#15: Lara Marrero | Studio Director & Retail Practice Leader, Gensler

Are brand engagement & media overtaking transactions as the primary purpose of bricks-and-mortar retail? Where else in the build environment is brand influencing building design and utility?

Lara Marerro is a Studio Director & Retail Practice Leader at Gensler, the global architectural practice. Rather than specialising in a specific sector, Lara is interested the power brand and how it relates to consumers and built environment.

With an education that spans psychology, advertising, marketing, and cultural anthropology, Lara’s focus is on translating complex global consumer trends into understandable, workable, and profitable outcomes for her clients.

In this podcast:

• How are shopping habits changing & what is the opportunity for retailers & landlords?

• Is the store media or does it still have a role as the location for transactions to take place?

• Is pure-play experiential retail really relevant outside of the prime retail pitches?

• How can independent retailers compete in a brand-oriented, digital landscape?

• How else is brand / the concept of “Tribes” attaching itself to real estate across other asset classes?

Lara’s innovation-to-watch is AppearHere; where she believes the best is still yet to come!

Lara’s favourite building in the Empire State Building for its enduring impact on the Manhattan skyline.