The Gen Z and millennial crowd can be a difficult audience to capture for entertainment-outing options. These demographics may have disposable income, but they are also finicky and easily bored, as they are used to the immediacy of endless amusement options on their digital devices. One solution for engaging this age segment has been to offer a rotating artistic sensory experience in a retail format. A successful example of this is the AREA15 large venue attraction, which incorporate a rotating mix of multiple sensory-art activation experiences, as well as various live musical acts and entertainment-oriented retail and dining.
Although AREA15 has been in operation since September 2020, in a 200,000-s.f. large complex building just off of the Sunset Strip in Las Vegas, the concept’s creator, real estate firm Fisher Brothers, in conjunction with the Beneville Studios creative agency, has expressed interest in expanding, and will be opening a 300,000-s.f. complex in Orlando, Fla., in 2024. The Orlando site is about a seven-minute drive away from the Walt Disney World Resort and will be walking distance to the O-Town West mixed-use destination, developed by Unicorp National Developments Inc., which features the largest White Castle in the country, at 4,567 s.f. As for future sites, expect resort-destination locales to be targeted that are near hotels, colleges, convention centers and theme park attractions.
AREA15 is free to enter, with payment options depending on which art installation exhibit the customer would like to walk through. The Las Vegas site features the permanent 52,000-s.f. Meow Wolf-branded “Omega Mart” installation, a quirky installation that mimics a grocery store interior, but with secret rooms and odd products on display. It also houses Wink World, a 1,500-s.f. psychedelic neon light show display from the chief creative officer of the performing act, Blue Man Group. The space also has such national branded retailers as the experiential Five Iron Golf, which simulates different golf driving ranges, the 6,300-s.f. Dueling Axes axe throwing adventure, candy brand Rocket Fizz and ice cream brand Emack & Bolio’s. Due to the popularity of AREA15, expect more such immersive art concepts to pop up in the future, especially in tourist-heavy destinations with a nightlife element.
