Miller Zell Wins 2023 Shop! Design Award with “Store of the Future”

ATLANTA, June 15, 2023— Miller Zell earned a first-place “Gold” award in the “Specialty Store Over 25,000 Square Feet (New or Remodeled)” category at the 2023 Shop! Design Awards for our design and execution of a “Store of the Future” for Micro Center in Tustin, Calif.

The winning design was Miller Zell’s solution to Micro Center’s need to offer industry-leading customer and associate experiences, using strategic store design and digital solutions that elevated the shopping journey.

Our designers identified ways Micro Center could improve its customer experiences while also optimizing space for inventory, flexible department use and merchandising. Capping the end-to-end concept to completion process, Miller Zell also augmented a strong, integrated omnichannel experience by developing a store app.

The store was an immediate hit and continues to perform well.

“It was really about trust,” said Matthew Herman, Director, Visual Merchandising, Store Design at Micro Center.

“We had to trust that that Miller Zell would take the time to really understand who Micro Center is and who our customers are. Because if you can’t do that, you can’t help us get to where we need to go. And that’s really where this worked. Miller Zell was very accommodating, understanding who we are and then how to take that and get us to where we can remain relevant in the face of growing pressure from online retailers.”

Miller Zell associates who contributed to the design and execution of the project included: Allen Plaugh, Edna Strawser, Laura Waterworth, Quentin Spencer, Loren Palmer, Melodie Clonts, Laurie Harper, Reggie Barton, Ryan McLaughlin, Kraig Mooney, Patrick Neff, Avery Draper, Bill Gantner, Jeff Kapas, Walt Murphy, Jeremy Buttson, Tom Ertler and Angie Coleman.

Miller Zell partnered with Micro Center, Stratacache and Media Resources Inc. to create the flagship store, and Mark Steele provided photography.