On 25th May 2016 the FIABCI World Prix d’Excellence Awards were presented in Panama City, Panama. At an official gala to round off the FIABCI 67th World Real Estate Congress USA, BIKINI BERLIN’s managing director Antje Leinemann accepted the World Silver Award in the ‘Heritage’ (Restoration/Conservation) category.
The FIABCI Prix d’Excellence International, described by the Wall Street Journal as the “Oscars of the property world”, is one of the most coveted and important prizes in the construction industry. An international committee evaluated BIKINI BERLIN not only on its architecture and design, but also with regard to its financing, marketing strategy, environmental sustainability and benefits for society. “BIKINI BERLIN is something special. We have created a sustainable urban living and working environment right in the heart of Berlin. I’m very happy to be accepting this prestigious award on behalf of BIKINI BERLIN, and also delighted that we were able to triumph over the many interesting projects that were nominated,” says Antje Leinemann.
At the 2015 awards ceremony BIKINI BERLIN won the FIABCI Prix d’Excellence in Gold. With this distinction, the concept shopping mall automatically qualified for the FIABCI World Prix d’Excellence Awards.
FIABCI, also known as the International Real Estate Federation, is an association of real estate experts established in 1949 Present in 60 countries, FIABCI represents real estate experts worldwide and has been awarding the Prix d’Excellence since 1992. The prize merits outstanding international real estate projects in the following disciplines: concept, architecture, engineering, profitability, marketing results, environmental impact and benefits to society.
Built in the 1950s to symbolise the rebirth of the demolished post-war West Berlin as a modern metropolis, the Zentrum am Zoo, which was known as the ‘shop window of the West’, soon established itself as a meeting place of West Berlin’s bohemia. In the following decades, and in particular after the reunification of Germany when the focus of interest shifted to the former East Berlin, the area around the Memorial Church and the Bahnhof Zoo railway station were forgotten about. With the reopening and ambitious renovation of the entire BIKINI BERLIN building complex by Bayerische Hausbau, who purchased the properties in 2002, the area is once again coming into its own as a vibrant commercial and social attraction.
