Stephen Bayley reflects on what gives an area a special ‘vibe’, and we pick the next hotspots

Stephen Bayley

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What precisely is a vibe and how do you get one? What drives culture? Where does business flourish? Why are some places interesting, others deadly dull? Why did Chelsea move to Hoxton? Why is Cleethorpes not a creative centre to rival Barcelona? Why are computers positively erotic in Palo Alto, but dreary in PC World?

If you could plan or predict excitement, or write a formula for urban pizzazz, you could make a fortune out of real estate and a bigger fortune out of art. But history shows that urban success is rarely planned. Its essence is mysterious.

There was that famous and pathetic graffito that read: “As soon as I find out where it’s at, they move it.” By the time the circus attracts an audience, it has left town. I am afraid to say that great cities happen by accident, not design but those accidents have certain common characteristics. First, there is often a new source of material wealth: wool made Florence c1450 a world centre of finance and art. Software did the same for Mountain View in California, 550 years later.

Second, there have to be opportunities in property or business. For instance, 1927 was an annus mirabilis for New York and Detroit: simultaneously, department stores and the auto industry discovered that design could increase sales.