Qin Pang highlights multi-scale urban renewal at Nanjing conference
On 9 July, Qin Pang, Director and Head of Benoy’s Shanghai Studio, spoke at the 2026 Nanjing First-Launch Economy Development Conference, sharing perspectives on how multi-scale urban renewal can help shape the next generation of commercial destinations. He was joined by Emi Wang, Benoy’s Head of Business Development for China, at the conference, which brought together around 400 representatives from government, industry, commercial real estate, brands and investment institutions.
The annual conference explored the continued evolution of Nanjing’s first-launch economy, highlighting the city’s shift from attracting flagship retail openings to building a broader ecosystem that supports innovation, consumption and long-term commercial growth.
As part of the keynote programme, Qin delivered a speech titled Trends in Commercial Building Renovation and Transformation: Multi-Scale Urban Iteration and Evolution. He argued that commercial renewal should be approached as a coordinated process across three scales: urban districts, commercial neighbourhoods and individual buildings. Rather than focusing solely on physical upgrades, he emphasised the importance of creating flexible, culturally distinctive places capable of adapting to changing consumer behaviours and retail formats.
Drawing on a series of international projects, Qin illustrated how this approach can be applied in different contexts. The recently completed Nanjing Alibaba Center demonstrates how mixed-use planning can break the boundaries of traditional industrial parks by integrating headquarters offices, eco-friendly retail and apartments to create a vibrant district-level hub and a popular urban social media landmark. Suzhou Central, meanwhile, uses layered public spaces and locally inspired design to strengthen its role as a waterfront destination.
At the neighbourhood scale, projects such as Xiushui Street Historical and Cultural Block in Ningbo and FlowBund in Shanghai highlight how heritage-led regeneration can balance conservation with contemporary commercial uses. At the building scale, Singapore’s WEAVE at Resorts World Sentosa demonstrates how the adaptive reuse of existing assets can create all-day lifestyle destinations through improved circulation, landscape integration and sustainable design.
Following the conference, Qin Pang and Emi Wang joined the Hunan Road Business District Renewal Inspection and Exchange Seminar, where discussions focused on commercial revitalisation, evolving consumer experiences and the future development of one of Nanjing’s historic retail districts.
