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placemaking

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the European retail sector has been experiencing one crisis after another. As the pandemic faded, consumers and retailers finally hoped for relief, but the war in Ukraine immediately followed, causing further crises.

Mauro Abruzzese is an Italian retail and shopping center expert who develops projects in Kosovo for OCM International. In this interview, the CEO and Managing Director explains how the individual SEE markets are developing, what makes them different, what the local consumers are like, and what investors should consider before entering the market.

Learn about the potential! Country Profiles for Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and North Macedonia.

The BALFIN Group is the largest shopping center developer and operator in Albania and North Macedonia and is one of the most important groups in the Western Balkans region. As one of the leading investment groups in Southeastern Europe, the Group’s Vice President of Retail, Julian Mane, spoke with ACROSS about the region’s strengths, weaknesses, and current developments.

“Through constant innovation, we can remain at the forefront of the industry and maintain our commitment to adding value to our clients’ assets,” said Cristina Santos. The Managing Director of Property Management of Sonae Sierra talked to ACROSS founder Reinhard Winiwarter about the Prishtina Mall management contract.

BEO Shopping Center is a best practice example of how to create a meaningful identity for a shopping center. What used to be a ruined factory has become a real community center and an award-winning shopping destination. Nemanja Bućinac, Retail Leasing Director MPC Properties, gives a unique overview of BEO Shopping Center.

GTC Poland leasing team is joined by four new experts: Łukasz Jarzyło as Head of Office Leasing, Agnieszka Kuehn, Michał Kubicz, and Maciej Łyszczyński as Senior Leasing Managers. These reorganizations among GTC employees represent part of the company’s vast transformation intended to empower its leadership in each country so as to better meet expectations and challenges in local markets.

Twenty-five years of Designer Outlet Parndorf: It all started with a clear vision. Mario Schwann, General Manager McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Parndorf, talks in his extensive ACROSS interview about the development of the location, decisions about the brand mix, the development as a tourist location, and why the geographical location at the border triangle of Austria, Hungary, and Slovakia always pays off, especially in challenging times.

Amsterdam The Style Outlet has made it clear that the experience element is a key component in its value proposition. Although shopping remains the primary attraction, creating a space where people can go to meet up and spend time together is a crucial part of the outlet’s growth strategy. Both the increasing number of visitors and rising sales figures at the centre show that its efforts to offer a go-to destination that brings people together and provides a unique shopping experience are proving very popular – the figures speak for themselves.

In today’s digital age, shopping centers face the challenge of understanding their customers’ behaviors and preferences while delivering personalized experiences. Wiacom, a leading WiFi marketing company, and Placewise, a proptech provider to the global retail real estate industry, have forged a powerful partnership that revolutionizes how shopping centers collect valuable data and engage with their shoppers.

“The net to gross the proportion of tenanted space to the public realm is shifting,” states Ibrahim Ibrahim, Managing Director of Portland Design, in his discussion with Reinhard Winiwarter. Developers and asset owners of commercial spaces have no option but to rethink public spaces. But this changes everything and will require new skills to respond.

With the opening of the new sports and outdoor experience world, ECE Marketplaces has successfully completed the comprehensive 12 million Euro project for the further development of the shopping center located at the gates of Vienna.