Dubai: UAE’s retail space is to get its only second ‘outlet mall’ next year with the opening of a 20,000 square metre development — set for the third quarter of next year — in Al Ain. The Barari Outlet Mall, split into a ground plus three storey format, will be leased and managed by Line Investments & Property, part of the Lulu Group.
There will, obviously, be a Lulu hypermarket apart from a Group-operated department store. Leasing started last month and so far has managed to confirm a 40 per cent plus take-up. Development costs would be in the Dh200-Dh225 million range.
The outlet mall concept, hugely popular in the west and in some of the Asian markets as well, essentially sells last-season apparel and other merchandise at prices lower than what they would be for a brand’s current inventory. The value-for-money concept is at work here in attracting a shopper base, plus with enough leisure and entertainment options built into the offering. Until now, the only such facility of its kind in the local marketplace was the Dubai Outlet Mall.
“Al Ain now has a resident and visitor base that can support the new capacity additions in retail space despite the presence of three substantial mall developments — Al Ain Mall, Al Jimi and Bawadi Mall,” Raja Abdul Kader, director at Line Investments & Property, said. “So much so, even an outlet mall concept can now be readily absorbed within it.”
The leasing programme for the new development has reached a fairly mature level, with a fair representation by local and regional franchises. A clearer picture of the retail mix would be had by early next year.
Rise in retail capacity
Al Ain has been witness to a steady increase in its available retail capacity in the recent past. Both Al Ain Mall and Al Jimi Mall have gone through fairly sizeable expansions, while a brand new facility — Wahat Hilli Mall — has just had its opening.
For Line Investments & Property, the Al Ain venture continues the extension of its mall management services to territories outside of Abu Dhabi — where it has the Al Wahda and Khalidiyah malls — and Dubai. New ones are due to open next year in Fujairah (22,000 square metres of leasable space) and Ruwais (with 15,000 square metres), in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region. Both are due for a first quarter 2014 opening.
“With the new malls, we have located them in areas that are currently underserved by organised retail and which in the future could have a higher resident base,” said Kader. “For instance, the Ruwais Mall serves the 20,000-strong population of Ruwais Industrial Complex and at the same time the Al Baraka catchment area where the nuclear plant is.”
The target is to have 15 malls (including one which opened recently in India) under management by 2015 with a combined gross leasable area of 9 million square feet plus. Currently, it manages 6.3 million square feet, which last year attracted 35 million visitors.
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