The Glassworks

Developer Challenge
With 303 acres encompassing housing, parkland, retail, hotel, school and public facilities, Mission Bay is one of San Francisco’s most ambitious redevelopment projects ever. Catellus Development turned to PMA to create and implement a marketing plan for this master-planned neighborhood’s very first for-sale product. Our task: to create value for all of Mission Bay’s entitled land by successfully demonstrating the market demand for high-priced luxury residences.

Main challenges:

• Simultaneously achieve rapid absorption and above-market sales prices
• Motivate consumers to pay today for the neighborhood’s future potential
• Overcome the stigma of a multi-use building with less-than-optimum parking and amenities

PMA Solution
PMA developed a marketing plan that capitalized on the high-profile image of the property’s location. By engaging both the historic elements of the neighborhood and the contemporary urban planning approach of Mission Bay, PMA created a unique residential offering. In addition, PMA partnered with the San Francisco Giants organization to take full advantage of the project’s proximity to SBC Park.

Creative solutions:

• Proposed "The Glassworks" as a name to convey the little-known history of the project site
• Developed The Art of Urban Living tagline to position the property as a prestigious choice
• Created a campaign featuring a photograph of the building juxtaposed with an image of the iconic ballpark statue of Willie Mays, placing the project both geographically and emotionally in the heart of the city
• Located the sales center in a retail storefront to maximize market exposure and communicate sales activity to the public

Mission Accomplished
PMA implemented an aggressive marketing campaign for several months prior to the initial release. The elevated market pressure allowed initial sale of more than half the homes. Within six weeks, the project was completely sold out.

Successful results:

• The Glassworks achieved gross prices of almost 10% above competitive products. This translated into a higher premium on the value of the homes yet to be built
• PMA enabled Catellus to sell out The Glassworks in record time, at luxury prices, contributing significantly to the overall value of Mission Bay