Introduction

Five years ago it was forecast that up to US$1.8 billion was going to be ploughed into retail construction by 2010. With some 200 or more shopping centres across the country and more in the pipeline this seems to have been a wild underestimate. The fashion conscious Poles have an insatiable demand for ever greater variety and improved retail offer and shopping centre developers are responding.

Although it is less than a generation since transforming in to a market led economy, Poland has achieved in a matter of years a level of sophisticated retailing that has taken 50 years in Western Europe.

Hypermarket chains such as Carrefour, Géant, Metro and Tesco are as ubiquitous in Poland as they are in their domestic markets. Highly sought-after fashion chains including Zara, Sephora, H&M Hennes & Mauritz, Peek & Cloppenburg, Mexx and Marks & Spencer are rolling out stores across the country.

First Generation Malls

For the first generation of shopping malls, the main ingredient for success was a vast, level, edge of town, green field site, capable of accommodating upwards of 25,000 m2 of hypermarket, several thousand cars and an equal number of shopping trolleys.

These were developed to fill an overnight demand without great forethought or detailed planning. Most were clones usually hypermarket-based and supported by strip-type shops on green field, edge of town, locations. These were often ill thought out with dead-end malls, limited natural lighting, desperately poor vertical circulation, and built in close proximity to competing centres.

Increasingly Polish shoppers looked to move on to lifestyle centres, offering 'shoppertainment', 'edutainment' etc. They wanted to separate the weekly chore of essential shopping at the hypermarket for food, detergents and diapers from recreational shopping.

Second Generation Malls

Thus second generation shopping malls have emerged with the latest standing comparison with the best in the world. This is hardly surprising now that top flight retail architects and international developers are involved.

Perhaps the best example was the completion in 2004 of Arkadia Shopping Mall in Warsaw. Comprising some 110,000 sq.m. and offering a range of national and international retailers comparable with any in Europe.

Basic Demographics

With a population of nearly 39 million, Poland is one of the largest consumer markets in Central and Eastern Europe and is considered to be an ideal base for expansion eastwards.

Poland became a full member of the European Union in 2004 and enjoys GDP growth of around 4.5%. Poland is a young population with 52% of the population below 35 years old. The 25 - 34 age group, who are most influenced by western products, comprise 14% of the population. Over 62% of the Polish population are urban dwellers.