Eastgate Shopping Centre in Chester booked me through Encore to DJ the opening of their new Mango store. It was my first retail opening as a DJ, but not my first brand opening. My screen print studio used to run live printing for store launches, including ones for Selfridges and Firetrap, so I already knew what a brand wants from a day like this and how it all runs on the floor.
The brief was clear. A young, fashion led crowd, something current and effortlessly cool, lively without tipping into a nightclub or drowning out the shop. I came back with a selection of artists that sat next to the Mango brand, and a plan for the day built across the hours rather than played at one level. Open warm and bright while the queue forms, Balearic and beach house. Lift as the doors open and the store fills, into contemporary disco, house, modern soul and melodic Afro house. Hold the energy through the middle of the morning when the footfall peaks. Jungle, Kaytranada, Peggy Gou, Purple Disco Machine, Barry Can’t Swim, Folamour, Sofia Kourtesis, Jessie Ware, SG Lewis, some Latin and Brazilian edits, and enough recognisable vocals kept in to keep it familiar. No big drops, no heavy bass, nothing fighting the shopping.
The opening ran late, which worked in everyone’s favour. The warm Balearic records drifted out through the centre all morning while people gathered. Once it got going there was a steady flow of people stopping at the booth, asking what a track was, taking photos, filming. One older gentleman wasn’t feeling the beat of something I had on, so I picked the next record for him. He came back over to say it was a great tune. I told him I had played it for him. Made his morning, and mine.
The centre manager called it spot on. The events coordinator who booked it was happy with the mood, and we got talking about other events we could do together. Even the security guards came over to say how much they had enjoyed it. That is the part a playlist through a hired speaker cannot do: reading the room, talking to the people in it, and working closely with the team on the ground so the day runs smoothly. A set from half eight to two, full PA brought and run by me, insured and PAT tested.
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