Eva Shang

Eva Shang

For the purpose of this assignment, I took on the perspective of Copley Place and Newbury Street’s target audience: a young, professional woman who likes fashion. The vast majority of shops in Copley Place are luxury goods, just enough above a younger woman’s salary to be aspirational. Asides from the central waterfall, there are few places to sit, indicating that Copley Place is not meant for families or for tourists, but rather as an addendum to the luxury hotels for people like Emily to shop while in Boston. The connected Prudential Center has more traffic, although the vast majority of visitors are still professionals working in the buildings connected. In both, places to eat are few and concentrated in small areas, indicating that the primary purpose of the mall is for shopping and not for leisure. The structure of the ceilings of both is to allow for the maximum amount of natural light in a controlled, air-conditioned environment to facilitate ease of shopping.

On the other hand, Newbury Street appears antiquated in comparison, and most likely, far less appealing to young professional women wishing to consume. Because the street is outside, the shops are denied the opportunity to broadcast aspirational messaging or images. The stores themselves are more obscure, and towards the edges of the shopping districts, the businesses become cheap salons and cafes—much less high end than Copley Place. Stores must advertise through limited window space, and although buildings are curved to allow for maximum commercial exposure, the sidewalk is slightly raised and adjoined to the stores by a narrow staircase. Altogether, Newbury Street is much less conducive to bringing in potential customers. The traffic on Newbury street is also significantly more mixed, and the audience catered to is less controlled than in Copley Place. For a young professional, Newbury Street might be a quirky brunch spot, but definitely would not be the center of consumption.