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Shopping Centers Today -> May 2003
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BOOK PAYS HOMAGE TO RIO MALL’S LOCALITY
BY DEBRA HAZEL
Ask anyone about Rio de Janeiro, and most people will think of the beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana, of Sugarloaf Mountain or of the statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado. Few outside the city know much, if anything, about ZonaNorte, a neighborhood several miles north of the city’s more famous areas.
Yet ZonaNorte, or the North Zone, had an important story to tell — one worthy of a book, the owners of a mall there decided. So, to honor the 15th anniversary in 2001 of the opening of the mall, called NorteShopping, they commissioned a book titled ZonaNorte: Territ—rio da Alma Carioca (Territory of the Carioca Soul).
“No one had ever written something about the North Zone of Rio,” said Denise Reis, public relations coordinator of EGEC, or Empresa Gerenciadora de Empreendimentos Comerciais, NorteShopping’s locally based management company. “Because of its anniversary, the importance of the shopping [center] to its community and as a gift for them, the marketing department of EGEC decided to do it.”
The goal was to celebrate the North Zone and its residents. The area, which includes some of Rio’s poorest sections, is home to legendary Samba greats Nelson Cavaquinho and Cartola.
“The North Zone is as important as the South Zone,” Reis said, pointing out that the North Zone has, in fact, an even stronger connection with music and family values than the South Zone.
Those values also dominate NorteShopping, which was the first mall built in the area when it opened in 1986, as well as the first in Brazil to be anchored by a hypermarket (Carrefour). The project was expanded in 1996 from 427,742 square feet to 689,000 square feet. Today the mall is the city’s second-largest. Besides anchors C&A, Carrefour, Casa & Video, Leader Magazine, Lojas Americanas and Ponto Frio, there are 304 other stores, four cinemas, two food courts, a theater and children’s play areas.
The center itself has become an icon for the region. Stained glass skylights by British artist Brian Clarke attract visitors from well beyond the North Zone.
Work on the book began in November 2000. EGEC invited Lucia Rito, a well-known Rio journalist who has written biographies of artists and soccer stars, to write the copy. To celebrate the center’s 15 years, 15 photographers were retained to take pictures of the 52 neighborhoods in the North Zone, supervised by art director Jair de Souza.
“They took photos of what they thought was wonderful, magical, unexpected,” Reis said.
Staff members at both the center and corporate levels were involved. Besides Reis, they included Maria Laura Guimaraes, NorteShopping’s marketing director; Leila Dada, the general manager; Marcelo Araripe, EGEC marketing director; and EGEC CEO Hugo Matheson Drummond. “Everybody participated,” said Reis.
The book shows the lifestyle of the inhabitants through pictures of motorcyclists, swimmers and children at play, and a narrative that tells the story of the region. One section profiles 15 famous natives and residents, including actress Fernanda Montenegro and novelist-screenwriter Gilberto Braga.
“It helps people that live there to be proud of themselves,” Reis said.
The hardcover, 212-page book, released in August 2001, sells at the mall’s Siciliano bookstore for 45 reals ($13). NorteShopping’s investment of 500,000 reals yielded benefits far outweighing the cost. The book has reinforced NorteShopping’s status as a local icon and links it to ZonaNorte.
“The exposure of NorteShopping in the media was fantastic,” Reis said. “Everybody talked about it and keeps talking.”
 | Current Issue November 2008 |