Preview: Civic Placemakers

Due to open in May 2017, the £16m ($20m, €18.7m) Boston Landing railway station will bring commuters to the New Balance headquarters and serve a part of the city that was cut off from rail services for more than five decades. After relocating to the area, the sports brand took matters into its own hands rather than waiting for cash-strapped local government to fund public transport links.

Another brand at the forefront of this shift is Hyundai Card, a South Korean credit card company affiliated to Hyundai Motor Group. In 2016, the brand led a redevelopment of a 103-year-old marketplace in the southern city of Gwangju aimed at inspiring innovation in the area, improving its commercial value and increasing the flow of visitors.