Leisure and experiential activities are playing an increasingly crucial role in revitalising shopping destinations. As consumer expectations shift, physical retail spaces must evolve from transactional venues to dynamic destinations offering immersive experiences.
This trend will be in the spotlight during LeisurUp by MAPIC 2024. Industry leaders will gather in Cannes, France, from 26 – 28 November to explore how leisure can drive foot traffic, energise retail environments, and shape the industry’s future.
We speak to RX France, the organiser of MAPIC, ahead of this year’s events to learn more about this trend and how visitors can gain further insights at LeisurUp 2024.
The new retail equation
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Francesco Pupillo is portfolio director for retail property and big data/AI events at RX France. He introduces the theme of the 29th MAPIC edition, The New Retail Equation: Growing in a Fast-Changing World, explaining how the retail and retail property market is now shaped by a complex equation involving several structural variables that redefine traditional business models. These include the shift towards omnichannel retail, the importance of experiential elements, sustainability, and the impact of artificial intelligence on consumer interactions.
“Consumers today don’t just go to a place to buy something; they go for the experience,” he says. “That’s why leisure has become a central focus for MAPIC. It’s driving footfall and changing how landlords and retailers approach space management.”
Experiential retail in action
As experiential retail gains momentum, leisure operators and developers are taking innovative approaches to transform underperforming shopping centres into vibrant destinations.
A notable example is the redevelopment of the North Paris La Villette district. Here, leisure operators like Seven Squares have redefined a former shopping mall into an experiential hub featuring trampolines, bowling, escape rooms, and laser games. This diversification attracts visitors and encourages them to stay longer, dine, and shop, thereby boosting overall sales.
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Also in Paris, Toca Social is set to open a new venue in a shopping mall in La Défense. Both examples reflect a broader trend in the retail space, where the integration of leisure is seen as essential for attracting foot traffic. Elsewhere, examples such as the redeveloped Battersea Power Station in London, where 50% of the space is dedicated to leisure, highlight the global scale of this transformation.
According to Fanny de la Porte, head of leisure at RX France, immersive experiences and the use of intellectual property (IP) are two of the most significant trends shaping leisure today:
“We’re seeing a surge in the use of branded IP experiences. At LeisurUp this year, you’ll find a pavilion showcasing more than ten IP brands, including Hasbro, Smiley, and TF1, which offer powerful storytelling opportunities for retail destinations.”
From vacancy fillers to strategic partners
In the past, leisure was often used as a temporary solution to fill vacancies in shopping centres. However, as de la Porte and Pupillo note, this approach proved unsustainable. Today, there is a shift towards a holistic strategy. This positions leisure as integral to the overall vision of the destination rather than a last-minute addition.
“Landlords and developers now recognise that merely installing a trampoline park for a few months doesn’t work,” says Pupillo. “The modern approach involves extensive redevelopment to transform shopping centres into stages for continuous programming. Events range from cultural and sports activities to immersive experiences.”
This shift is also evident in evolving leasing models. Traditional fixed-rent agreements are giving way to revenue-sharing models and even footfall-based rent, where tenants pay based on the number of visitors attracted. “The change is significant. Today, landlords are proactively seeking leisure concepts. They understand it’s not just about renting space; it’s about generating traffic for the entire centre.”
He adds that now, the conversation has moved on from the viability of leisure concepts to their scalability:
“This is crucial in our market. Many people have unique concepts, but the ability to be scalable is key to developing within the retail property world.”
What to Expect at LeisurUp 2024
MAPIC is an international retail real estate event. It brings together retail, leisure, food, and tech real estate leaders. In 2020, organisers added LeisurUp as an event dedicated to accelerating the integration of location-based attractions into lifestyle destinations.
Alongside MAPIC 2024, LeisurUp will feature a comprehensive exhibition area and a dynamic programme of content sessions. It will offer a platform for retailers, leisure operators, landlords, and investors to connect and explore the future of retail. This year’s edition will bring together more than ten IP brands. Meanwhile, a new immersive experience zone is designed to give attendees a firsthand look at innovative concepts.
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The exhibition will showcase a variety of leisure formats, from small-scale operators occupying 500 square meters to large-scale projects covering 10,000 square meters.
De la Porte highlights the emphasis on immersive experiences and new technologies:
“We’re introducing an immersive zone where attendees can interact with experiences like the Fast & Furious car or explore interactive 3D screens. These installations show how leisure can be integrated into retail to create engaging and memorable experiences.
“We’re also bringing more and more operators. When we started LeisurUp, we had a lot of manufacturers. Today, we also want to present those who run the spaces. For example, Lane7 has a booth this year at MAPIC, as well as Little Lion Entertainment. So, we’re really bringing the whole chain to LeisurUp. That means our retailers are meeting the IPs, the landlords and the operators.”
New for this year is the ‘Meet the leisure operators’ lounge, which will maximise synergies with retail property players.
Learn at LeisurUp 2024
On the content side, the LeisurUp programme will open on Tuesday 26 November with a session called How to transform 600 sq m into a footfall magnet, organised by 360 Karting.
In the afternoon, there will be a keynote from Gaëtan Le Jariel, president of Gulli Parcs, a chain of parks based around the children’s TV channel Gulli. He will share insights on the evolution of leisure parks and the scalability of entertainment concepts.
This will be followed by The shopping centre as a stage, which will discuss bringing entertainment, education, and culture to malls and how attractions, activations, and pop-ups can drive traffic. The session will also explore how to measure the impact of these additions and how operators can use data to optimise value.
Tuesday afternoon will also see the TEA Presents session from The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), a non-profit representing compelling places and experiences worldwide. Then, in Leisure & highstreets: the perfect mix, a panel including Tom Lionetti-Magiure of Little Lion Entertainment will look at how leisure can stimulate urban and town regeneration. This will include insights on repurposing units to add to the destination mix. It will also explore how to measure the positive impact of change.
Attendees can also look forward to the popular Leisure Pitch sessions, which take place on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. In these sessions, new brands present their concepts in quick-fire four-minute presentations. This provides a glimpse into the future of retail entertainment.
On Wednesday, 27 November, the agenda features Evolution or Innovation: How to keep your offer fresh. This will examine how the development of leisure facilities in shopping centres and town centres has fared, five years on.
The Leisure Summit
The Leisure Summit is an invitation-only event on Wednesday afternoon. It will allow attendees to gain insights into the latest trends in Leisure, discover new leisure concepts and key projects integrating leisure in lifestyle destinations, and network with a targeted audience. The session will bring together leisure operators, landlords, cities and retailers.
Yael Coifman, senior partner at Leisure Development Partners (LDP), a leading economics and strategy consultant, will introduce the event, which will also include moderated roundtable discussions and networking.
Meet the exhibitors
Leisure operators are coming to LeisurUp to expand their location-based concepts in new retail, urban, and leisure destinations and connect with new partners, including service providers, brand licensors/IP owners, and equipment manufacturers. Some will also look for franchise partners and other operators to diversify their activities.
Here are some highlights from this year’s list of exhibitors.
360 Karting
360 Karting is an anchor attraction of an entertainment centre, integrating complementary attractions, technologies and visitors. The concept is ideal for retail spaces wanting to generate more traffic with other revenue streams such as food & beverage, arcades, VR games, etc.
Karting has the longest business trajectory in the entertainment industry, and it sustains its attractiveness among visitors over time. With its new rollercoaster experience, karting is a fun social activity for 75 million drivers worldwide yearly. New track safety technologies and zero-emission go-karts make karting a suitable attraction for all venues.
Karting is suitable for various building types and locations. 360 Karting offers organically shaped track technology enriched with specially designed additional features, such as LED theming and on-track visitors’ areas. The third generation of 360K barrier system technology with improved impact energy absorption ensures the highest safety standards on the market.
AERODIUM
AERODIUM designs and operates state-of-the-art vertical wind tunnels for recreational, entertainment, show, and military use. These tunnels provide thrilling experiences for flying enthusiasts, serve as captivating attractions at events, and even support military training. At LeisurUp 2024, the team will showcase its range of enclosed vertical wind tunnels.
This is an ideal solution for retailers and landlords looking for an affordable, energy-efficient, cost-effective, compact and thrilling activity.
The R1 wind tunnel was created to answer the industry’s need to democratise indoor skydiving and make it affordable, especially for the young generation of future fliers. Meanwhile, the AERODIUM R4 PRO was crowned the ultimate vertical wind tunnel by the world’s top indoor skydiving athletes at the World Cup 2024.
AERODIUM will present its entire range of R-type tunnels, currently found in retailtainment and lifestyle centres such as R2 Seoul, Korea; R4 Macau, China; R3 Kyiv, Ukraine; and upcoming projects globally in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and elsewhere. Based on case studies, developers, retail operators, and investors can learn how the firm’s products draw attention, create additional footfall, and boost revenue.
Attendees can meet Ivars Beitans, CEO; Egils Dancis, sales and franchise; and Ansis Egle, marketing leader.
Citywave
For more than 15 years, Citywave has specialised in developing and constructing deep-water surf pools. It offers a turn-key, state-of-the-art product made in Germany. Citywave aims to make surfing possible for everyone, anywhere, anytime, with its patented deep-water system, providing the southern California lifestyle on a very scalable footprint. Citywave is a product of action team Veranstaltungs GmbH.
A Citywave venue recently in downtown Dallas, Texas. This stand-alone location offers landlocked surfers a 9-meter (30-foot) wide wave, and the constantly evolving technology enables an even smoother wave surface. Over 350 special guests from the industry, influencers, and local personalities attended the successful opening party. Pro-surfers Anastasia Ashley from California, Ben Benson from Bali, and Fabian Villaroel from Switzerland flew in to deliver a radical surf show for all spectators.
Dedem
The Dedem Group, a historic brand focused on producing photo booths, will explain how its state-of-the-art solutions, such as the Pininfarina-designed ICONA photo booth, can transform retail and leisure spaces.
The firm also collaborates with the consortium Leisure Group Italia (LGI), owner of the YOUNGO brand. LGI designs, creates, and manages visually impactful entertainment areas, distinguished by excellent quality and high safety standards: indoor and outdoor play areas, dog areas, padel malls, and much more.
The YOUNGO brand is present throughout Italy with its FEC format, offering fun for all generations. The format was recently renewed with a layout inspired by street art and an offering of brand-new mixed-reality attractions, such as ValoArena and ValoJump, presented for the first time in Italy.
GreenSpirit
Green Spirit is a multicultural creative design company founded in Florence, Italy, in 2014, after 20 years of work experience in the luxury retail and exhibition fields.
With a team of multi-disciplinary skilled professionals, Green Spirit aims to create a brand that, through entertainment and edutainment, raises awareness among the general public on the importance of an eco-friendly lifestyle to ensure the survival of our planet.
The team will attend LeisurUp 2024 to meet retail industry stakeholders and operators and share its experience in retailtainment. The firm is looking for shopping mall operators, developers, and stakeholders willing to expand their operations and ensure increasing footfall and additional revenue.
Green Spirit recently worked on Wonderwood Green Forest FEC in Merlata Bloom, Milan.
HUPALUPA
HUPALUPA offers a unique and exciting experience for visitors of all ages by combining fun, excitement, and adventure.
Its centres provide a safe and fun entertainment experience for various ages. A dedicated toddler playground is designed to promote their mental, physical, and motor growth and offers multiple game types that encourage exploration and creativity while facilitating socialisation.
The Kidventure and Miniplay options cater to young children. At the same time, older guests can enjoy various activities such as a trampoline park and climbing wall, rope course, bumper cars, bowling, virtual Rabbids, redemption games, sports games, video and simulation games and more.
Meanwhile, the Break Zone Restaurant and Coffee Zone offer space to socialise with friends and work at the tables while keeping an eye on the children from the observation deck.
KCC Entertainment Design
KCC Entertainment Design, a leading creator of themed environments, will showcase its latest retailtainment projects at LeisurUp by MAPIC 2024.
These include Paradox Mission, an off-the-shelf leisure concept, and Boom Room. This innovative social entertainment venue opened in July 2024 at Madinaty’s Open Air Mall in Cairo, Egypt. The KCC design team crafted this 2,000 sqm space to offer diverse attractions, setting a new benchmark in Egypt’s entertainment scene. Visitors can enjoy a variety of cutting-edge attractions, including interactive gaming zones and dynamic, themed bars and lounges.
Another example of the firm’s retailtainment expertise is The DockX. This is a groundbreaking gaming and entertainment centre in Red Sea Mall, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The DockX offers AR Bowling, AR Billiards, immersive rooms, karaoke, arcade games, and more. With over 20 games spread across 3500 square meters, it caters to gaming enthusiasts, families, and jetsetters alike.
Reinhart Viane, business development director, and Veneta Yanyova, business development manager, will attend. Viane will also share retailtainment insights during the Leisure Summit, where he is a speaker.
KCC is nominated for two MAPIC Awards this year, for Tekzone Jeddah and Experimental Park, Jaux.
Lane7
Lane7 blends traditional bowling with alternative gaming, immersive tech-enabled experiences, and a high-quality F&B offering. The team will be on hand to discuss the latest developments, including its new partnership with international multimedia studio Moment Factory to introduce an immersive multiplayer real-life gaming experience to the UK.
Launching this autumn, Lane7’s Birmingham location will be the first to offer two Augmented Games playgrounds. These will feature six games powered by Moment Factory’s cutting-edge interactive, tracking, and projection technologies. The fun, nostalgic, and easy-to-play games are inspired by retro gaming and encourage interactivity, physical activity, and competitive socialising.
Lane7 recently opened its first venue in continental Europe at The Playce, Potsdamer Platz in Berlin, as part of its ambitious strategy to grow the number of sites it operates. Two additional European venues will soon be open in Dublin. It is actively seeking to expand its European portfolio by 6 – 10 new sites per year.
Andrew Scholey, property director; Will Biggart, agent; Tim Wilks, co-founder/director; and Gavin Hughes, managing director, will be at the show.
Pausa
PAUSA is an innovative entertainment corporation passionate about blending fun with learning. At PAUSA, children embark on new adventures, empowered by their own abilities. In the PAUSA world, children engage in open-air games, embark on journeys, and develop their abilities.
PAUSA collaborates with certified institutions dedicated to children’s progress. Brain Fit is one such partnership that supports PAUSA in enriching children’s minds and stimulating their brain cells through hundreds of challenging activities and courses. Additionally, Verbatoria is a technological tool utilised to measure children’s interest in specific activities, which can be integrated into courses and activities. Children at PAUSA will have access to various Brain Fit courses to learn and incorporate them into their daily lives and activities.
Current locations are Riyadh, Jeddah, and others in Saudi Arabia.
QibicaAMF
QubicaAMF, a leading provider of high-quality, innovative products for bowling and entertainment centres, is committed to connecting operators in the leisure industry with real estate companies, positioning itself as a significant player in the retailtainment space. Its goal is to provide its knowledge, experience, and expertise to shopping centres of the future, helping them integrate indoor leisure and entertainment activities alongside traditional retail and food & beverage offerings.
At MAPIC, QubicaAMF aims to assist in creating innovative leisure experiences within shopping centres and retail parks and serve as a bridge between the real estate sector and leisure operators to foster collaboration. It also hopes to establish a leadership role in shaping the future of leisure in shopping centres and retail parks, and provide valuable insights into indoor leisure projects and showcase the latest products designed for retailtainment.
During the event, attendees can connect with key members of the QubicaAMF team. This includes Guillaume Chêne, France country manager; Flavio Taddia, EMEA sales director; and Pascal Ogando, France sales director.
Valo Motion
Valo Motion, a pioneer in combining interactive technology with physical activities, will present its latest products at LeisurUp 2024. These include ValoPark, an active entertainment park solution designed to help leisure operators scale their indoor entertainment business into high-foot-traffic areas like shopping malls.
ValoPark showcases the firm’s award-winning suite of mixed-reality attractions: ValoArena, ValoJump, and ValoClimb. These attractions blend physical activity with digital gaming. They use Valo Motion’s proprietary ValoVision technology for full-body tracking without using joysticks, wires, or goggles. Party rooms provide additional revenue through group events and birthdays.
Attendees can discover how ValoPark enables leisure operators to expand their business into high-foot-traffic retail spaces. ValoPark offers a modern, scalable, and profitable solution that lowers operational costs through automation and requires minimal staffing.
Valo Motion’s head of business development, Eldad Givon, will also present ValoPark: The entertainment anchor – How to create a modern Fun Court in your mall on 26 November at the Pitching Stage. Attendees can meet Givon at the booth, alongside Isidora Sofronijevic, junior sales representative. Meetings can be booked here.
Walltopia
Walltopia Group, a world leader in the climbing, adventure, and leisure industries, has delivered several recent projects in retail destinations. These include supplying an Adventure Trail, Ropes Course, Net Maze, Rollglider, Fun Walls, and Boulder Walls at Nomad Entertainment in Sultan Shopping Center, Kuwait, and a Rollglider and Ropes course in El Eden Shopping Center, Colombia.
The firm has also delivered a Ropes Course and Fun Walls at Family Entertainment Center Hype in the Colosseum Shopping Center, Romania, and Slides, Rollglider and a Cloud Climb at Entertainment Center Glitch in Al Ghurаir Centre in the UAE. For Boost Shopping Center in Saudi Arabia, Walltopia supplied a Rollglider and has also provided a Net Maze, Ninja Course, Slides, Ziplines, Adventure Trail, and Fun Walls at Zity Mall in Chisinau, Moldova.
Over the past year, the team has dedicated significant time and effort to developing tailored solutions for shopping malls worldwide. Some of these solutions focus on adding more individual units in common areas to attract more visitors. In contrast, others aim to target an older demographic and shift the focus toward shopping. Attendees can learn more about Walltopia’s new attractive playground designs, innovative adrenaline slides, and the new FEC single-unit designs for shopping malls.
Business development managers Yoana Nedeva, Petar Kaalinov and Valentin Olimpiev will be in attendance.
Shaping the future of leisure in retail at LeisurUp 2024
As MAPIC and LeisurUp 2024 approach, it is evident that leisure is not just an added attraction. It is a core component of the retail equation, driving foot traffic, increasing dwell time, and creating dynamic spaces that go beyond shopping. The event is a catalyst for industry change, accelerating the integration of leisure concepts and fostering collaboration between key stakeholders.
“MAPIC acts as an accelerator,” Pupillo says. “We bring together the right people, highlight the most relevant trends, and facilitate discussions that lead to meaningful change in the industry. It’s about providing the elements needed for everyone to solve the new retail equation.”
From immersive experiences to scalable leisure concepts, MAPIC and LeisurUp 2024 promise to deliver insights and opportunities that will help shape the future of retail destinations worldwide, making them places not just to shop, but to experience life.
To register for LeisurUp and MAPIC 2024, please click here.
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