Each year, retail and shopping center designers anticipate winning the coveted SADI award. The four-letter acronym, Superior Achievement in Design and Imaging, is the crowning glory of retail design.
The award itself, a glass sculpture created by Hans-Godo Fräbel of Atlanta's Fräbel Studios, is a sight to behold. Over the years, Fräbel's reputation as a master in glass art spread worldwide, with collectors including heads of state and religious figures such as Pope John-Paul II, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Rainier of Monaco.
Winning a SADI award is an arduous task, and the competition is tight. For this reason, two honorable mentions were awarded in addition to the 13 winners. Judges have a lot to consider when deciding who will take home the SADI. Each entry, whether it is a specialty store, department store, open center or restaurant, is scored on design objectives: construction problem solving, general aesthetics, image building and implementation.
The judging for Shopping Center World's 12th annual SADI awards was held in January at Atlanta's Ritz-Carlton Buckhead. The twelve judges spent an eight-hour day carefully reviewing each entry, and their anonymous comments are quoted throughout this supplement. The following 13 winners have achieved this sweet victory.
ABOUT THE JUDGES
Brian V. Arial, AIA | Managing Principal MCG Architecture, Pasadena, Calif.
Formerly with Ralphs Grocery Co., Arial brings to MCG a client perspective of the potential role of an architectural services firm. His project experience includes mixed-use, urban planning, retail, hospitality and national grocery stores. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute, ICSC and the AIA.
David F. Ballew | President & CEO BVT Equity Holdings Inc., Atlanta
BVT's U.S. operation focuses on providing German and other European investors with U.S. real estate opportunities in two main areas: acquisitions of investment-grade neighborhood grocery-anchored shopping centers and development of all types of retail products. Ballew has been engaged in all facets of real estate development for more than 20 years.
Clive Bank | President Retail Design Strategies, Atlanta
Clive Bank, an architect from South Africa, has been a store planner in the United States for the past 23 years. Retail Design Strategies, the design firm he founded, is now in its 11th year of operation. Bank oversees all aspects of retail design including corporate identity, in-store communications, strategic market positioning and merchandise assortment analysis.
Richard E. Huelsman, AIA | CEO & Founding Partner HTH Group, Los Angeles
Huelsman's 30-year career spans every arena of retail design, from malls and power centers to specialty retailers. Prior to founding HTH Group, he served as president of MCG Architecture, where he generated more than $80 million in architectural services, covering more than 750 million sq. ft. of new and renovated retail, hotel and urban redevelopment.
Sarah Huie | Principal & Creative Director Huie Design, Inc., Atlanta
Prior to founding Huie Design in 1996, Sarah Huie managed and designed a variety of comprehensive projects for Copeland Hirthler Design + Communications including the official Look of the Games, a complete graphics program for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Huie has won several awards, and her work has been featured in Identity, VM+SD, Print, Communication Arts, How, and Interiors.
Bryan Jones | President MarketWatch Real Estate Advisors, Atlanta
Jones has 13 years of experience in the commercial real estate field, which has included commercial and eminent domain appraisal in Florida. During the past eight years, he has worked as a retail investment sales broker with both Julian LeCraw & Co. and Trammell Crow Co. He now specializes in urban and specialty retail development in select Southeastern markets.
Don Kelly | Senior Executive Vice President The Mitchell Co., Mobile, Ala.
Kelly has been with The Mitchell Co. for 25 years and served in various capacities in management, leasing and development of shopping centers and office buildings. He is directly responsible for the development and management of Mitchell's commercial properties. He was past state ICSC director for Alabama and Mississippi and is on the Gulf South ICSC Idea Exchange Committee.
Gar Muse, AIA | Principal Cooper Carry, Atlanta
Muse joined Cooper Carry in 1990 as the firm's retail group director and in 1992 was named principal. He has extensive experience in the renovation and expansion of regional retail centers, as well as the design of urban retail properties and department stores. He has spent the past 18 years of his architectural career studying and designing retail projects throughout the United States. Muse's projects have been recognized with more than 30 industry design awards.
Kiku Obata | President & Creative Director Kiku Obata & Co., St. Louis
In 1996, Obata was named St. Louis Woman Entrepreneur of the Year by the Entrepreneur of the Year Institute in recognition of her business achievements and contributions to the St. Louis community. She is a member of the American Institute of Graphic Arts, American Center for Design, ICSC and Institute of Store Planners. She is a board member for the Society for Environmental Graphic Design.
J. Thomas Porter, AIA | Senior Principal Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates Inc., Atlanta
Since joining Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates Inc. (TVS) more than 29 years ago, Porter has grown from running prints in a small regional practice to becoming senior principal in a 275-person international design firm. Some of the more notable retail projects that TVS and Porter have been involved with include King of Prussia Plaza, Phipps Plaza and Mall of Georgia.
Robert F. Welanetz | President & CEO Jones Lang LaSalle Retail Americas, Atlanta
Welanetz oversees all aspects of Jones Lang LaSalle Retail, which delivers retail management, leasing, marketing, development, tenant representation and strategic consulting services to clients of the firm. He has been involved in the retail industry for more than 22 years. Prior to joining Jones Lang LaSalle, Welanetz was CEO and executive vice president of Lend Lease Retail. He is a participating member of the Urban Land Institute and is on the board of advisors of the National Association of Realtors.
James V. Woodcox | Vice President Ben Carter Properties & CNM Associates, Atlanta
Woodcox has held his current position as vice president of design & construction for Ben Carter Properties and CNM Associates since their inceptions in 1993 and 1994, respectively. He has been involved in the development of more than 2.5 million sq. ft. of retail and office space, including the Mall of Georgia and has assisted third parties in the redevelopment of more than 2 million sq. ft. He has had prior experience at Vantage Development Co., TVSA Architects and at his own architectural practice, Arris Design.