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Shopping, parking, eating and Phoenixing

The mall at Lower Parel doesn't want to be known as Phoenix Mills but High Street Phoenix

Billboards with smiley faces instead of human faces have marked the busy roads of Mumbai. The mall (not mill) at Lower Parel wants people to go 'phoenixing'.

Created by RMG Connect, the agency that handles the creative duties for High Street Phoenix, the objective of the campaign, called Let's go Phoenixing, is two pronged.

High Street Phoenix was among the first shopping malls to come up in Mumbai at Lower Parel and has been referred to as Phoenix Mills by most people (as it was mill land that was given away as residential and commercial property. The mill was called Phoenix Mills).

Shopping, parking, eating and Phoenixing
The mall has been undergoing massive changes over the past year, with many new additions such as the Skyzone, Shangri-La and a multiplex, among other things. Customer surveys endorsed that even when customers don't shop at the mall, there was a happy feeling to just 'be there'. "It's not just about shopping," says Pritti Ravindra, general manager, Phoenix Mills, "but the entire day's worth of entertainment that gets people to visit the mall."

Thus, to stop being referred to as Phoenix Mills and to highlight the many options that the mall offers, the campaign for High Street Phoenix was kick started.

Alex Coutinho, head, marketing, High Street Phoenix, explains the arrival of the creative thought. He says that according to the lingo today, most nouns are converted into verbs by adding 'ing'. Thus, the word 'phoenixing' was born to encapsulate all that one can do and experience at the mall. As the company wanted to create a buzz, this seemed like a good route to do so.

The campaign makes use of outdoor and print. Radio is also a part of the media mix. "The aim is to make 'phoenixing' a part of everyday lingo," says Sadanand Parulekar, head, servicing, RMG Connect. Television isn't a part of the media mix (as is the case with most mall advertising) as the company wants to concentrate more on the local target group. Billboards have been placed at important locations between Bandra and Colaba.

The billboard revolves around how people are happy while they're at High Street Phoenix. One of the visuals has a couple (their faces have been replaced by a happy smiley) in a restaurant. The copy beside it says 'Beyond the joy of 50 dining explorations'. Similar ads that focus on the many things that one can do at the destination have been used on billboards. Print ads in magazines, tourist directories and news dailies; glow balloons, direct mailers in mall promotions and smiley giveaways are part of the campaign.

In subsequent phases of the campaign, there will be a play on the word 'phoenixing'. The campaign will be unveiled over a period of six months.

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