APPEAL OF SHOPPING MALL ROOFTOP GARDENS TO SHOPPERS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

In Singapore, developers continuously seek to find creative ways to incorporate greenery into developments, especially in a compact city like Singapore. This study is focused on retail malls, that face stiff competition given the rise of e-commerce, and are including rooftop gardens as a factor of appeal to draw in shoppers. It is crucial to examine the benefits brought about by this feature, as this same space can be used for other purposes such as intensive greenery and solar panels. Using a carefully crafted survey, 210 shoppers from three malls with rooftop gardens were surveyed, to determine their level of awareness of the presence of the rooftop garden in the malls and the impact of such a space as an appeal factor. Understanding a users perception towards this space would allow the Government to refine policies and incentives to ensure that it does not only support the nations sustainability goals but also the usability of the feature itself. Based on the responses provided it was deduced that majority of the shoppers are aware of the presence of rooftop gardens. However, the rooftop garden acted as an additional activity to do during breaks or free time and was not a strong factor of appeal for them to visit a specific mall. The ANOVA test was carried out to understand the appeal of greenery between different age groups and marital statuses respectively. Although there was no significant difference for marital statuses, there was a significant difference in the appeal of greenery in shopping malls to the different age groups. This relationship was further analysed with the Pearson's Chi Square Test that showed greenery appeals more to certain age groups, and thus they are more likely to frequent the rooftop garden. Therefore rooftop gardens can be creatively designed to suit the needs of these different age groups to be able to garner their interest and pull them towards the mall in the future.