Designed around the concept “Always worth the trip,” previous Premium Outlets shopping centers in Japan have offered visitors getting away from daily life by replicating American streetscapes.
By contrast, for the Fukaya-Hanazono Premium Outlets, designers referenced local nature, industry, and culture to create a tourist attraction that contributes to regional development.
To achieve this, natural elements such as the scenic mountain streams in nearby Nagatoro and the famous local lilies, as well as distinctive local architectural materials such as Fukaya bricks, were extracted and reconstructed, paying particular attention to novelty and freshness.
For example, the heaviness of the bricks was avoided by arranging it in a lattice pattern atop exterior walls, turning the entrance and edges of the promenade into landmarks. The overlapping curves of the promenade were inspired by the rivers of Nagatoro. At several places where the curves intersect, gazebos whose forms evoke lilies or splashing water link the buildings and provide places for visitors to relax.
Another design theme was creating not just a commercial shopping facility but a place where each visitor can enjoy themself as they please. In addition to outdoor dining areas at some of the restaurants and cafés, there is a plaza whose origami-like roof echoes the mountains visible in the distance, and in spaces created by varying the width of the promenade, patio umbrellas and outdoor furniture extend the shade of trees. Together, these design features offer opportunities to relax while experiencing the hallmarks of the region.
Although most of the buildings are single-story, one building on the southeast side has two stories to improve visibility from the rail line and highway. Its walls feature origami-like folds that look different in the daytime and at night, turning the building into a symbol of the shopping center. The food court, a key element of the facility, is located on the second floor of this building. Terrace seating faces the central plaza, offering views of both the facility itself and the mountains in the distance.
*PREMIUM OUTLETS® is a trademarks of Simon Property Group, Inc.
Project Overview:
Project name: Fukaya-Hanazono Premium Outlets®
Location: 169 Kuroda, Fukaya-shi, Saitama, Japan
Principal use: Outlet mall (retail stores, food and beverage establishments)
Client: Mitsubishi Estate Simon Co., Ltd.
Structure: Steel-framed structure, partly 2 stories
Site area: 197,700 m2
Building area: 37,070 m2
Total floor space: 34,577 m2
Store area: 27,500 m2
Number of stores: 137
Credit Information:
Architect: Mitsubishi Jisho Design Inc.
Photographer: Tokyo branch of SS Co.
Project team:
Design and supervision: Mitsubishi Jisho Design Inc.
Project Manager: Yasuhiro Shibata
Architecture: Mika Yoshihara, Kohei Noguchi, Jun Yunoue
Structure: Masato Narikawa, Chikako Kondo
MEP: Isao Nakazawa, Atsushi Nakamura, Yusuke Yamada, Maya Ishii, Masahiro Iida, Yumei Ko, Ryo Tomiyama
Civil Engineering: Masakazu Hori, Takaaki Imabayashi, Shun Okano
Landscape: Michinori Matsuo, Hidehisa Tashiro, Daichi Matsumoto
Supervision: Shigeaki Yoshise, Shohei Hamasaki
Design cooperation, food hall interior design, video direction: Tanseisha Co., Ltd.
Construction: Taisei Corporation
Mitsubishi Jisho Design Inc.
Mitsubishi Jisho Design got its start as Marunouchi Architectural Office in 1890, and soon after designed one of Japan’s first modern office building, the Mitsubishi Ichigokan (Building No.1). Over the subsequent decades, as the country modernized, the firm went on to design a series of iconic brick buildings in the central Marunouchi district of Tokyo. In the 1960s, responding to rapid economic growth and the burgeoning demand for office space, the area was transformed into an attractive central business district, with new buildings designed to conform to a uniform height of 31 meters. In the 21st century, these buildings have been replaced with high-rise towers and the area has been reimagined once more as a vibrant commercial and cultural district. Building on its core strengths of comprehensive design, urban insights, and the pursuit of essence and quality, Mitsubishi Jisho Design has led the development and renewal of the Marunouchi district for over 130 years, allowing it to bring unparalleled experience to bear in architectural and urban development projects throughout Japan and the world.
