It’s more than just a place to shop. It’s a way to reshape a city. ICONSIAM, a luxury integrated mall in Bangkok, represents a transformative urban development model that is changing its surrounding area and raising Thailand’s reputation, said a leading retail industry website.

“As a true game changer in Thailand’s real estate development industry, Siam Piwat has reshaped the economic landscape around its landmark properties, fostering sustainable growth together with surrounding communities,” wrote the Inside Retail Asia website, referring to the firm that owns and developed ICONSIAM and several other malls in the city.

“ICONSIAM stands as a benchmark,” the website wrote, adding that the mall “is far more than a shopping center and represents a transformative urban development model that has reshaped Bangkok, demonstrating how transformative success can be achieved.”

Located in Thonburi, on the opposite side of the Chao Phraya River that runs through Bangkok, the development has injected new life and vibrancy into the area’s culture, dining, entertainment, and businesses. Relatively sleepy and deserted before ICONSIAM opened seven years ago, the surrounding neighborhood has since become one of Bangkok’s hot spots, and real estate developers have been buying up properties.

The website praised Siam Piwat’s approach to developing ICONSIAM. The firm worked with the community beforehand so that their needs and concerns would be addressed, and so they would support the development.

“Siam Piwat engaged extensively with 13 riverside communities along the Chao Phraya River, local entrepreneurs, and riverside businesses to ensure the project was built on co-creation and shared value, benefitting people, communities, partners, and society alike,” Inside Retail Asia wrote. “One of the core objectives was to instill pride among Thonburi residents, as the project stands on their land-anchored in the belief that great cities must be built with the participation of the people who live there.”

For all its success, the idea is not unique. Economists and urban planners have long noted how business developments - especially in the form of retail, supermarkets, and restaurants - can play an important role in revitalizing neighborhoods.