Customers at the newly renovated Westfield Century City mall now have the option of a high security, concierge-type service.
Gavin de Becker’s Studio City-based security firm recently debuted the Private Suite at the shopping center to provide members with valet parking, a separate entrance and exit, a private room to lounge in, a concierge and a security escort into and out of the mall for $750 per visit for members – which allows up to six people – on top of a yearly membership charge of $7,500.
The Private Suite offers numerous services. Members get a personal escort who will shepherd them through private entrances to any of the mall’s more than 200 shops, or through a side door to the AMC movie theaters once the lights have dimmed.
The private room accommodates guests who want to order gift wrapping for purchases, receive a massage or try on clothes from Bloomingdale’s or other retailers at the mall.
Rooms, all of which come with snacks and beverages, can be outfitted for guests with video games for children or pets with a doggie bed.
“We have a wide variety of experiences to make shopping seamless and fast,” de Becker said.
Shoppers who don’t want to buy a membership can pay a one-time charge of $1,500 as non-members.
The Private Suite offering is part of an expansion strategy for de Becker’s 40-year-old firm, Gavin de Becker & Associates.
He funded the service in part with an investment from TPG Growth, the growth vehicle for Fort Worth, Texas private equity investor TPG Capital, which invested in de Becker & Associates three years ago.
De Becker’s firm introduced a similar feature to the Private Suite in May at Los Angeles International Airport, where Westfield also operates. The Private Suite at LAX service has taken off with celebrities, diplomats and others, de Becker said. Members of the Westfield Private Suite also have access to the one at LAX.
De Becker & Associates and Westfield began working on the idea three or four years ago, before Westfield broke ground on its recent $1 billion renovation, de Becker said. Westfield, which is based in Australia, with U.S. headquarters in Century City, reconfigured the mall with the Private Suite in mind, adding elevators that would be off-limits to the general public and building out the underground area.
The Private Suite is the latest in a series of tactics Westfield is implementing to combat challenges malls nationwide have been facing, such as declining traffic, as retailers lose customers to ecommerce. The Century City mall has leased space to little-known etailers with few brick-and-mortar locations, brought in bigger names such as an Amazon store, and increased the dining options.
Annual membership will soon give customers access to the Private Suite at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, which de Becker & Associates plans to open in 10 months, de Becker said, and the JFK members will have access to the LAX suite.