Successful restructuring: Krohnstieg Center fully reopened after remodeling
Hamburg 09/16/2021 – In 2016, Hanseatische Betreuungs- und Beteiligungsgesellschaft (HBB) acquired the Krohnstieg Center, located in the north of Hamburg in the Langenhorn district. In recent years, the district center has undergone extensive modernization in several phases during ongoing operations in order to remedy the center’s functional and visual deficits. The vacated space of the Marktkauf hypermarket offered HBB the opportunity to demonstrate its revitalization expertise once again with a complete realignment of the center. The result is a mixed-use property that has been optimally developed for the structure in the catchment area and combines all everyday needs in one place. Thus, apart from the retail and service tenants, offices, doctors and a fitness studio are also located at the site.
Already in April 2020, the center could start with a partial opening of the new anchor tenants Decathlon and EDEKA despite Corona restrictions.
“We are grateful for the successful partial opening during this difficult time for the entire retail and retail real estate industry and look forward to the grand reopening with full power and excellent, new concepts and tenants on board,” says Harald Ortner, managing director of HBB and board member of the German Council of Shopping Places.
What has been done?
The center’s exterior façade, entrance area and advertising space concept have been fundamentally redesigned for better visibility and presentation.
The signage concept in the surrounding area has been comprehensively expanded and improved to make it easier for visitors arriving by car, public transport or on foot to find their way. New bicycle racks were installed in front of and behind the center, which were previously completely absent.
Inside the Krohnstieg Center, the former moving walkway connecting the first floor with the second floor was completely removed to create a spacious, open atrium. Staircases and escalators were used to create the new retail level in the basement. A wide atrium was also inserted to increase light penetration into the new basement retail corridor.
For an optimized connection of the retail levels and the five parking levels, three additional elevators were installed that are accessible from all floors of the Krohnstieg Center. At the same time, this measure relieved the two existing elevators, which are also used by the non-retail tenants, such as the fitness studio and medical practices, offices and their customers.
In the course of redesigning the interior, HBB opted for high-quality and modern materials, which are particularly striking in the choice of floor and wall tiles. The aim was to significantly increase the quality of stay and the feel-good factor for customers and visitors to the center. The establishment of a gastronomy area in the basement with inviting seating is also intended to increase the length of stay in the future.
To accommodate the new concept, the existing rental space had to be adapted to the new requirements. Thus, some existing tenants exchanged their spaces (e.g. Budnikowsky) or downsized them with subsequent reallocation (e.g. Takko). Due to the continued operation, the restructuring resembled open-heart surgery. Only the good cooperation with the HBB tenants made it possible to maintain operations at all during this phase. Thanks to the existing experience with projects of this kind, there were no delays in the construction schedule despite Corona restrictions due to the targeted management and coordination of the trades and service providers by HBB’s construction and engineering department.
“We are convinced that we have developed a property that is a perfect fit for the surrounding area and that will fill a previous gap in its function as a district center with a local supply function in the best possible way,” says André Stromeyer, Managing Director of HBB Gewerbebau- und Centermanagement who is also responsible for leasing.
In the interests of a comprehensive customer experience, parking was also taken into account as the first and last point of the customer journey. With the help of the latest technology from Scheidt & Bachmann Parking Solutions, a barrier-free parking management system with license plate recognition was installed. Here, the license plate numbers of the visitors are recognized by a camera upon entry and exit and thus the parking duration including free parking times are determined. Visitors can pay conveniently via app or by entering their license plate number at the pay stations. After the parking process is completed, the data is deleted in compliance with the German Data Protection Act (DSGVO).
HBB Centermanagement GmbH & Co. KG continues to take over the long-term center and property management.
About HBB
The HBB group of companies, headquartered in Hamburg, has been active in the real estate industry as an investor and project developer for over 50 years. Retail, office, hotel, senior citizen and residential properties have been built throughout Germany. HBB sees itself as a specialized investor with the aim of creating successful long-term value. HBB is an owner-managed company and has a well-trained team of now over 100 employees. HBB Centermanagement GmbH & Co. KG manages other shopping centers in Dresden, Gummersbach, Hamburg, Hanau, Ingelheim, Langenhagen, Leipzig, Munich, Essen and Weiden, among others.
Further information:
HBB Hanseatische Betreuungs- und Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH
Herr Harald Ortner
Tel.: +49 (0) 40 600 907- 110
E-Mail: ortner@hbb.de
