Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
Issue link: https://sct.epubxp.com/i/462841
10 S C T / M a r c h 2 0 1 5 w o r l d aT a g l a n C e Discount grocer Aldi is set to open 70 more shops in Britain and to hire an ad- ditional 5,000 workers this year as it increases pressure on the country's four major supermarket chains. This will push Aldi's store count in Britain well past 600. Retail sales in Europe are growing at their fastest in nearly eight years, rising by 2.8 percent year on year in December. This marks the best growth pace since March 2007, according to Eurostat. Mega Mall, a €165 million (nearly $187 million) mall in Bucharest, Romania, is on track for an April open- ing. The 72,000-square- meter property is being developed by New Europe Property Investments, a South Africa investment fund. Among its 200 ten- ants are H&M;, Mango, Marks & Spencer and Zara. Alain Bejjani, formerly chief corporate development and brand officer at Majid Al Futtaim, has been promoted to CEO of the mall develop- ment firm, which is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He succeeds Iyad Malas, who held the post for eight years and made a considerable impact on the firm's growth in the MENA region during his tenure, according to Michael Rake, the company's chairman. Chile's Cencosud says it plans to invest as much as $3 billion in its various re- tail formats through 2018. The company operates the Jumbo supermarket, Easy home-improvement and Paris department-store chains. Besides Chile, the company operates in Ar- gentina, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. The Turkish Federation of Shopping Centers and Re- tailers says the retail sector in Turkey is poised to grow by about 9 percent this year. Twenty shopping centers are expected to begin operating this year. Projections say the Turkish retail industry will exceed $120 billion in sales in 2015. Tokyo-based mall developer Aeon Co. has reached agree- ment with the owners of Fivimart and Citimart as it seeks to expand in Vietnam. Fivimart is the largest super- market company in Hanoi, with 20 stores, and Citimart is the largest supermarket operator in southern Viet- nam, with 27 stores. Aeon is working to open its third mall in Vietnam this year, in Hanoi. SM Investments Corp. says it will be boosting capital expenditures in the Philippines this year. The company is aiming to invest some P80 billion (about $1.6 billion) to support the expan- sion of its shopping mall, property development and retail businesses. Spurring the increase is the company's confidence in the strength of the economy and in con- sumer spending levels. SCT