Highcross Leicester

Highcross Leicester is a large shopping and leisure centre in the heart of Leicester, England. The complex occupies a central site around Eastgates, High Street and Church Gate, and forms one of the city’s principal retail destinations. Its present identity dates from the major redevelopment completed in 2008, but the site’s modern shopping-centre history began in 1991 when it opened as The Shires. The original centre was developed to complement Leicester’s Haymarket Shopping Centre, another central retail complex that was later redeveloped. The Shires was designed around a central urban location and incorporated retained frontages from buildings demolished for the project. New construction used a neo-Victorian architectural language intended to relate to Leicester’s historic city centre. An extension opened in 1994, adding frontage on Church Gate and increasing the centre’s role in the city’s retail offer. The largest transformation took place through the Shires West project, which was planned and constructed as a substantial extension between the existing centre and Leicester’s inner ring road. During the planning and construction period, the wider development was associated with the proposed name Highcross Quarter. In 2007, the developer announced that the final name would instead be Highcross Leicester. The rebranding coincided with a major increase in scale and ambition, positioning the complex as a regional shopping and entertainment destination rather than simply an extension of The Shires. The 2008 redevelopment approximately doubled the available retail space and added a John Lewis department store, a Showcase Cinema de Lux, restaurants and cafés, public squares, residential apartments, a bus interchange and a large additional car park connected to the main centre by a glass footbridge. The project also introduced a broader mix of national and international fashion, technology and lifestyle retailers, including brands such as G-Star, Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Zara and Apple, alongside smaller shops and food operators. The development was reported as costing £350 million and as being the largest regeneration project in Leicester for many years. Highcross Leicester opened to the public in its expanded form on 4 September 2008, after an open day on 1 June that attracted more than 1,000 visitors. The opening generated more than 125,000 visits on its first day and more than one million visits during its first two weeks, according to the supplied reference material. The centre’s scale made it one of the largest shopping centres in the East Midlands. The complex contains more than 100 shops, around 40 restaurants and cafés, a multiplex cinema and two large car parks. Its offer combines department-store retail, fashion, beauty, consumer electronics, dining and entertainment. Architectural elements of the extension were designed to give the development a contemporary identity while referencing Leicester’s industrial and textile heritage. The John Lewis façade, for example, uses layered glass with a fabric-inspired pattern derived from the retailer’s archives, an allusion to Leicester’s history as a textile-producing city. The cinema uses stainless-steel cladding with a deliberately irregular appearance. Highcross Leicester therefore functions both as a commercial shopping destination and as a significant piece of Leicester’s urban regeneration infrastructure. Its importance is tied not only to its tenant mix but also to its connections with the city centre, public transport, pedestrian routes and surrounding civic and historic areas.

Highcross Leicester developed from The Shires, a shopping centre opened in Leicester in 1991. It was built on a central site around Eastgates and High Street to supplement the Haymarket Shopping Centre. The project retained selected frontages from buildings removed during construction and combined them with new external buildings in a neo-Victorian style, reflecting the historic character of Leicester’s centre. A first extension opened in 1994, providing additional space and a frontage on Church Gate. The centre subsequently underwent a far more extensive redevelopment in the 2000s. The principal expansion, known during planning and early construction as Shires West, occupied land between the existing centre and the city’s inner ring road. The project was designed to approximately double the retail space and create a broader mixed-use destination. The redevelopment added a John Lewis department store, a Showcase Cinema de Lux, restaurants, cafés, public squares, residential apartments, a bus interchange and a new approximately 2,000-space car park. The new car park was connected to the main centre by a glass footbridge after an earlier car park was removed to make way for the extension. New tenants included international and designer fashion brands, an Apple Store and additional food operators. The development’s architecture included the UK debut of Foreign Office Architects for the John Lewis and cinema elements, according to the supplied reference material. The cinema used buckled stainless-steel cladding, while the John Lewis building incorporated layered glass with a textile-inspired pattern. The design reference to fabric reflected Leicester’s historical importance as a textile-producing city. The naming of the enlarged centre became a public issue. In 2006, the proposed name Highcross Quarter was announced. Local criticism focused partly on the use of “quarter” rather than “centre.” The name was changed to Highcross Leicester in July 2007. Contemporary reporting also described a dispute involving local witches and internet domains associated with the proposed name. Hammerson later pursued a WIPO complaint relating to the highcrossquarter.com domain, but the complaint was rejected in August 2007. An open day for the enlarged centre took place on 1 June 2008 and attracted more than 1,000 people. The completed development opened on 4 September 2008. Its first-day attendance exceeded 125,000 visitors, and the centre recorded more than one million visits in its first two weeks, according to the supplied reference. The project was described as a £350 million regeneration scheme and as the largest shopping-centre development in the East Midlands at the time. Highcross Leicester now operates as a major city-centre retail and leisure destination, with more than 100 shops, around 40 restaurants and cafés, a multiplex cinema and two large car parks. Its role extends beyond retail: the centre links shopping, dining, entertainment, public transport, pedestrian movement and urban redevelopment within central Leicester.

• 2008

  Expanded centre opens

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  The enlarged and refurbished Highcross Leicester opens to the public after a major mixed-use regeneration project.

• 2007

  Final name changed to Highcross Leicester

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  The developer announces that the centre will use the name Highcross Leicester.

• 2007

  WIPO domain-name ruling

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  WIPO rejects Hammerson’s complaint concerning the highcrossquarter.com domain.

• 2006

  Highcross Quarter name announced

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  The planned redevelopment is publicly associated with the name Highcross Quarter.

• 1994

  First major extension

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  An extension opens with a new frontage on Church Gate.

• 1991

  The Shires opens

  [1]Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org

  The original shopping centre opens in central Leicester to complement the Haymarket Shopping Centre.

A large regional shopping and leisure destination combining mainstream and premium retail, dining, cinema entertainment and city-centre regeneration functions.

• Retail · 1991

  Retail shops

  Highcross Leicester provides more than 100 retail units ranging from large anchor stores to smaller specialist shops. The tenant mix includes department-store, fashion, accessories, technology and lifestyle retail, with the 2008 expansion adding brands such as G-Star, Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Zara and Apple.

• Department store · 2008

  John Lewis & Partners

  The John Lewis department store was one of the principal additions in the 2008 extension. It serves as a major anchor for the centre and broadens the offer across home, fashion, electrical, beauty and other department-store categories. Its façade uses layered glass with a textile-inspired design referencing Leicester’s industrial heritage.

• Cinema and entertainment · 2008

  Showcase Cinema de Lux

  The Showcase Cinema de Lux was introduced as part of the 2008 expansion and became the only multiplex cinema in Leicester city centre according to the supplied reference. It adds a substantial leisure and evening-economy component to the shopping-centre offer.

• Food and beverage · 2008

  Restaurants and cafés

  The centre contains approximately 40 restaurants and cafés. The 2008 redevelopment added 13 new food and beverage operators, helping position Highcross as a destination for dining as well as shopping.

• Customer infrastructure · 2008

  Parking and transport facilities

  Highcross Leicester includes two large car parks and a bus interchange. The redevelopment also created an approximately 2,000-space car park across the inner ring road, connected to the shopping centre by a glass footbridge.

• 2008

  Complete the Shires West expansionStrategy

  Background

  The existing centre required a major expansion to increase retail capacity and strengthen Leicester’s city-centre offer.

  Action taken

  A large extension was built between the former Shires and the inner ring road, adding anchor retail, cinema, restaurants, public spaces, apartments, a bus interchange and additional parking.

  Aftermath

  The expanded complex opened as Highcross Leicester on 4 September 2008 and became one of the largest shopping centres in the East Midlands.

  Construction cost. £350 million (2008 redevelopment)

  Source

• 2007

  Adopt the Highcross Leicester nameStrategy

  Background

  The enlarged centre had been announced under the proposed name Highcross Quarter, but the developer later decided that a different name would provide a stronger customer identity and raise the profile of the development and Leicester.

  Action taken

  The final name was changed to Highcross Leicester in July 2007.

  Aftermath

  The renamed centre opened after the 2008 redevelopment with a substantially expanded retail, dining, transport and leisure offer.

  Source

1. 1Highcross Leicesteren.wikipedia.org
2. 2Highcross Leicester official websitehighcrossleicester.com