URW is able to provide some of the most beautiful and exciting spaces for retail, dining and other experiences – and our tenants and partners continue to react with enthusiasm and positivity.

The trend continues to favour larger flagship stores that can provide “wow-factor”, plus a full experience and service offering to customers. The results from 2021 clearly support the strategy, with the Group signing 71 leases, including 33 new lettings with its top 20 existing European tenants.

Zara goes XL

In France, the Inditex Group opened the doors of the largest Zara in the country at Westfield Les 4 Temps. Occupying an almost 5,000 m² location, Zara is delivering a full experience, with dedicated spaces for menswear, ladieswear, childrenswear, beauty and the popular Zara Home line, all with a very sleek design and contemporary atmosphere.

Westfield Les 4 Temps also has the first Zara Beauty Bar to open in a shopping centre in France, joining only 50 outposts worldwide. Two other Inditex brands, Pull&Bear and Bershka, have also chosen to lease space in Westfield Les 4 Temps.

The rise of lifestyle destinations

The market is shifting from retail destinations to lifestyle destinations, and our centres reflect this with huge growth across the restaurant and “competitive socialising” categories.

The Group continued to introduce flagship stores of dynamic brands in growing sectors such as Sports, Automotive, Experiencing and Gaming. Overall and despite the impact of the pandemic, the number of F&B and Entertainment tenants across the Group’s European centres was higher as at December 2021 than at December 2019.

Worldwide, a number of important deals were signed in these sectors, including Gamestate (an arcade gaming concept) in Westfield Centro, Five Guys in Westfield La Part-Dieu, and a multi-site deal with Lobsta in Westfield Les 4 Temps, Westfield Forum des Halles, and Westfield Vélizy 2.

Expansions in the UK and Sweden

Despite the pandemic, certain tenants in the UK and Sweden chose to close smaller boutiques in order to move to larger spaces. Among them were Rituals and Nike at the Westfield Mall of Scandinavia, in Sweden. The leading sportswear brand increased its floor area by about 300 m² to 800 m² in August, while the B-Corp beauty and self-care brand moved from a 90 m² boutique to a 400 m² space in October.

This year, retailer JD Sports will be doubling its space at the Westfield Mall of Scandinavia to over 1,000 m² in April – echoing a decision to expand its Westfield Stratford City premises in the UK. Westfield Mall of Scandinavia is also now proud to house beauty favourites Sephora with a new flagship store.

These great partners, both new and renewed, are in high demand for our destinations’ visitors and add to the overall customer experience with an impressive range of options.