When RLI last spoke to Michael Ellis of Hollywood-based 5+design back in 2010, the practice had been extremely bullish about its future. Happily, this positive outlook remains unchanged as the company enjoys continued growth and the continued confidence placed in it by its clients, existing and new.
The past year has seen 5+design working with a number of new clients worldwide, including Shui On and Swire in Asia, Simon and Westfield in the US and ECE in Europe. Meanwhile, it has continued its working relationship with many repeat clients around the world, which is always a welcome position due to the rapport that is established over time between the development and design teams – ultimately leading to even better standards of work.
“We are busy and growing,” explains Ellis. “A number of our projects opened last year, and we have even more currently under construction. We are looking forward to many of these new projects opening in the next several years.”
5+design’s current projects include the Dragon Valley Retail District at the centre of the Yongsan International Business District in Seoul, South Korea; the China Resources Living Mall in Zibo and Vanke One City in Shenzhen, China; and the Del Amo Town Center renovation in Southern California
The practice also has a number of ongoing projects in Turkey: “We’ve been fortunate to have a long-term working relationship with Renaissance Development Co, who have aggressively developed within their home country as well as Russia, Libya, Turkmenistan and other markets,” says Ellis.
Kozzy in Istanbul, Optimum Adana and Optimum Izmir have all opened in the last several years in Turkey, Aura opened in Russia, and there are several more projects in the construction pipeline for 2013.
“In North Africa, the Arab Spring affected our work substantially. Bab Trabolous, our large mixed-use project in Tripoli with Renaissance Development, has been delayed for several years, and the opening of Cairo Festival City has been delayed until next year as well.”
The practice remains very active in Asia, particularly China, and has expanded its office in Shanghai whilst opening new offices in Shenzhen. There are also active projects in Korea and Singapore, as well as potential for new work in Indonesia.
www.5plusdesign.com
For the full article, please see the Nov 2012 issue.
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