Al Wahda Mall
The mall will double in size, with additional shops and
food and beverage outlets, including a cinema and fitness centre, all
adding to the 200 stores that are already operating there.
Virgin Megastore, H&M, American Eagle Outfitters and Calvin Klein will be among the major new brands in the mall.
“We
are 90 per cent leased actually,” said Raja Abdulkhader, the director
of Line Investment & Properties, part of Emke Group, the mall’s
developer and the owner of Lulu Hypermarket. “It is now just a few small
shops left.”
Mr Abdulkhader said the mall would have a big launch later next month, but declined to offer further details.
Already,
major Middle East retailers, operating a wide range of international
brands, have given their seal of approval to the project, confirming a
host of stores to be opened next week.
Kuwait’s MH
Alshaya has agreed to open 14 brands within Al Wahda, including Pottery
Barn Kids, Dorothy Perkins, Miss Selfridge and Bath & Body
Works.Azadea Group, from Lebanon, is also offering brands such as
Pull&Bear, Bershka, Pepe Jeans, Jules, Piazza Italia, Tezenis and
George, the budget value clothing line.
Landmark Group and Liwa Trading Enterprises have also signed up a number of their brands, such as Reiss, New Look and Gant.
M&Co,
a Scottish fashion retailer with nearly 300 stores across the United
Kingdom, will be the anchor clothing store in the new development,
alongside BHS, another British department store.
The Al
Wahda extension is the start of a wave of new or extended malls and
shopping centres across Abu Dhabi that will change the retail landscape
of the capital.
Stores in areas outside malls currently dominate the market in the capital, accounting for half of the total retail supply.
But
that will change as retail space in the capital is set to grow from
1.68 million square metres to 2.3 million by the end of 2014, according
to Jones Lang LaSalle, the property specialist.
It
expects about 300,000 sq metres of retail space could enter the market
this year, although some mall projects could be delayed.
Deerfields
Town Square in Al Bahia, Emporium Mall at Central Market and Capital
Mall are all expected to open their doors this year.
“The
extension at Al Wahda Mall is forecast to thrust the mall to the
forefront of the shopping experience in Abu Dhabi with a large spectrum
of shopping experiences under one roof”, Yusuff Ali, the managing
director of Lulu Group, the mall’s developer said earlier this year as
he announced the brands going into the extension.
Source
http://www.thenational.ae/
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