Bullring prepares for sci-fi shopping billboards Aug 12 2005

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Birmingham's Bullring shopping centre is going high-tech.

By the year 2020 it will feature interactive billboards like those in science-fiction movie Minority Report, plus futuristic mobile messaging to lead customers to the nearest bargains.

Tim Walley, general manager at the Bullring, said yesterday: "In the not too distant future, we can expect a real growth in the use of new technologies to target customers at the point of purchase."

He added: "Many retailers are beginning to use plasma screens in-store as a means of advertising and we anticipate that this will become increasingly commonplace.

"The idea of using interactive billboards which recognise returning customers, like those featured in Minority Report, no longer seems quite so far-fetched.

"And while it may be some time before the average shop starts using retina-scanning technology to identify shoppers, retailers are already starting to use interactive plasmas which activate when customers draw near."

The Bullring team also predicts that retailers in 2020 will make use of evolving mobile phone technology to target consumers as they shop.

Stores will be able to send out generic text messages to all mobile phone users within a certain radius, informing them of current promotions or sales.

Mr Walley said: " Shoppers will be able to use their mobiles to check exactly what is in stock within the centre and where.

"By texting your request to a central number, you will be able to obtain a list of which retailers have the item in store, thereby saving you valuable shopping time.

"We also envision most major shopping centres to have adopted WiFi technology over the next decade, thereby enabling anyone with a laptop or WAP phone to connect to the internet wireless and free of charge while within the centre itself.

"Another major development will be bespoke fitting services which use laser technology to scan the body and create perfectly tailored clothing.

"This service is already being tested out in Selfridges' London store and is expected to become increasingly popular."

The advent of the internet led to predictions that traditional shopping trips would eventually be replaced by online purchasing.

as we lost the old thread can someone post old and new/construction pics

these are from way way back in the day..

http://tinypic.com/ae2ycn.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2yqc.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2ywh.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2yyc.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2z3s.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2z9y.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2zcx.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2zhf.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2zja.jpg

http://tinypic.com/ae2zo4.jpg

Good to see those again.The first photo looks totally bare.

yep - there's no orion for starters. But there is a whole load of cranes :D

have we any footfall figures recently btw?

Oh dear, Minority Report style advertising would be horrible! I'd hate to have my privacy invaded by corporations like that.

As if I'd need an excuse to post up some old Selfridges pics that got deleted in the old threads..... :banana:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfidges9.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges8.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges10.jpg

The girl with no reflection, remember her? :crazy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges5.jpg

Nice photos.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v173/Robdann/Birmingham/Selfridges1.jpg

beautiful pics smiley :)

Beautiful Building Brum2003 :)

Quality, never seen most of those pic's before - supose the bullring was old news by the time i discovered SSC.

But i do think (without wanting to upset anyone) that selfridges will look ridiculous in a decade's time, it will be dirty and no doubt many of those circles will of fallen off (as repair budgets get cut.)

sorry guys but its bound to happen. (look at the nia for example)

Quality, never seen most of those pic's before - supose the bullring was old news by the time i discovered SSC.

But i do think (without wanting to upset anyone) that selfridges will look ridiculous in a decade's time, it will be dirty and no doubt many of those circles will of fallen off (as repair budgets get cut.)

sorry guys but its bound to happen. (look at the nia for example)

only time will tell ,but its doing its job right now!

Quality, never seen most of those pic's before - supose the bullring was old news by the time i discovered SSC.

But i do think (without wanting to upset anyone) that selfridges will look ridiculous in a decade's time, it will be dirty and no doubt many of those circles will of fallen off (as repair budgets get cut.)

sorry guys but its bound to happen. (look at the nia for example)
I actually dont believe this will happen. Its an icon and tooo :cool: . Be positive..its part of the new wonderful Bullring..nah can't see it...20 years maybe. ;)

I'm sure if the shopping centre continues to attraect lots of customers and major retailers then they will ensure the environment is kept spic and span.....fingers crossed eh

I actually dont believe this will happen. Its an icon and tooo :cool:
I can't see it happening either unless Selfridges quit the Bullring for some reason. While Selfridges are there, they'll want their building kept looking beautiful.

I know we've all seen it all before, but it's impossible to walk by and ignore..gotta give her a snap or two!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v227/midgeblackandwhite/Picturefile621.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v227/midgeblackandwhite/Picturefile622.jpg

i rekon they should move the markets and rag market and expand the place, on a busy day with only a few stairs and liftsit gets pretty packed in there

anyone know what plans they have to expand it if any?

Not likely, Besides Matinau Galleries will be the next shopping centre to see redevelopment.

Nice photos.

More about the Bullring.

Hammerson shrugs off the high street gloom Aug 31 2005
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By Steve Pain, Deputy Business Editor


Property giant Hammerson - one of three partners behind Birmingham's hugely successful Bullring shopping centre - yesterday shrugged off the depression hanging over the UK retail sector with strong first half results.

The company, which also owns major stakes in shopping centres, said that despite the slowdown in consumer confidence, its retail assets were continuing to attract good levels of demand from tenants.

Hammerson is part of the Birmingham Alliance, the partnership behind Bullring and Martineau Place shopping centres. Henderson Global Investors and Land Securities are the other companies involved.

Chief executive John Richards said: "There are some uncertainties in retail trends in the UK but I have to say that Hammerson properties are well positioned in the best sectors of the market - dominant regional shopping centres and high-quality retail parks."

Mr Richards said Bullring had performed particularly well - in fact "outperforming the general trend in UK retailing" and continuing to attract tourist shoppers as well as regular customers.

Came across this nice pic:

http://www.arkitektnytt.no/images/large/future%20sys%20%20Night%2005_2.jpg

V nice Dee - just gotta tidy up the building around the Bullring now :)

Stunning.. I love this building.. One of my favourite buildings in Britain..!!!
As Bio said.. We just now need to tidy up the area around the Bullring... New Apartmens and Masterplans... That is what we need.. And offices.. I need to to continue my empire of erm well that's is another story.. My private life..!!

Not sure if this may have been already posted on another thread, if it has, apologies. It was reported on BBC Birmingham recently, that a website called 'Earthcam' has been compiling a list of its' 25 'most interesting' webcams from all around the world, and our BullRing was in this list!! More info can be found at

http://www.earthcam.com/top25/2005/index.php

Look what i found whilst out and about yesterday !

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c258/cargohold/Moor-St-Viaducts-6.jpg

Sweet baby Jesus! EBAY! EBAY!

you take them home cargohold?

Great find !

What a steal! :)

I really like this, but one thing I dont understand is why didn't they apply the style to the whole building, instead of just one part of it...

I really like this, but one thing I dont understand is why didn't they apply the style to the whole building, instead of just one part of it...

Have you seen the size of the Bullring? Applying it to the whole building would have been over the top imho. Just the Selfridges part is massive, you need to see it to appreciate the size, the whole thing done like that would have been overpowering.

Plus, it had to form a semi circle around St Martins church, which probably had a lot to do with it.

The thing I like most about the Bullring is that it has opened up the area around the Church, the view as you look down the slope to it is stunning. When I was a kid, St Martins was black from pollution and choked by the ring road. The transformation is amazing.

The Bullring is a clever piece of design. Three levels, all of which are accessible from street level - the slope from the Rotunda to the church is 20m or so.

I kind of agree with Leeds though - I think Selfridges would have looked better as a standalone store maybe connete by a glass walkway? Or underground? I guess land was at a premium.

I have warmed to the St Martins side of the centre generally - I think it is a fairly classic design so won't age that much. The side facing New St Stn though is bad - how could they get away with the Debenhams sheer wall?

IMO the worst elevation is the bit which faces the indoor markets.

I have warmed to the St Martins side of the centre generally - I think it is a fairly classic design so won't age that much. The side facing New St Stn though is bad - how could they get away with the Debenhams sheer wall?

I am taking a liking to that side with the long glass tunnel. The bit which goes over the road towards the Rotunda looks good because it is so striking. I hate the part facing the indoor markets though. That bit was obviously the last wall and the architects must have ran out of ideas.

Bullring hit by burden of empty storesAug 4 2006

By Anna Jeys, Birmingham Mail


IT'S one of the most successful shopping centres in Europe yet a number of stores are lying empty and abandoned in the heart of Birmingham's flagship Bullring.

The prestige complex has been hit by the collapse of several High Street retail chains who have been forced to close premises in Bullring.

Even though there is no shortage of other companies ready to snap up the empty premises, Bullring bosses are being forced to turn them away and keep the units closed and boarded up.

Eight units were empty today after top-name stores, including Nike and Elle, closed their doors.

The centre was first hit by the closure of the Gadget Shop, Silver Screen and Allsports last year and bosses have only just been given the green light to lease these units to other retailers.


In 2006 Nike, Kookai, Elle, Morgan and Mikey have also closed their doors.


The Nike franchise store, one of four in the country run by the Planmark group, went into administration last month with the loss of 25 jobs.


Bullring's general manager, Tim Walley, said: "We were disappointed to learn that these retailers would be closing.


"However, in all eight cases, the closures were the result of national administration which has seen the firms cease trading in stores throughout the United Kingdom.


"Kookai, Morgan, Elle, Nike and Mikey are still undergoing the administration process and until this is complete and the stores are handed back to Bullring, we are unable to lease the units to new retailers.


"We are also one of the UK's most visited shopping destinations and, as such, we have a waiting list of retail brands keen to open a store within the centre."


The Bullring has been a huge hit with shoppers since it opened in September 2003. To date the footfall is nearly 108 million shoppers.


Last week alone saw 730,000 shoppers pass through its doors, which is 5.8 per cent up on last year.

Just wondering. How do they know how many people pass through? So many different ways in and out.

All of these companies have gone into administration nation wide. It's not a Bullring failure.

Nike store just shot themselves in the foot. Nike goods were cheaper even in Selfridges for god's sake! I was looking for shorts, £45 in Nike, £20 everywhere else for the same ones.

Well, saying 730,000 shoppers, IKEA in Wednesbury brings in 400,000-500,000 a week according to the Express and Star last week.

Just wondering. How do they know how many people pass through? So many different ways in and out.
Very cleaver CCTV system.

The CCTV tracks peoples movements, uses face recognition, and when you go into a shop to buy something, it matches your face to your credit card. The system can also spot fraud if the face does not match what is on the database, and can also recognise known shop lifters that go to the Bullring. One of the first to be used in Europe I think. Also, companies can pay for information on peoples spending habits at the Bullring from the data collected with the system.

The computer system crashed in the first week that the Bullring opened as it was collecting too much data for the servers to cope with. Sun Microsystems have a huge contract with them indeed.

Came across this nice pic:

http://www.arkitektnytt.no/images/large/future%20sys%20%20Night%2005_2.jpg

This is one of the best pictures of St. Martin's & Selfridges I've seen, lovely.

Very cleaver CCTV system.

The CCTV tracks peoples movements, uses face recognition, and when you go into a shop to buy something, it matches your face to your credit card. The system can also spot fraud if the face does not match what is on the database, and can also recognise known shop lifters that go to the Bullring. One of the first to be used in Europe I think. Also, companies can pay for information on peoples spending habits at the Bullring from the data collected with the system.

The computer system crashed in the first week that the Bullring opened as it was collecting too much data for the servers to cope with. Sun Microsystems have a huge contract with them indeed.

I think someones been pulling your pudding mate.

I don't know about the Bullring, but many shopping centres use the footfall system which 'counts' infrared spots (i.e. body heat) passing through the doors.

That's what I believe (I could have interpreted it wrongly).

Re: closed shops, with the exception of Nike, I don't really notice the other ones boarded up.

Anyone know when Dixons XL closes?

Is Dixons closing? Or just getting rebranded Curry's Digital like the rest of the chains shops.

Yup. Dixons XL was an experiment by the company - large city centre electrical store. They acknowledge it has not worked and will close it. Not sure if it will retain a presence but looks like the unit will be carved into smaller ones.

I think XL could work elsewhere in the city centre - maybe MG?

I heard Dixons XL were leaving about a year ago, but I think that must have been shelved as they have rebranded the store Curries electronic or suchlike now, and I can imagine they would have bothered if it was closing soon.

The Technology Simon talked about is true, though its not a hundred percent by any stretch of the imagination, it was first invented to stop card counters entering casinos, but now the technology is much more advanced.

Dixons XL is dead and the store has already been rebranded as Currys. According to one of the managers they will not be leaving the bullring when I asked him last month.

Last year Dixons announced all Dixons branches were to close, as they wanted large retail units like Currys and PCWorld. A few months ago, they reviewed they situation, and as retail improved somewhat (has been in huge recession for a few years, this time last year was poor), they renamed Dixons to Currys.digital.

I stand corrected!

The news reports had someone from the company saying the large store wasn't performing as well as expected though :?

Yep, there is a huge sign up there saying Curry's Digital now. Shame. I still got the film in my old camera which has images from the day the Bullring opened. Now I got to find the camera... :D I was shocked about Nike. It is such a recognisable store.

I hear the West mall (the mall with the ball out front) is getting a hell of a lot more business than the East. Also their is an investigation into the escalators in the East mall because some people have complained they are making high pitched noises and causing dizziness. I have to admit, they are making high pitched noises but I have really sensitive hearing (according to the ear doctor) so I would probably hear it.

I have noticed that too - sounds like an intense version of when you put the TV on.

It happens in the Rep too.

The West Mall is a thoroughfare to New St Stn and St Martins so it is not surprising it is busier.

talking of images...

Before...
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m149/Mr_Glide/stmartin1.jpg

After...
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m149/Mr_Glide/stmartin2.jpg

Arty farty...
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m149/Mr_Glide/reflect.jpg