We're experts in supporting communities to mitigate the impacts from development & infrastructure projects - helping maintain performance and build resilience.
Development Response - Project Impact Mitigation
Public realm, transport and infrastructure improvement works are often impactful on surrounding businesses, with resulting effects on trading and goodwill. First Retail Group are leading experts in the mitigation of these impacts through planning, engagement and collaboration with stakeholders and project delivery partners.
Our teams have worked across a range of high profile projects including city and town centre upgrades, bus and cycleway construction and major infrastructure upgrades – guiding methodologies, customer experience and goodwill, economic resilience and stakeholder welfare.
First Retail Group is a recommended supplier to Waka Kotahi – NZ Transport Agency’s Innovating Streets Programme with expertise in Community activation, Design-led Thinking, Monitoring and Evaluation. Placemaking and Community Engagement through Co-Design and Workshop Facilitation.

First Retail Group are specialist solution providers for local authorities, transport agencies and developers. Our pro-active insight and strategy services are a key part of early planning stages in successful infrastructure and development projects.
Working alongside Urban Designers, Engineers and Transport Specialists, our expertise helps guide planning through considerate and efficient methodologies that limit construction impacts on local neighbourhoods and businesses.
We’re also closely involved during project enablement, construction and commissioning phases – monitoring contractor performance, maintaining stakeholder relationships and delivering agile and responsive solutions to issues that may arise during works.
We work with communities and business groups to develop communication channels, understand local dynamics, build awareness, trust and collaboration and assist stakeholders in managing disruption as part of development and infrastructure projects. This helps accelerate works and creates greater efficiency in the delivery of upgrades, regeneration and new developments.
We understand commerce and communities. Our team includes specialist engagement and facilitation professionals, along with experts in consumer-facing businesses, with the ability to support sectors especially affected through construction, accessibility or environmental impacts.
Strategy supports confidence, goodwill and recovery. First Retail Group have developed and enabled strategies to help commercial communities and businesses adapt to manage both short and longer term impacts from changes in accessibility and disruptive construction work.
These co-designed solutions are shaped from a close understanding of consumer and business needs, experience in similar projects and global best practice in supporting the needs of stakeholders through impactful events.
Expertise
- Development Response Programmes
- Stakeholder Communications
- Stakeholder Engagement & Consultation
- Customer Experience Strategies
- Community Workshops and Events
- Design-led Thinking
- Retail Resilience Strategies
- Recovery & Support Programmes
- Urgent Intervention & Assistance
- Project Monitoring & Contractor Liaison