studios has the potential to flourish as a creative space after the completion of other projects.
Studying the need for hobby practising spaces in a housing scenario where hobbies need to be crunched between defined spaces, open experience centres create an excellent opportunity to brand themselves as activity and interaction hubs. In many cases, these spaces can be and are being transformed into clubhouses too. Specifically, spaces dedicated to Sample flats can be used as housing quarters for Security staff in case of fluctuating duty hours and hectic shifts. These adaptations can help create healthy, humane and sustainable living habits with social inclusivity and wellness.
Role of Budding Architects in Shifting the Narrative
The youth has an intensive power to create awareness and amend the existing with logic and perseverance. In today’s context with exceptional talent and understanding but a lack of opportunities, the youth is willing to create a community with a voice.
In several architectural practices, professionals work very hard to execute design projects and some among many happen to be experience centres. Woefully when something executed with so much work and dedication is dismantled or does not earn the recognition it deserves or even lacks in fulfilling its full potential, the growing community of young professionals subconsciously go into a spiral of doubt, put less effort into their occupational pursuits and slowly tend to lose their creativity which is uncalled for.
By constantly standing strong as a fraternity for sustainability and truly executing the idea of repurposing, re-apply and freshly executing, the design community can create robust forthcoming times.
In light of the current situation, the demand for housing and therefore experience centres is anticipated to increase rather than decrease. Reviewing the global scenario of increasing carbon – footprints, increasing pollution, climate changes due to global warming and reckless usage of natural resources, the enormous construction industry appears to be a significant contributor to disrupting the environmental equilibrium which lays a crucial question of whether is it necessary to invest so much on temporary projects with a life of only a decade or so or think from a different perspective and manage built structures mindfully working towards what the world aims for – Sustainability, Reusability, Resilient and Robust?
Reference:
- Statista (2023). Real Estate – Worldwide | Statista Market Forecast. [online] Statista. Available at: https://www.statista.com/outlook/fmo/real-estate/worldwide.
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- Gichina, V. (2023). What Is the Purpose of an Experience Center? | Alleo. [online] Alleo. Available at: https://www.withalleo.com/blog/2023/what-is-the-purpose-of-an-experience-center/ [Accessed 2 Mar. 2025].
- India (2024). 7 major cities see annual 8% rise in completion of housing units: Anarock. [online] @bsindia. Available at: https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/7-major-cities-see-annual-8-rise-in-completion-of-housing-units-anarock-124021800154_1.html [Accessed 2 Mar. 2025].
- ArchDaily. (2016). Fazer Visitor Center & Meeting Center / K2S Architects. [online] Available at: https://www.archdaily.com/796321/fazer-visitor-center-and-meeting-center-k2s-architects.
- CONSULTNCY SERVICES, S. (2025). Niyasa Experience Centre . Corton steel ,winter sun & blue sky . Available at: https://www.instagram.com/square_cs/p/DFFrCn_yrqt/?img_index=5 [Accessed 2 Mar. 2025].
