K & S Developments, a leading retail developer in Romania, along with Auchan Romania, as partner in this project, and DTZ Echinox, the exclusive leasing agent, announce an occupancy rate of 80% for Electroputere Parc, a developing shopping center, located in Craiova. The project an investment of 90 million is scheduled to open in Q4 2011.
Electroputere Parc has a total lettable area of 55,000 m² (GLA), 1,900 parking spaces and over 120 stores. So far, lease agreements have been signed with leading retailers from the fashion segment: C&A, NewYorker, Takko, Orsay. The retail scheme gathers footwear and accessories brands such as Bata, Deichmann, Otter and Leonardo and it will also benefit from the presence of leading operators from the electronics and home appliances sector: Altex and Domo. The new shopping center will also host a Diverta library, Toyplex (a toy store) and numerous jewelry, accessories and perfumes brands: Splend'or, B & B Collection, Kendra, Yves Rocher etc. On the upper floor, the project is provided with a food and entertainment area, with cinema and bowling.
The main anchors of Electroputere Parc are: Auchan - with a 11,000 m² hypermarket, Decathlon one of the most popular sport goods stores in Romania, with 3,500 m², Kiabi fashion retailer covering a surface of 1,800 m², Leroy Merlin specialist in DIY and gardening products, with 10,000 m², Norauto - specialist in automotive service and supplies, with a 1,100 m² retail area.
"Electroputere Parc will be the first shopping center in the city, situated in a location with a great accessibility and visibility. It is for the first time in Romania when a developer decides to conserve an industrial building and to transform it in a retail project, preserving the façade and the elements of the industrial heritage. The old building of Electroputere factory is very familiar to the local people and we hope that they will gladly come and visit the national and international brands that the shopping center gathers, " says Razvan Sin, Head of Retail Department, DTZ Echinox.
"The retailers' interest to open new shops in Craiova has finalized by signing contracts with numerous prestigious brands. Therefore, the tenant mix gathers market leaders such as: Auchan, Leroy Merlin, Decathlon, C&A, New Yorker, Altex, Domo, Kiabi, Norauto, Deichmann, Leonardo, Orsay, Diverta, Takko, Toyplex, Bata, Otter, Yves Rocher, B&B, Kendra, Splend'or, Vodafone, Orange, Inmedio, Germanos and many others."
The project Electroputere Parc is financed by Unicredit/Bank Austria. "We are happy to support such a prominent and well designed project in the heart of Craiova. This proves Unicredit Group commitment to the Romanian market and our confidence in working with experienced developers," says Gabor Somogyi, Vice President at Unicredit Group.
"We are very satisfied with the great occupancy rate achieved by Electroputere Parc so far, considering the agreements we have settled with national and international retailers," says Steven Van Den Bossche, Managing Partner K&S Developments.
"Many more retailers are interested to be present in Electroputere Parc. Our main goal is to identify and implement the perfect mix of tenants, adapted to the specific of the market, and to the customers' needs. For this reason, we are extremely careful in our selection".
Right from the opening Electroputere Parc, will provide approximately 1,500 jobs, bringing a significant contribution to the area's economic condition.
"We are happy to announce that we have started the recruitment campaign for the management team of the store the core management team is already formed and will begin the training in the Auchan stores. On July and August we will begin the mass recruitment campaign for all the jobs available in the hypermarket, thus the Auchan team in Craiova will be composed of 500 employees at the opening of the store," says Tiberiu Danetiu, Marketing Director at Auchan Romania.
"A very important component of Auchan Romania commercial policy is building partnership
