Reshaping a traditional business district  

Lead8 is the retail architect and an interior designer for the retail and office components of Hangzhou Center – a high-end development reshaping the retail landscape in the city’s popular Wulin Square. 

Hangzhou Center occupies a prime location in the city, situated within the Wulin business district and adjacent to the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. The commercial complex spans 260,000 square meters, with the podium designed with eight storeys of above-ground retail and six storeys below-ground housing a food hall and parking facilities. Integration to two underground metro lines enables the scheme to benefit from a transit-oriented position. 

Hangzhou Center sets new records with the deepest foundation pit to be undertaken by the developer China Resources Land and within the Zhejiang Province. The vision for Lead8’s design is to transform the traditional shopping experience in the area and bring forth a new commercial ecosystem in the heart of Hangzhou.

The design draws inspiration from Hangzhou's landscape to form an elegant commercial addition to the district. The forms of the façade reference classical Chinese paintings depicting the city and its traditional pavilions, Baoshi (Jewel) Mountain and famous West Lake. 

Designing on a city scale, Lead8 created a 'media box' to form multiple high visibility display surfaces. Multi-dimensional, human-scale floating boxes complement the design strategy and integrate leisure with lifestyle retail, while luxury flagship stores along the street level become new district landmarks. 

The scheme adds another landmark to the comprehensive portfolio of work between Lead8 and China Resources Land. The long-term partnership already features several completed and award-winning projects including MixC Changchun, MixC Nanjing, MixC Wuhan, MixC Ningbo, MixC Shenzhen Bay, and the Beijing Daxing International Airport (Commercial Landside Terminal).