Oman Avenues Mall wins gold at 2017 ICSC

At the 2017 Middle East and North Africa Shopping Centre and Retailer Awards held on October 31 in Dubai, Oman Avenues Mall was the proud recipient of the coveted Gold Award for the Best “Cause Related Marketing Campaign” – for their Avenues Children’s Garden.

The Awards, which this year took the form of a gala ceremony at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Dubai, are presented annually by The International Council of Shopping Centres (ICSC).

Launched in November 2017, the Avenues Children’s Garden took the form of an open-air terrace area of the mall that was completely renovated to accommodate a full-fledged garden facility showcasing over 20 varieties of exotic plants. Its objective was to educate children about the environment. Housed within the garden were 30 planter boxes containing soil and compost that was created by natural composting processes – from food waste collected at the mall itself. Prior to each visit, school children got to see educational videos about environmental issues, and afterwards, they could also take home a small pot plant to grow in their own time. Fifty schools had participated by the end of March 2017, and the entire campaign was successfully promoted through an integrated marketing plan within the mall and across all communication mediums, for maximum publicity.

Not only was Oman Avenues Mall selected for the Gold Award out of 16 competitors in the same category, it was also the only one to win an award for a mall within the Sultanate of Oman, for the year.

The competition was open to shopping centre and mall owners, developers, management companies, architects and designers, and retailers.