Money Buzz! Europa

Category: Retail

  • Immofinanz to invest over EUR 250 million in Croatia

    Immofinanz to invest over EUR 250 million in Croatia

    Immofinanz is following its market entry in Italy with the expansion of Stop Shop retail park brand in Croatia.

    In Croatia, plans call for an increase in the number of Stop Shops from the current level of 4 to more than 20 locations over the medium-term.

    The completion of a newly developed unit and the expansion of an existing location are scheduled for the first half of 2022.

    Immofinanz secured 22 sites in medium-sized Croatian cities for the development of Stop Shop retail parks.

    The purchase price for these sites totals approximately EUR 80 million. Investment volume for the new locations will total over EUR 250 million.

    The retail parks that will be built on these sites have more than 190,000 sqm of rentable space.

    Stop Shop units are opened in Slovakia (16), Slovenia (14), Hungary (14), Serbia (14), Austria (13), Czechia (12), Poland (10), Croatia (4), Italy (1), Romania (1).

    MUST READ: Immofinanz adds Italy to its Stop Shop retail park portfolio

  • Polish retailer HalfPrice to open first store in Slovakia this spring

    Polish retailer HalfPrice to open first store in Slovakia this spring

    The first store of the HalfPrice chain is just being built in Nitra, Slovakia and will be opened in April 2022.

    Slovakia is the fifth foreign market to which the CCC Group’s off-price chain will be present.

    HalfPrice Nitra will be located in the Promenada Shopping Mall. In this country, CCC currently has 54 offline stores.

    Eight months from its launch, over 40 HalfPrice stores operate in the Czechia, Austria, Croatia and Hungary, in addition to Poland.

    HalfPrice is a store concept in the off-price segment, offering a wide variety of popular brands including clothing, footwear, accessories, cosmetics, toys and home furnishings.

  • NEPI Rockcastle launches SPOT, the loyalty mobile app

    NEPI Rockcastle launches SPOT, the loyalty mobile app

    NEPI Rockcastle announces the development and implementation of its loyalty mobile application, SPOT.

    The app allows customers to use the benefits accumulated in any of the 15 shopping centers in Romania – depending on their shopping preferences.

    The new application, unique in the Romanian retail market but also in Europe, aims to offer customers access to benefits in the shopping centers in the group’s portfolio.

    Romania is the first country in which the company launched the mobile application and in the near future SPOT will be implemented in the other 8 markets in which the company operates.

    By accessing the SPOT app, each shopping session in a mall will bring users loyalty points, with which they will have access to exclusive offers and benefits.

    Users will benefit from discounts, personalized experiences, rewards and gifts or shopping vouchers applicable to a selection of partner stores.

    Customers can access 3 levels: Select Spot (obtained by default upon authentication), Premium Spot and Elite Spot.

    Once the user reaches a new status in the application, it is valid for 1 year and can be accessed in all 15 shopping centers in the portfolio of NEPI Rockcastle.

  • The brand new Etele Plaza mall opened for public in Budapest

    The brand new Etele Plaza mall opened for public in Budapest

    Budapest’s latest shopping and entertainment centre Etele Plaza will offer an outstanding range of stores and services.

    The EUR 300 million development is also the first smart plaza in Hungary and has a rentable area of 55,000 sq m and over 1.300 places in the car parks.

    Etele Plaza is built at the meeting point of Kelenföld railway station, metro line 4 and the approach section of M1-M7 motorways.

    The immediate catchment area of the new centre is one of the most densely populated areas of Budapest, where some 235.000 people live.

    Residents of this district represent 125% of the nation’s average purchasing power with a relatively low retail supply.

    In Etele Plaza, Peek & Cloppenburg opened its first store on the Buda side in the shopping centre and Spanish Inditex group is present with all their brands available in Hungary.

    American clothing company, GAP opens its first store in the country here, and the largest Müller can also be found in the shopping centre.

    The most spacious food court in Hungary

    The food court in Etele Plaza covers almost the entire third floor of the building, allowing over 1.000 people to dine at any one time.

    The interior dining area will seat 950, while another 150 seats will be installed on the roof terrace.

    Families will have a dining area designed just for them, where tables and chairs sized for children will be placed next to a playing mat, a TV set and interactive toys.

  • Italian fashion retailers registered sales of USD 6 billion in China

    Italian fashion retailers registered sales of USD 6 billion in China

    Italian fashion retailers exported more than USD 6 billion worth of products to China in the first half of the year, according to data on the first half of the year published by Beijing ITA.

    Italian producers surpass, for the first time in history, French competitors on the Chinese market.

    In the first six months of 2021, Chinese imports from the world fashion market increased by 46%, and exports of Made in Italy products to China almost doubled (+ 96%).

    Italy reached a share of the Chinese fashion market of 12%, followed by French companies (11%).

    China also imports fashion products from Asian countries, with the largest markets being Japan (imports of $ 5.1 billion), Vietnam ($ 5 billion) and South Korea ($ 3.6 billion).

  • Immofinanz adds Italy to its Stop Shop retail park portfolio

    Immofinanz adds Italy to its Stop Shop retail park portfolio

    Immofinanz‘s first acquisition in this country is the fully occupied Parco Fiore in the north Italian city of San Fior with roughly 27.000 sqm of rentable space.

    The retail park, which was completed in two phases during 2017 and 2019, had a sale price of approximately EUR 35.0 million.

    Stop Shop San Fior is located 37 kilometers north of Treviso and 60 kilometers north of Venice, in the heart of the Veneto region.

    Tenant mix include international retailers like C&A, Takko, MediaWorld, Decathlon, Roadhouse Grill and Burger King plus well-known Italian brands.

    The remaining term of the rental agreements (WAULT) totals roughly 7,7 years.

    Immofinanz‘s Stop Shop portfolio includes 99 retail parks in ten countries: Slovakia (16), Slovenia (14), Hungary (14), Serbia (14), Austria (13), Czech Republic (12), Poland (10), Croatia (4), Italy (1) and Romania (1).

  • Polish group LPP doubles its warehouse space in Romania

    Polish group LPP doubles its warehouse space in Romania

    LPP has proceeded to expand its Fulfilment Centre warehouse near Bucharest. Completion of the works is scheduled for Q3 2021.

    The warehouse, which handles online orders of LPP brands, will gain an additional 21,000 m2.

    The expanded warehouse, with a total area of 42,000 m2, will eventually serve not only online orders from Romania, but also from neighbouring countries.

    The new facility will also carry out cross-dock operations to supply the LPP brick and mortar stores network in Romania and Bulgaria, which currently comprises a total of over 100 stores.

    LPP plans to launch online sales in Bulgaria later this year.

    LPP has an e-commerce warehouse currently under construction in Russia and the distribution centre in Brześć Kujawski.

    Upon completion of all three facilities, the group’s total warehouse space will increase by 50%, i.e. from the current 253,000 m2 to 378,000 m2.

  • Swedish prime minister supports H&M, which is facing a boycott in China

    Swedish prime minister supports H&M, which is facing a boycott in China

    Swedish Prime Minister voiced support for clothing company H&M, the target of a boycott campaign in China, AFP reports.

    H&M has pledged to stop buying cotton in China’s Xinjiang province amid allegations that ethnic Uighurs are being forced into labor there.

    I think it’s very good when companies take responsibility for the working conditions of employees all over the world, so that employees are treated with respect, said Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven

    Following the publication of studies on ”forced labor” in Xinjiang, several big companies including H&M, Nike, Adidas or Uniqlo started to boycott cotton from Xinjiang.

    On Wednesday, H&M saw its products withdrawn from China’s main online retail sites, even though its 500 stores remained open.

    H&M accounts for more than 5% of its turnover in China, a country where almost 10% of its stores are located.

  • Mitiska REIM secures €123 million financing facility for Romanian retail park portfolio

    Mitiska REIM secures €123 million financing facility for Romanian retail park portfolio

    Mitiska REIM has today announced it has extended its relationship with Erste Group Bank AG by securing a €123 million senior debt facility for its entire retail park portfolio in Romania.

    Mitiska REIM’s Romanian portfolio is one of the largest retail real estate portfolios in the country, encompassing 24 retail parks with a gross leasable area of 132,000m2.

    The entire portfolio was developed, built and managed to a high standard by Mitiska REIM and its Romanian country partner, Square 7 Properties over the past 10 years.

    The tenant mix is well-diversified, with a focus on daily needs and discount retail, made up of leading international brands such as Deichmann, DM, Pepco, Jysk, KFC, Kik and Takko.

    The retail parks and their tenants have continued to perform well over the past year despite the challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Proceeds of the financing will be used to fund the completion of a new retail park under construction in Baia Mare and extension development projects for existing retail parks in Tulcea, Slatina and Medias.

  • OTP Bank grants EUR 9m financing for the construction of Prima Shops Sibiu

    OTP Bank grants EUR 9m financing for the construction of Prima Shops Sibiu

    OTP Bank provides approximately EUR 9m in financing to real estate developer Oasis Retail Development, for the construction of the Prima Shops Sibiu retail park.

    The first stage of development for the retail park will have a rentable commercial space of 9,000 sqm, distributed in 11 retail units.

    The financing granted by OTP Bank represents 75% of the total investment.

    The retail space delivery towards the future tenants will take place in August 2021, and the opening for the public is sheduled for October 2021.

    In the next development phase several retail stores will be built, which will complete the mix of existing tenants, as well as service spaces and several restaurants.

    Unpon completion, the entire Prima Shopping Center Sibiu project will have a total area of 60,000 square meters and will be one of the largest retail park projects in the west of the country.

  • Etele Plaza Budapest has received the occupancy permit

    Etele Plaza Budapest has received the occupancy permit

    The EUR 300 million Etele Plaza developed by Futureal has received the occupancy permit. Therefore, the tenants can now start setting up their stores in Buda’s largest shopping centre.

    The environment friendly complex with a rentable area of 55,000 sq m will open this September.

    Spanish Inditex Group decided to be present in Etele Plaza with all of its brands available in the country, including Zara fashion store featuring a brand-new design concept.

    Also, Peek & Cloppenburg’s first store on the Buda side of the capital will present itself with a new floor space concept in the complex.

    The exterior design of the shopping mall will be dominated by the largest curtain wall structure in Hungary above the main entrance and retracted metal boxes that jump out from the facades.

    Etele Plaza will feature 180 shops, a supermarket, restaurants, cafés, a multiplex cinema, a gym, a children’s play centre and a range of other services with nearly 1,300 parking lots.

    The most advanced location and navigation system will facilitate parking in the building by indicating empty spaces.

  • Czech coffee chain CrossCafe closed all locations in Prague

    Czech coffee chain CrossCafe closed all locations in Prague

    Czech coffee chain CrossCafe announced that it closed all five locations in Prague, as a result of the Government measures related to the coronavirus pandemic.

    ”For almost a year these measures limited the normal functioning of the entire HORECA sector, including CrossCafe cafes”, says the company statement.

    CrossCafe say that the support of the Government of the Czech Republic is far from covering costs.

    CrossCafe Atrium, Kateřinská, Strossmayer Square, Anděl, Komunardu are the closed locations.

    Prague is currently most affected by the outflow of tourists, the absence of office workers, as well as students.