Technology and architecture
In highly desirable city-center locations, space is in particularly short supply – the Audi City concept turns this to its advantage: At an average of around 450 m2, the compact stores offer around just one third of the space available to customers in most classic dealerships. This is made possible by digital product presentation, giving Audi City a high degree of flexibility.
The combined computing power allows the content design of the virtual presentations in Audi City to be adapted to the specific conditions of the respective markets and the main interests of the local traffic. All Audi City locations are networked with one another and with a central server in Ingolstadt. This means that every Audi City worldwide is always fully up-to-date in both its technology and its content. Current product information, advertising campaigns and news from the world of Audi, as well as new visualization options, are directly uploaded into the presentation program.
Furthermore, the individual powerwalls in an Audi City can be switched together to create one massive screen – enabling room-filling transmission of events like Audi motorsport activities or cultural events in which the company is a supporting partner. These often present opportunities for exceptional events at the city stores. The networked technology of Audi City also means that it will be possible in future for visitors to the international showrooms to enter into global dialogue with one another and with Audi experts via the video walls.
Audi City represents new possibilities in product presentation – consciously placing its architectural concept in the background. Being clad almost entirely in digital projection surfaces and having a minimalist design language and color selection, the space takes a back seat to the content. The high-performance technology remains largely invisible to the visitor. Take the sophisticated sound concept, for example: It directs the sound to that only certain visitors can hear it – thus creating experiential spaces without the need for visible separation.
Within its environment, the Audi City structure blends into its surrounding architecture, with the generally 100-percent glazing of the façade making it an integral part of the street scene. It stands for the openness of Audi City and connects the brand to the public space of the city street.