Retail: Leading fashion retailer Zara is to open its third Irish outlet at Blanchardstown Town Centre in west Dublin where it will share one of the anchor stores with Roches Stores.
Other fashion traders BT2, A Wear and French Connection have also agreed terms to move into the Red Mall extension at Blanchardstown which is due open for business in November.
The latest line-up of fashion retailers will broaden the appeal of the shopping centre which, along with the adjoining retail warehousing parks, puts Blanchardstown well ahead of all other suburban centres.
In addition, the arrival of Marks & Spencer in Blanchardstown later this year is also expected to "stop any slippage of business to Liffey Valley", according to Eoin Feeney of letting agents Palmer McCormack.
Liffey Valley is the only major shopping centre in the country that does not have a conventional supermarket. Marks & Spencer does not fully service this market because of its heavy concentration on ready made meals and premium priced foodstuffs.
The owners of Liffey Valley plan to provide a supermarket if the planners eventually agree to an extension of the centre.
Zara took Dublin by storm when it opened before Christmas in part of the former Roches Stores in Henry Street. Not surprisingly, it has opted to open its second store in Dundrum Town Centre which has all the ingredients to become the leading shopping complex in south Dublin.
The successful relationship between Roches Stores and Zara will be repeated at Blanchardstown where Roches will have surplus space following its decision to drop the Supervalu foodstore franchise. This is expected to free up at least 1,400 sq m (over 15,000 sq ft) for Zara which will also have frontage on to level 2 mall following Roches' acquisition of a number of shop leases on either side of their store.
Roches trade out of about 4,645 sq m (50,000 sq ft) on the top mall and also have about 3,251 sq m (35,000 sq ft) on the ground floor where Supervalu has been running the food store. Roches bought the anchor store before the shopping centre opened but subsequently sold it back to Green in a sale and leaseback deal.
Palmer McCormack has had "an extremely high level of interest" in the Red Mall extension at Blanchardstown, according to Eoin Feeney. The 9,500 sq m (100,000 sq ft) extension was designed primarily as a fashion enclave to accommodate leading retailers who could not find space elsewhere in the centre.
A good indication of the quality of the tenants still looking for space is provided by the fact that traders like Monsoon, Esperit, Berskha (part of the Zara stable) and many more are believed to be in contention for the two remaining large outlets of 371 and 464 sq m (4,000 and 5,000 sq ft). Five smaller units have also to be allocated.
Since the marketing campaign began, Zone A rents in the centre have moved up from €3,229 to €3,552 per sq m (€300 to €330 per sq ft). Even before these lettings, rents generally at Blanchardstown were more than doubled in the most recent review. The Red Mall alone is expected to bring in an additional €4.5 million in rents for Green. It will also increase the overall size of the shopping centre to around 74,320 sq m (800,000 sq ft) on top of the 34,837 sq m (375,000 sq ft) of retail warehousing.
The Cosgrave Group also operate the Westend Retail Park at Blanchardstown.
With so few opportunities of locating on either Grafton Street or Henry Street, overseas traders are generally happy to settle for suburban shopping centres and going on to open shops in the major cities. Zara and Monsoon are perhaps the best known of a whole range of fashion traders who have moved into Ireand in recent years.
