Beijing's business hub takes on new image

One of a kind

Among the buildings in the CBD, Beijing Parkview Green Fangcaodi stands out.

It is hard not to pause and gaze at this giant, modern, angular structure.

Built in 1992, Parkview Green houses high-end offices, boutique hotels and a shopping mall with carefully selected businesses that include Van Cleef & Arpels, Tesla and International Watch Co.

However, focusing on luxury lifestyle brands is not what makes Parkview Green unique.

It now features futuristic sculptures, paintings and installation artworks, which can be seen on entering the building. More than 1,000 pieces are on show, including 30 works from master surrealistic artist Salvador Dali.

Oliver Lai, general manager of Beijing Parkview Green Fangcaodi, said the property is one of a kind and refuses to replicate anything else, or to be replicated.

"Beijing is a city of fast changes, like nothing I have experienced elsewhere," Lai said. "As a business, we need to change as the world changes. We have observed the development of the Chinese economy in recent years, and people's demands are changing as the economy grows.

"Rather than saying Parkview Green Fangcaodi has brought a brand-new shopping experience to Beijing, I'd say the fast development of the city has provided the possibility to combine life with art."

Lai also said the company has a collection of masterpieces and provides visitors with space in which they can immerse themselves in art, allowing it to become part of their lives.

Parkview Green has added a new trophy to the mall's awards cabinet, recently winning the Beijing Top 10 foodie destinations award from global city guide Time Out and Winshang, a Chinese commercial property information outlet.

Guo Zengli, president of Mall China Information Center, a shopping mall information and research organization, said, "The success of Chinese shopping malls used to lie in precise marketing, but nowadays malls with a vision have entered consumers' inner world.

"Parkview Green Fangcaodi does not have a very ideal location, not being close to a subway line, but this hasn't stopped the mall from becoming an industry symbol and a city landmark, because it is very hard to imitate or duplicate Parkview Green."

Guo added that Parkview Green Fangcaodi carefully selects brands, works alongside them and always seeks to improve, meaning the shops suit the shopping mall and become part of its culture.

"If a shopping mall or a brand wants to shock the market, it needs to build its own intellectual property, and make adjustments according to the changing market demand with its soft power and service," Guo said.