Docklands' struggling retail precinct has ditched its original name and retail concept as part of a $150 million revamp.
The old Harbour Town, a discount retail centre imported from Adelaide, is gone - replaced by the District, anchored by Swedish high-street retailer H&M, Hype DC, Platypus and SportsPower.
The revamped centre opens today, ahead of next year's launch of an eight-screen Hoyts cinema and a new Woolworths and market in 2019.
The aim is to become Docklands' default retail centre, an "urban village" offering a full suite of shopping and leisure activities.
Precinct owner, Sydney-based investment bank Ashe Morgan, settled on the District after a series of focus group workshops.
Bill Giouroukos, head of Ashe Morgan's retail strategy and development said "we looked at a number of different names. It's easy to change the name but transforming Harbour Town into an urban village is harder. We are trying to create a community."
"We looked at all the fundamentals and part of the repositioning was a rebranding. We wanted something that was a bit cool and edgy," Mr Giouroukos said.
The centre had suffered since its 2004 launch. Shoppers rarely made it deep into the north-western corner of Docklands. Two DFO outlets closer to the CBD competed for the shoppers and the strong westerly winds made the open air centre inhospitable.
The early woes of the Melbourne Star ferris wheel compounded the miserable whiff of failure.
Ashe Morgan has installed all-weather roofing, bluestone paving and other aesthetic upgrades in a bid to improve its amenity at the same time as changing the retail offering.
"We're moving away from the outlet model," he said. "We are not another shopping centre."
"When consumers think of Docklands, they will see the Star, the ice rink and the cinema. There's a whole new area of food and beverage and the Woolworths and District Market will complement the Costco."
Developer Capital Alliance has also recently received approval for a $200 million 17-storey five-star Marriott Hotel, with 200 rooms and 110 apartments that should generate more foot traffic for the precinct.
Ashe Morgan bought the centre in 2014 from Dutch banking giant ING, paying $150 million. Singapore-based SC Capital Partners also holds a 50 per cent stake in the 40,000 square metre project, which was purchased from ING Real EState.
The $17.5 billion 190 hectare Docklands redevelopment project started in 1997 and is about two-thirds completed. Nearly 11,000 people live there now but that number will almost double to 20,000 by 2025 when the project is expected to be completed and a further 80,000 people will work in the office towers
