Derbion’s drive to create a dynamic city centre

Fifteen years ago this month, the Derbion (then Westfield Derby) shopping centre opened its doors, putting the city’s retail offer into a different league. Here, we catch up with Adam Tamsett, centre director at Derbion, who reflects on those last 15 years – and the future of the popular retail and leisure destination.

Q: Hi Adam, could you tell us a little bit about yourself and Derbion?

A. I’ve been working within shopping centres and the retail sector for 15 years, most of which has been at Derbion.

I actually came from a marketing background before I stepped into the shopping centre world, which I suppose is quite unusual!

A large part of my role is managing people and I’m extremely proud of the team we have at Derbion.

We’re a diverse team with lots of different skill sets, including operations, marketing, commercialisation, security, technical services, environmental services and customer services.

I was born and raised in Derbyshire and still live in the county to-date, and I’m incredibly passionate about all things Derby and Derbyshire.

Q: What are the major changes you have seen at the centre over the past 15 years?

A: There have been plenty. Ones that stick in the mind would be the opening day on 9 October 2007, when we first opened the doors to the centre – I’ll never forget that day.

Another would be when we opened Hollywood Bowl and Paradise Island Adventure Golf in 2017, which helped further establish us as an evening destination in the region.

We had a fantastic marketing campaign and did a launch event in Showcase Cinema de Lux with Derby’s business network and Marketing Derby Bondholders, which was a real highlight.

The deal with the Frasers Group was another real landmark for us.

FLANNELS has been a terrific addition to the centre, and we have Frasers opening its store in December.

We also announced the £2 million refurbishment of the Food Terrace in July, which is well underway.

The refurbishment is introducing a fresh new look, additional seating and exciting new brands that will join the existing line-up, including Popeyes, which opened this month, and Burger & Sauce, which is set to open its doors later this year.

Q: Derbion appears to have evolved its offer – from predominantly retail-led to a mix of retail, leisure and food. Was this a defined strategy?

A: Yes, shopper habits have changed, and we need to move with the times to appeal to our customers.

There’s a huge growth in catering and eating out and it’s clear that people want experiences to enjoy.

We have created a high-quality leisure offer, which has everything under one roof.

We’re committed to strengthening Derbion’s breadth of offer across retail, food and beverage and leisure – and we’re always on the lookout for new brands and experiences that our customers will enjoy.

Q: Post-pandemic, the way we use our city centres has changed. How has Derbion adapted to these changes?

A: Absolutely, the way in which city centres are used has changed as we’ve had such a long time indoors, which has meant that customers habits have naturally changed.

It’s very easy to order online, but people still like to come out and have those social interactions, so ensuring our offer across retail, food and beverage and leisure is strong for our customers is important.

We also need to look at the customer journey to make it as easy as possible for shoppers but also have a compelling offer to attract people to the city centre.

Derbion has recently become home to a number of new concept stores from leading brands.

Jack Wills selected the centre as the location to open its first standalone store in the UK to showcase a brand-new look and feel.

In August, Derbion became the first shopping destination worldwide to welcome River Studios, a brand-new store concept from River Island, which included a 30% upsize on its existing footprint in-centre.

We also work closely with partners in the city, including Derby City Council , locals BIDs and Marketing Derby to make sure Derby is an attractive place to visit through various projects and initiatives.

Q. The country is facing a number of economic pressures at the moment. How does Derbion ensure that people still visit even though money is tight?

A. We’re aware of the challenges that people are currently facing and our customers are at the heart of everything we do here at Derbion, so we’re continually accessing our offer, to aim to cater for all life stages and shopping missions.

The centre is home to over 200 household names and we’re proud to have a wide variety of incredible brands across retail, food and beverage, and leisure at Derbion, which offer our customers fantastic products and services all-year-round.

Q. The challenges for retail have been well documented – but Derbion appears to be bucking the trend by attracting a number of new brands? What’s your secret?

A. Retailers such as Tommy Hilfiger, Mango and FLANNELS have been incredibly successfully and popular with our shoppers since they opened their doors, which demonstrates the desire for iconic brands at the centre and in the city.

We are continually seeking to broaden our retail and leisure mix to firmly position Derbion as the go-to leisure and retail destination in the Midlands.

Q. What does Derbion do to support local independents – and could you tell us more about ‘Hatch’?

Hatch is designed to offer small business owners the opportunity to take their brand to the next level and open a retail space within Derbion for six weeks, completely rent free.

The campaign offers entrepreneurs and budding business owners the opportunity to set up their own retail space within Derbion with rent, service charges and business rates covered for the first six weeks.

The competition has enjoyed success since launch, with Design 44 and Project D both originating from the scheme.

We know that our customers are on the lookout for up-and-coming brands and a range of services to enjoy alongside our breadth of big-name retailers, and Hatch is a great way for us to give local, independent businesses the support they need to take the next step up and for them to be able to have the opportunity to try retailing in a shopping centre.

Q. How do you work with other areas of the city, such as the BIDs, to ensure that Derbion benefits the city as a whole?

A. We always need to look outside of the building and play our role in making Derby city centre the best it can be too.

As mentioned, we work closely with Derby City Council, local BIDs and Marketing Derby to support the wider city centre regeneration strategy and ongoing activity. I think the future of Derby is looking very bright!

Q. Is corporate social responsibility important to Derbion – and in what ways do you support the local community?

A. Yes, people are at the heart of everything we do at Derbion and we’re extremely proud to be supporting three incredible charities – YMCA Derbyshire, RSPCA Derby & District and Safe and Sound through our brand-new charity initiative, Derbion Cares, which launched earlier this year.

As part of the initiative, all Derbion colleagues have been given two additional days of paid volunteering time, to support the charities.

We’ve recently introduced our Community Hub – a multi-purpose space situated in-centre, which is designed for local groups to book and use for a variety of activities.

We’re also extremely proud to be supporting the Ramathon and to be the title sponsor of one of the East Midlands’ biggest charity road runs, which raises tens of thousands of pounds each year for local good causes.

Q. It’s now been a while since the centre rebranded to Derbion – and all the new branding is now up. Familiarising ourselves with a new name was always going to take time. Now that some time has passed, are you pleased with Derbion as a choice?

A. Yes, definitely. Since I’ve been involved in 2007, the centre has always been owned by a branded group Westfield and intu. Becoming Derbion was our chance to create something unique for Derby.

We spoke to a lot of people about what the shopping centre meant to them, and we wanted a brand that was compelling and distinctive to Derby, reflecting the pride that we have in a city that has so much to offer.

The centre’s re-brand to Derbion, in homage to Derby’s longstanding association with motion and global innovation, was more than just a name, it signified an array of changes that our visitors would see, including a raft of major deals and high-profile brands arriving in the centre, as well as multi-million-pound projects such as the £2 million refurbishment of the Food Terrace.

Q. There are quite a few new brands set to arrive at Derbion between now and Christmas. A lot of people are looking forward to seeing the new Frasers store. Is there an opening you are particularly looking forward to?

A. The next couple of months are going to be particularly exciting as we welcome a host of new names, including Frasers’ multi-brand flagship store spanning three floors, lingerie brand Boux Avenue and the brand-new, extended H&M store which includes the arrival of H&M Home alongside Ted Baker, Søstrene Grene, 200 Degrees and Burger & Sauce.

The Food Terrace is also set to be complete over the coming weeks. It’s been fantastic to see the transformation so far and I’m really looking forward to that being completed, which will give our visitors (and me and the wider Derbion team!) more food brands and experiences to enjoy.

Q. Looking longer term, can you tell us more about the Eastern Gateway scheme and where we are with that? Are there any other investments/innovations being planned by Derbion?

A. Plans are progressing for the proposed Eastern Gateway development, designed to improve public access to the city centre from Derby bus station, build a new entrance to Derbion on East Street, add additional shops and leisure outlets and create a new public boulevard. The formal planning application is expected to be submitted by the end of this year.

Q. Looking at the city, and some of the key investments taking place like Becketwell and Nightingale Quarter, where do you think Derby is at in terms of the health of its regeneration and economy? Does Derbion feel some of the benefits of these investments, particularly those that encourage city centre living?

A. The reputation of the city in the retail sector is booming, which you can see by the new brands that have arrived in Derby for the first time recently, as well as with the retailers that are set to open at the centre over the coming weeks.

It’s fantastic to see cranes in the sky and work across the city happening as part of the massive city’s regeneration, which is creating a successful and dynamic city centre.

I believe city living and offices are key to the success of Derby’s future and is something I’m incredibly passionate about and keen to support.

In the summer, we launched a brand-new Cycle Hub which provides a secure, indoor cycle storage facility for Derby’s cyclists in partnership with Spokesafe, Spoke Out and Derby City Council.

I’m keen for the city centre to become more sustainable and have more green space and would love to work with Down to Earth Derby (BH) on this development, which is a project that seeks to revolutionise Derby’s urban environment through nature-based regeneration.

Derby is a dynamic and changing city and Derbion’s continued transformation will play an important role in ensuring that it continues to thrive.

Q. Finally, is there anything else you would like to add?

A. Christmas is coming, and we’re delighted to announce that our Winter Woodland is returning by popular demand, offering families the chance to meet Santa in the lead up to Christmas, before he flies back to the North Pole.

We’re also set to unveil brand-new Christmas decorations (including a new sparkly interactive tree!) in-centre in the lead up to Christmas, which is very exciting, as well as announce an all-new festive-themed VR experience, where visitors will be able to take a journey on Santa’s sleigh.

There’s further information on all things Christmas coming very soon!