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The Ülemiste Centre has signed a contract with LPP Retail Estonia, the owner of several clothing stores, for renting 3,500 m² of retail space in an expansion to the centre. Construction of the expansion will start this summer. LPP Retail’s stores in the Ülemiste Centre will include fashion brands Reserved, House, Mohito and Cropp, and, if possible, Sinsay, a newcomer for Estonian shoppers. By the end of May, rent contracts will be signed for about 60–65% of the expansion’s retail space.
“For quite some time there has been a demand for an extension to the Centre. Since our occupancy rate is 100%, we have not been able to accommodate tenants who look for larger premises. But this situation will soon change,” explained Guido Pärnits, the CEO of the Ülemiste Centre. “In the coming decades, the entire Ülemiste area will be one of the most rapidly developing regions in Tallinn, a highly attractive location. That is why the construction of the expansion is a certain and well-planned undertaking,” added Pärnits.
According to Hendrik I. Passi, the chairman of the board of LPP Retail Estonia, their plans to spread coincided with the Centre’s prospects: “This made it easy to come up with a win-win solution. Launching four-five brands at once at the Ülemiste Centre is part of a strategy of bringing our brands into the more popular shopping centres and of being a key tenant who increases the centre’s attractiveness among shoppers. In this respect, Ülemiste’s results are excellent: our current stores are doing very well and we believe that after the expansion’s launch, shoppers will be even more inclined to stick to their well-trodden path, making Ülemiste an even more popular shopping centre,” explained Pass.
In addition to LPP Retail Estonia, the Ülemiste Centre has signed contracts for reserving and renting retail premises to H&M, Terranova, Desigual, etc. The expansion will also accommodate a Nike store in Estonia.
The expansion of the Ülemiste Centre was designed by the Norwegian architect Einar Aakeroy (AMB Arkitekter AS). Estonian company EA Reng also participated in the design phase. The expansion includes 25,000 m² of retail space with a new main entrance and a three-floor parking house for 400 cars. What is more, the entire centre will receive a facelift that will give it a fresh and up-to-date look.
According to Guido Pärnits, the Ülemiste Centre has reached agreements in principle with all parties involved in the construction stage.
“Basically this means that we could start with construction in the first half of the summer,” said Pärnits.
After the expansion works will be finished in October 2014, the centre will have a total area of 92,000 m², leasable area of 38 000 m², 210 stores and 1,350 parking spaces.
The total amount invested into the centre’s expansion is about 40 million euros.
The centre will be open daily during the construction phase.
“According to our estimates, temporarily closing down a maximum of 10% of the current space may be deemed necessary,” commented Guido Pärnits.