Bluewater
Kent, UK

Fusing nature with commercial opportunity

Service

Architecture, Interior Design

Sector

Leisure, retail

Client

Lend Lease Projects Ltd

Size

152,000m²

Challenge

Benoy was tasked with masterplanning and designing an expansive, mixed-use retail and leisure complex that integrates into Kent’s ​‘Garden of England’ countryside. To attract thousands of shoppers every day, it needed to cater to a diverse range of commercial prospects with an enticing design and convenient facilities.

Solution

Following extensive behaviour research, we incorporated a triangular design that is easy to navigate and brings huge commercial opportunities for the flagship stores in each corner. To reflect the surrounding lakes, we integrated swathes of glass.

Result

Providing 140,000m² of retail space and 12,000m² designated to leisure, Bluewater offers an enhanced shopping experience and connects hundreds of businesses to the community in the South East corner. The design sets the benchmark for modern, quality British retail with its distinctive trilateral glass structure that brings the interior closer to the surroundings.