Argo Real Estate Opportunities Fund announces the opening of OBI, a leading Do-It-Yourself store in Europe at the Riviera Shopping City in Odessa, Ukraine.
Argo Real Estate Opportunities Fund (the "Company") is pleased to announce the the successful opening of a 14,000-m² OBI store at the Riviera Shopping City in Odessa, Ukraine, making it the first international Do-It-Yourself ("DIY") store in Odessa. OBI is a well-known German DIY retailer with 525 stores throughout Europe.
The launch of OBI's store marks the opening of phase one of the Riviera Shopping City which will be followed by a further 70,000 m² this summer with Real Hypermarket and Imax Multiplex Cinema scheduled to open in August 2009. In total, Riviera Shopping City will cover 84,000 m² and is Odessa's first internationally anchor-tenanted destination shopping centre. The Riviera Shopping City is located on the north-eastern edge of Odessa, an attractive and highly sought after residential area consisting of both luxury villas and seaside gated communities, adjoining the city's highest density residential neighborhood. Odessa is located on the Black Sea in South West Ukraine and serves as one of the major trade centers and tourist destination for Ukraine and the former CIS region.
The company recently signed leases with Zara, Pull and Bear, Bershka and Stradivarius, fashion brands belonging to the Inditex Group.
Robert Provine, Fund Manager said: "We are delighted with the successful launch of phase one of the Riviera Shopping City. Good progress is being made on the next 70,000 m² and we are on track to open in the summer. Riviera Shopping City is ideally located in a thriving city which is densely populated and attracts domestic and international tourists."
Source: Cardew Group
