The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) has announced its 2009 European Conference will be held in the city of Barcelona. The conference will be held at Catalonia Palace of Congresses from 22-24 April 2009. Gerard Groener, CEO of Corio Nederland Retail and member of management board Corio N.V., is chairing the programme.
Groener points out that Barcelona is one of the major cities in Europe. "It is still enjoying a growing number of people visiting the city every year, probably because the city breathes passion, from world class football to the famous flamenco. And that's what it is all about in retail: The passion for beautiful things, persuading people to buy, pleasing and surprising them with great food and entertainment.
"At the European conference in Barcelona we will focus on sharing our passion for shopping center planning, design, management and more. This is what ICSC conferences are all about."
Groener added: "This beautiful city has it all. The old city with its historic beauty, the distinctive Gaudi architecture of the early 20th century and just fifteen years' ago, the Olympics, when the whole world was focused on Barcelona. This event triggered many initiatives, not least in property development.
"Since then, two shopping center lifecycles have passed by and a number of fine examples have been opened in the market. Barcelona will be a fantastic platform to discuss these developments and look forward to the future of the shopping center industry."
With the final preparations for ICSC's 2008 European Conference, being held at the RAI Congress Centre in Amsterdam from 16-18 April currently underway, planning for the 2009 has already started.
Source: ICSC
