Russian shopping malls lose up to 30% of footfall, developer’s son says

A woman walks past a closed ‘re:Store’, an Apple reseller store at a mall in Saint Petersburg, Russia March 2, 2022. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Picture

June 13 (Reuters) – Russian browsing malls are “de-energised” and have lost up to 30% of their footfall following the exodus of Western brands, the son of a single of Russia’s most distinguished property developers was quoted as declaring on Monday.

Emin Agalarov, a pop star and to start with vice president at the Crocus Team established by his billionaire father Aras Agalarov, was quoted by the RBC media outlet as declaring the loss of key tenants could spell the close for shopping malls completely.

“If you have a luxurious shopping centre, you have to have Prada, Chanel, Louis Vuitton if it can be the middle group – Zara, H&M, Reebok, Adidas,” RBC quoted Emin Agalarov as saying in an interview. “And if you really don’t have them, then the venue gets to be depersonalised.”

He believed that Crocus Group’s enormous flagship Vegas and Crocus Town buying centres on the outskirts of Moscow experienced missing 30% of their targeted traffic. Crocus may have to open a bowling alley or a warehouse if it was still left with vast areas that it was unable to lease.

A push variety for Crocus was not answered and the team did not right away respond to a ask for for comment.

Several Western makes have exited Russia or suspended operations since Moscow despatched tens of countless numbers of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24. A handful of former McDonald’s Corp (MCD.N) restaurants reopened on Sunday underneath a new brand in one of the most high-profile illustrations of a Western manufacturer exiting. read through extra

Lots of stores have opted simply just to close for now, leaving Russians with much less outlets to pick out from at browsing centres and in Moscow’s central luxurious district.

Reporting by Reuters Enhancing by Kevin Liffey and Peter Graff

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