Today officially marks the opening of Livat Hammersmith, a new space for residents, Londoners and visitors to come together to have fun, to experience new things, and to eat and shop.
The launch comes two years after Ingka Centres confirmed an investment of £170M to acquire and redevelop the existing Kings Mall, located on the main high street of Hammersmith, into a lively ‘meeting place’ complete with atrium and new offerings. It is Ingka Centres’ first urban meeting place, with a second downtown development already in progress in San Francisco.
The new meeting place is anchored by a new, small IKEA store. The innovative store is the first time IKEA home-furnishing accessories will be available to buy on the UK high street, with the full range available for delivery. The store has been designed around the needs of those shopping in city centres, with a free-flowing layout and the Swedish Deli positioned at the edge of the store to allow busy commuters to ‘grab and go’.
Alongside the new IKEA store, inspired by the creativity of the people of Hammersmith, the meeting place will offer a lively programme of events and pop up outlets to provide the community with different ways to spend time together. It will offer a bookable ‘pay-by-the-hour’ adaptive retail space operated by Sook, giving the local community affordable access to an exciting new destination designed for people to meet, connect and shop with a variety of different businesses.
The launch of Livat Hammersmith is a significant milestone in Ingka Centres’ €5bn global expansion, following the opening of four new meeting places in China, as well as the recent unveiling of plans for India. A second urban meeting place is already in development at 945 Market Street in lively downtown San Francisco.
