Early Modern · Architecture

Westfield La Part-Dieu

Lyon

Westfield La Part-Dieu is a shopping center in the Part-Dieu district of Lyon, France, located in the city center and facing the Part-Dieu train station. It is one of the largest shopping centers in France and Europe, and it is described as the largest shopping center in France by number of shops. The complex is managed by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and was officially renamed Westfield La Part-Dieu on 4 May 2021.

Opened in 1975, the center has five levels, including a basement connected to the metro. It has main access on boulevard Vivier-Merle to the east, with additional entrances on boulevard Eugène-Deruelle to the north, rue du Docteur-Bouchut to the south, and rue Servient to the west near Tour Part-Dieu. The center has more than 305 stores and includes a Carrefour hypermarket, restaurants, and 18 cinemas added in 2021. Its new wing, La lanterne, was inaugurated on 24 March 2021 and added around 40 boutiques. In 2017, it was the second most visited shopping center in France, with 35.6 million visitors, and its revenue amounted to 793.4 million euros.

Map showing the location of Westfield La Part-Dieu in Lyon
Location of Westfield La Part-Dieu in Lyon

Nearby Objects

Location and Retail Context

Westfield La Part-Dieu is located in the Part-Dieu district of Lyon, France. It is situated within the Westfield La Part-Dieu shopping center, which is described as the largest shopping center in France by number of shops and as one of the largest shopping centers in Europe. In 2017, it was the second most visited shopping center in France, with 35.6 million visitors. This setting gives the site a prominent position within Lyon's commercial landscape and places it among the major retail destinations in the country.

Location and Scale

Westfield La Part-Dieu is located in the center of Lyon, in the Part-Dieu district, facing the Part-Dieu train station. It is one of the largest shopping centers in France, alongside Westfield Les 4 Temps and Westfield Velizy 2. By number of stores, it is the second largest city-center shopping center in Europe, and it is also the second most visited shopping center in France.

The shopping center has several entrances that connect it to the surrounding streets. Its main entrance is on boulevard Vivier-Merle to the east. Additional entrances are located on boulevard Eugene-Deruelle to the north and on rue du Docteur-Bouchut to the south. On the west side, near Tour Part-Dieu, it has an entrance on rue Servient, which opened at the end of 2021.

Retail Expansion and Recent Renovation

Westfield La Part-Dieu is managed by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and was officially renamed on 4 May 2021. The complex has five levels, including a basement that connects it to the metro. It contains more than 305 stores, and in 2017 its revenue amounted to 793.4 million euros. Its fourth level includes the second floor of the Carrefour hypermarket, as well as an extension with restaurants and 18 cinemas that opened in 2021. A new wing called La lanterne was inaugurated on 24 March 2021 and added around 40 boutiques. Among the retailers in this wing are Victoria's Secret, which opened its third French store there, and Muji, which opened its new French flagship store in the same area.

Opening and Renewal of La Part-Dieu

The La Part-Dieu shopping center opened in 1975 and was developed on five levels. It is served by metro line B and contains many stores as well as a multiplex cinema. Since its opening, the center has undergone successive renovations, indicating a continuing process of adaptation and renewal over time.

Renovation and interior reconfiguration

Modernization works at Westfield La Part-Dieu lasted one year and affected the shopping center throughout. The renovation introduced new skylights above the shopping aisles, replaced the floors completely, and repainted the walls in a lighter color. These changes were intended to increase the brightness of the interior. During the same broader period of renewal, giant screens were removed, wood-effect coverings were repainted white, and the signage was updated with color by level to make orientation easier. Large areas of the center were also renamed and decorated with themes, although these decorations were removed a few years before the 2017 renovations.

A major earlier change was the opening of Cours Oxygene, which added nearly 20,000 square meters to the shopping center's sales area. Located facing boulevard Vivier-Merle at the foot of the Oxygene tower, it connects to the shopping center through all levels. At opening, Cours Oxygene included 25 new stores, three of which spanned two levels. It also introduced a new color scheme by level to improve navigation. After its opening, the entire shopping center was renovated, and some stores were modernized.

The Shopping Sensation Experience

According to Histoire, the updates at Westfield La Part-Dieu were presented as the Shopping sensation experience. This experience was inaugurated on October 28, 2013. On the day of the inauguration, major events were held at Place de l'Eau, including performances. The reference to this experience highlights a specific moment in the center's history, marked by a public program of events linked to the launch.

Renovation of Level -1

In 2014, Westfield La Part-Dieu carried out a renovation of level -1 throughout the year at a cost of 6 million euros. According to Histoire, this level was highly frequented because of metro access, which made it a key area within the shopping center. The renovation aimed to improve both the ambiance and the brightness of the space, while also adding new stores.

As part of the same work, the shopping center revised its level numbering system for greater clarity. The basement level was changed from 0 to -1, the ground floor from 1 to 0, and the top level from 4 to 3. This reorganization accompanied the renewal of level -1 and clarified the overall layout of the center.

Renovation and Western Extension

From 2017 to 2021, Histoire carried out major renovation work at Westfield La Part-Dieu in order to expand the shopping center and integrate it more closely with the La Part-Dieu neighborhood. A new western extension was built, including the demolition of the parking lot in June 2018 and the construction of La Lanterne in February and March 2019. The project added nearly 80 new boutiques and increased the shopping center's GLA surface, making it the second largest downtown shopping center in Europe.

The redevelopment also reorganized circulation and public access. New terraces and new accesses were created on rue Servient, while a new roof terrace designed by MVRDV connected level 2 to the Part-Dieu tower and rue Servient. Access to the roof terrace is restricted during certain morning hours. Histoire also planned a future open alley along rue Servient to connect the Part-Dieu tower and the city center with boulevard Vivier-Merle and the SNCF station.

Several new architectural elements were added around the extension. A monumental glazed entrance named La Lanterne was located at the end of the extension near Tour Part-Dieu, with the pedestrian access Porte de la Lanterne at its base. This access is reached from the north sidewalk of rue Servient at level 0 and from the pedestrian deck at level 1. Additional construction took place on boulevard Vivier-Merle, rue du Docteur-Bouchut in front of the Part-Dieu library, and rue Servient, including monumental staircases and facade renovation.

The redevelopment also changed the internal layout of the center. Levels 0 and 1 of the new west wing opened progressively, with 40 new shops planned there, 30 opening on the opening day and 10 more in the following months. The renovated project reduced parking spaces to create Les Tables, a covered gallery of restaurants, and arranged vegetated pedestrian aisles around the galleries linking Cours Oxygene, Carrefour, Decathlon, and three new large monumental staircases. The center now includes 305 businesses. The UGC cinema was relocated to the top of the western extension, where UGC Ciné Cite Part-Dieu opened near Tour Part-Dieu on level 3 with 18 rooms, replacing the previous 15-room cinema. New transverse access was also created through Porte Garibladi and Porte Gare Part-Dieu, which open daily at 5 am and are intended to facilitate crossing between Lyon Part-Dieu railway station and the center of Lyon.