Mr Engwicht has been to Carterton before to give retailers a score on how well their shop "relates to the street".
The average score was only 0.45 out of 3 points. Which means Carterton businesses are reaching only 15 per cent of their potential.
"Some did better than others." Mr Engwicht said.
Things he looked for during scoring included front door placement, product placement, quality of street environment and how welcoming the shop was.
He said a desirable street environment is one of the most important elements needed for good retail performance.
"Carterton tends to be dated - the whole street environment needs to be more attractive."
Mr Engwicht is looking to accomplish two things for retailers in Carterton:
The first is to design space that will slow people down as they walk through Carterton, like chairs outside shops or a table with a chess board on it.
The second is to utilise what Mr Engwicht terms "eddy" spaces, like the "space between a telephone booth and a bin" where people might slow down.
He said place making was also about getting retailers to push to give themselves a point of difference.
"We may never have a character street but we can have a street full of characters."
Deputy chairman of CDBI Greg Lang said they hired Mr Engwicht because he knows how to "create a destination".
Mr Lang was impressed with the work done in Paihia in turning something as bland as public toilets into a talking point for the town.
He said the CBDI were keeping an open mind for the workshop next month and were willing to listen to whatever ideas Mr Engwicht might have.
"Carterton has a lot going for it, but there are a lot of areas we could improve on."
Mayor Ron Mark supports the place-making project.
Carterton needed to create a "point of difference" for itself, similar to Greytown creating a reputation for itself as a good place to stop and get coffee.
The place-making meeting with David Engwicht will be held on May 12, 7 pm at the Carterton Events Centre.
