RENU: From Space to Place

Strategic Asset Activation

Transforming property precincts into community hubs through Circular Placemaking.

The philosophy

Turning Assets into Creative Destinations of Belonging

At D+M, we believe a physical asset is more than just a property, it is a Third Place. A communal space where authentic connection drives dwell time, engagement, positivity and asset value.

Through RENU Collective, a strategic arm of D+M, we transform underutilised areas into vibrant, educational and community-focused destinations. We challenge throwaway culture by delivering sustainable space activations that create competitive advantage for property developers, owners and conscious businesses across Australia.

The Circular Placemaker Innovation

Every property is different—with unique demographics, interests, and budgets. The D+M team look at your asset creatively to find opportunities others miss:

• What elements from the local environment can become public art?
• What is being disposed of regularly that could be reimagined?
• How can we involve the local community and create genuine ownership?
• What can be suspended from ceilings or mounted on structural columns?
• Which local creatives could make the space more interesting?
• What concerns the local council that could be addressed creatively?

But most of all: how do we involve your community?

Our Strategic Placemaking Approach

Service 1: Community Co-Creation
Turning customers into contributors.

At D+M we replace cookie-cutter events with relevant local partnerships. We design frameworks where the community becomes the creator.

Instead of hiring contractors for static displays that end up in landfill, D+M engage local schools, artists, and education providers to co-produce the experience. Our activations are designed to engage the local catchment through topics that genuinely matter to them.

What makes this different:

• Initiatives are mobile and cost-effective
• Implementation across multiple locations creates cohesive, branded experiences
• Community engagement strengthens property portfolio positioning
• Activations become social infrastructure—destinations of belonging where community connection is the anchor

Value-add programming: D+M implement activations like the Ask Me How series—pop-up creative studios where customers learn skills to renew, not replace, offering genuine value rather than just visuals.

Service 2: Creative Bespoke Installations
Site-specific art that tells your story.

D+M deliver custom commissions tailored specifically to your property. We believe in site-specificity and locality—every project corresponds with the community and location's unique attributes.

Our approach:

• End-to-end service from conceptualisation through to installation
• Collaboration with local artists at all career stages, from emerging to established
• Bespoke creative projects that communicate your brand story and values
• Permanent and temporary installations for lobbies, common areas, hoardings, and public infrastructure

What D+M deliver:

• Public art murals and wall activations reflecting local character
• Statement sculptures and feature installations
• Integrated artwork that creates Instagram-worthy moments
• Full artist coordination: sourcing, design alignment, fabrication oversight, and installation

Service 3: The Spatial Opportunities Audit
Every blank space is a commercial risk.

D+M audits your potential. Every blank hoarding, empty tenancy, or dark corridor currently offers zero return on investment. We identify these dead zones and transform them into revenue-generating or community-building assets.

The process:

1. Walk your floor to identify underperforming zones
2. Visualise their potential through clever design interventions
3. Propose strategic solutions using Circular Placemaking principles
4. Draw upon 25+ years of property activation experience
5. Connect you with artists and trusted suppliers for implementation

What you receive: A strategic roadmap identifying opportunities and providing actionable solutions that turn structural elements and unused spaces into community conversation pieces.

Proven Case Studies

The Circular Gingerbread Village
Turning a seasonal moment into a community-led sustainability initiative

Placemaking with purpose. Creativity with impact.

The Strategy: Moving away from hired plastic displays and implementing a Co-Creation model, engaging 15+ local schools across 8 shopping centres. Students transformed blank canvases into a village using only repurposed and recycled materials.

The Result: Driven by the Grandparent Effect, D+M saw high-value organic foot traffic as families visited to locate their specific contributions. It positioned participating assets as educational leaders in their local catchments—hundreds of students, meaningful connections, zero landfill.

Circular economy Christmas activations at local Sydney neighbourhood shopping centres.

Park Sydney Village Artist Residency
Local talent meets property activation

D+M turned an unused space into a community conversation piece that celebrates the neighbourhood's unique character.

The Strategy: Using the Pop-Up Placemaker model, D+M provided a platform for local talent to shine by transforming property elements into unique works of art. By collaborating with talented local artist @artofpei, we refreshed and unlocked hidden potential within the development.

The Result: This created a rich tapestry of local stories, celebrating the spirit of the neighbourhood and positioning the development as a forward-thinking, community-centred space—an instant conversation piece.

A local artist takes residency combining community with creativity in the Inner West Sydney.

Ramlegh Springs Village
Building meaningful connections through relevant placemaking

Creative placemaking doesn't need to be complicated. It's all about local voices, new ideas, and one partner who knows how to creatively bring it all together—every step of the way.

The Strategy: The D+M team designed a community placemaker activation—strategic in concept and purposeful in execution. The community was given a reason to visit, participate, and connect.

The Result: These strategies aren't just for a feel-good moment. They build meaningful connections with locals over time, positioning the centre as the hub of community and reinforcing its role as a place of belonging.

A local Melbourne community in action, collaborating together to create meaningful art.

The Competitive Advantage of Conscious Design

Today's consumers increasingly value authenticity over mass production. They respond to spaces telling genuine stories with visible commitment to sustainability. Cookie-cutter design no longer delivers differentiation.

RENU Collective addresses this market shift by sourcing existing materials and reimagining them through expert design methodology—creating installations that:

• Deliver authentic differentiation in competitive property markets
• Provide powerful Instagram-worthy placemaking moments
• Demonstrate measurable commitment to circular economy principles
• Create memorable connections that enhance property value
• Position developments as innovation leaders in sustainable design

The RENU difference: Through RENU Collective, the D+M team source and reimagine existing materials using expert design methodology. Every piece carries its own sourcing journey, giving each outcome a distinct character. No two designs are ever the same. This is not about replacing what works, but renewing it with purpose.

Activate Your Space Consciously

RENU has an entry point for everyone, from simply being an advocate and connector to full bespoke installations. Every level of participation matters in challenging throwaway culture.

Start the conversation:
1. Connect Join our database for project updates and insights
2. Consult Book a Spatial Opportunities Audit for your asset
3. Commission Create custom installations tailored to your space and community
4. Collaborate Refer properties or projects that would benefit from Circular Placemaking

Need an audit or a placemaker strategy? Contact RENU Collective
Strategic extension of Design+Marketing

Julie Furlong
julie@designmarketing.com.au
Neutral Bay, Sydney, NSW