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Dh3 bln Mirdif City Centre seen to spur retail buoyancy

DUBAI — Majid Al Futtaim Properties, a leading shopping centre pioneer, on Tuesday launched the Dh3 billion Mirdif City Centre, adding nearly 200,000 square metres of leasable space to galvanise the retail sector.

The 196,000-square metre mall, located on the corner of Tripoli Street and Emirates Road, comprises more than 350 outlets. It is designed to serve a population of 450,000 within a 10km radius, as well as communities across the rest of Dubai and other emirates, MAF Properties said.

According to estimates by financial services firm JP Morgan, about 748,000 square metres of new supply will enter Dubai’s retail space over the next two to three years, taking the gross leasable area (GLA) under retail to 2.7 million square metres, up from the over two million now.

Over the past decade, Dubai has seen an explosive growth in malls on the back of indigenous consumer demand and rising tourist flow regardless of the recent financial crisis. The Dubai Mall, the Gulf’s largest destination mall by size that boasts more than 1,200 retail outlets with total GLA of 344,000 square metres, opened in 2008. On Monday, Al Fattan Properties announced the launch of Al Khail Mall.

“Mirdif City Centre shows Majid Al Futtaim Properties’ continuing commitment and confidence in Dubai as the leading retail and leisure destination in the Middle East. It has been delivered on schedule, constructed to the highest quality and environmental standards, and is another example of innovation in design and retail planning by Majid Al Futtaim Properties,” said Peter Walichnowski, chief executive of Majid Al Futtaim Properties.

During the development and construction process, the mall, which was completed in just over two years, created over 16,000 jobs. It will provide 5,500 permanent jobs going forward.

“Mirdif City Centre is in line with the company’s strategy to develop large destination malls in the three most important trade areas of Dubai - Deira City Centre in the heart of Dubai, Mall of the Emirates in the Southern New Dubai area and now Mirdif City Centre to service North Dubai and the Northern Emirates,” said Walichnowski.

All three malls can now provide UAE residents and visitors with the fullest range of retailing, leisure and lifestyle choices found in any great city in the world, he added.

Our vision for Mirdif City Centre was to create a large mall offering a full range of shops and experiences but with the friendly feel of a community focused environment. It’s a different kind of mall.”

Shahram Shamsaee, Senior Vice-president, Asset Management, Majid Al Futtaim Properties, said Mirdif City Centre offered the best mix of retail, leisure and entertainment. “It provides a distinct point of difference to what else is available, and a testament to this is that the best of both local and international retailers have opened their most successful and recognised brands in Mirdif City Centre.”

The retail mix has been carefully selected to bring customers both popular well-known brands, as well as never-seen-before stores in the region, across retail categories such as fashion, home, services, electronics, entertainment and leisure and as well as essential convenience shopping, he said.

Shamsaee said access to the mall was made easy with a network of roads, complete with three dedicated bridges allowing convenient access from all directions. “While the 7,000 free car parking spaces and twelve entry and exit points means parking is abundant, quick and easy.”

Mirdif City Centre aims to become a hub for the greater community of Dubai and is designed to provide a place for people to relax and socialise, as well as enjoy the great shopping and leisure offer.

“The new mall is home to an impressive line-up of over 75 restaurants and cafes with famous names like Tiffinbites and P.F.Chang’s making their debut appearance in the country, as well as regional favourites such as Butcher Shop and Grill, Mango Tree Bistro and Pinkberry,” said Yousif Al Ali, Vice President of Mirdif City Centre.

· issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com