As in past years, the top players in the industry are providing a glimpse at their current retail projects at MAPIC in 2015. ACROSS makes a foray into the most extraordinary new developments, extensions, and refurbishments to be presented in Cannes.

The Ringstrassen Galerien in the heart of the Austrian capital are among the country’s top retail areas. The turnover per square meter has for years been well above the average for Austrian shopping centers. Now the site has been prescribed a comprehensive facelift. The future Opera Mall Vienna (its new marketing name) will be positioned as “The Home of Affordable Luxury.”

Nikolas Löhr and Bernd Hofer of the FREO Group explain the Mall of Switzerland’s unique selling propositions. It is scheduled to open in autumn 2017.

The Capital Plaza in Podgorica boasts around 93,000 sq m of space. Two firms from the United Arab Emirates provided the investment, the size of which remains undisclosed.

In Machelen, north of Brussels, Uplace, an independent real estate group in the lifestyle business, is building Uplace Brussels. The concept intends to be beyond what is available in shopping centers in Belgium.

By opening architecturally outward, the Weberzeile fuses with downtown Ried. Total integration is the new shopping center’s motto. Patios, windows, and balconies provide communication between the users and the environment.

There are many shopping centers named Riviera. Another not-too-small one – with approximately 100,000 sq m of GLA – will open next spring in Moscow.

The groundbreaking for the new Mölndal Galleria and the transformation of Mölndal’s city center took place on 27 August in a ceremony held on the construction site. The event was jointly organized by Citycon, NCC, Riksbyggen, and MölndalsBostäder, the four companies investing in the scheme.

The transport hub is getting even more sales space. The reason is that the operator primarily sees growth in the profitable non-aviation portion of the business.

The Istanbul New Airport is set to become the largest of its kind worldwide. Its opening is planned for the end of 2018. Around 53,000 sq m of retail space will sweeten passengers’ stays there.

Henrik Stadigh, Director Shopping Centers, and Pia Arrhenius, Senior Vice President, Corporate Planning and IR, tell ACROSS that the Finnish real estate investment company Sponda will concentrate in the future on office space and shopping centers.

Honfleur Outlet is the new shopping destination for Normandy. Phase 1 of the 18,000-sq-m project is to open its doors in spring 2017.

Strong interest from retailers and customers’ positive views of outlets mean a bright future for Russia’s outlet centers. There is potential to launch 25 to 30 new projects in the next 10 to 15 years.

Austria’s SCS was recently declared a 4-star shopping center. 20 of Unibail-Rodamco’s 73 malls now boast this certification related to quality of stay and service.

The economic recovery in Europe and the consistent expansion of its services business provides the Portuguese shopping center specialist Sonae Sierra with good figures.

Today’s level of professionalism in the shopping center industry is impressive. It wasn’t always that way. From 1974 to 2000, Heinrich Kraft was CEO of ECE. In an interview with ACROSS, the center professional recalls his beginnings and what problems pioneers had to battle with.

SES Spar European Shopping Centers will operate Austria’s first managed shopping street in Seestadt Aspern in a joint venture with the City of Vienna, CEO Marcus Wild explains in an interview with ACROSS.

Why more and more investors want retail parks in their portfolios and why this special property type is so alluring.

The Dutch capital is getting a new shopping destination in 2016: Haussmann is opening an upscale department store right on Rokin street.

The Minto shopping center in Mönchengladbach is already a success story. Its presentation as the “Home of Indulgence” counts: Just one month after opening, mfi/Unibail-Rodamco recorded one million visitors.

The Austrian company Immofinanz Group has completed another retail project in Poland: the Tarasy Zamkowe mall opened in Lublin on March 4, 2015. Its lettable area of 38,000 sq m gives it room for shopping, entertainment, recreation, and leisure activities with a balanced tenant and range mix. The investment amounted to approximately €115 million.

Redevco recently celebrated the completed restoration of the Antwerp Inno building. The monumental department store was built in 1901 and has now been restored to its former glory.

Markthal in Rotterdam received the 2015 award for the Best Shopping Center at this year’s MIPIM. The developer, Provast, is rightly overjoyed.

With 230,000 sq m of GLA, Avia Park in Moscow is one of the largest shopping centers in Europe. AMMA Development is responsible for the project.