february 2015 BCBusiness 71
The sign of a truly successful tourist
destination—one that can endure
the ebb and flow of economic
tides and social fashions—is one
that draws in the locals. That's
certainly the case with Vancou-
ver's Granville Island—the city's
top tourist attraction, with over 10
million visitors each year, includ-
ing many residents who go there
to shop, eat or see a show.
It was also once the case at San
Francisco's Ghirardelli Square,
which occupies prime waterfront
real estate on San Francisco
Bay. The former chocolate fac-
tory, which dates to the 1860s,
was converted into a mixed
restaurant-and-retail space back
in 1964, becoming one of the first
such "adaptive re-use" projects in
the U.S. For its first 25 years, the
development was a huge success—
capitalizing on the crowds from
neighbouring Fisherman's Wharf
but also attracting locals with an
eclectic mix of galleries, restau-
rants and shops.
The success of Ghirardelli
would ultimately be the inspi-
ration for retail conversions
across North America, includ-
Back to
Square One
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bCbuSINeSS.Ca
SWEET SpoT
Ghirardelli Square, a
former chocolate factory,
once again hopes to
draw in the locals.
T r a v e l
Ghirardelli Square, an
iconic property on San
Francisco's waterfront,
hits the refresh button to
attract a local crowd
by Matt O'Grady
F e b r u a r y 2 0 15
O
ou t of office
INSIDE
Salted Brick + Au comptoir ... time to Jingle and Mingle! ... colin Hansen's new gig
Whereas in the late '60s about half
of the people funnelling in and out
of Ghirardelli Square were locals,
by the late 1980s that number
had dropped to one in five.
