The “New Downtown” is fast becoming one of the most desired neighborhoods in New York City. Its proximity to the waterfront, beautiful views, high-end shopping and a burgeoning social scene, not to mention an influx of companies like Conde Nast to 1WTC, has created a strong need for residential development, igniting a boom to meet renter/buyer demand.
The Marketing Directors (TMDs) is involved with one of the neighborhood’s most anticipated luxury condominiums – Time Equities’ 50 West Street. The 64-story, 191-residence development came to market in 2015, and has been experiencing steady sales activity. Once complete, 50 West Street will be one of the tallest residential towers in New York City.
As with many new developments in this competitive real estate market, the sales gallery is an important tool in showing prospective buyers elements of the residences while the properties are under construction. It helps provide consumers with a real-life experience where they can touch and feel the materials and other aspects of the apartment.
Drawing on more than 30 years of expertise, we imagined a sales gallery that intersects the state-of-the-art and the art of sales, one that provided consumers with an immersive experience placing them right in the middle of their potential home. Housed on a full-floor of a nearby office property, the high-level of technology used at 50 West Street’s sales gallery allowed the sales team to customize each experience to the individual buyers’ needs, so each presentation was ultimately tailored to what was important to them.
We employed a massive movie screen that enables buyers to experience panoramic views of New York City from the lowest floors of 50 West Street all the way to the top. The versatility of the screen also allows us to pull up a map of Lower Manhattan and give potential buyers a walk-through of neighborhood amenities and attractions. A 3D building model of 50 West Street utilizes a light box that highlights the desired home of a specific buyer, and projects through the window what this apartment would look like.
Along with models of the kitchen and living rooms at 50 West Street, a full-sized replica of the building’s signature curved glass façade – designed by world-renowned architect Helmut Jahn – was built into the sales center in front of the building’s existing window. It’s a unique and unusual piece for a sales gallery, but proved to be a big success, as it gives buyers a sense of reality in terms of the size, expanse, and views.
Angela Ferrara, Executive Vice President of Sales and Leasing at TMDs says, “One of the challenges with new construction is that we often don’t have a building to show – a spectacular sales gallery helps buyers to physically SEE the site. Without the benefit of this technology at 50 West Street, buyers would only get to see a one-dimensional floor plan. Now, our buyers can actually experience the property. When you are preselling 12-18 months in advance of closing and all you can see is a construction site, the technology is really an amazing tool that allows the buyer to envision their lives in this home.”