Outlet Centre International's Designer Outlets Wolfsburg

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BICESTER VILLAGE Bicester’s success secret: Details, details, details By Linda Humphers Editor in Chief Possibly the highest-producing outlet centre in Europe with sales over €1,000 per square foot, Value Retail’s 13-year-old Bicester Village is just what Mies van der Rohe meant when he said “God is in the details.” At this busy, vital outlet village, buzzing with shoppers even on a drizzly Tuesday afternoon in October, little seems left to chance. The management offices, on a level overlooking the centre’s main concourse with a bird’s eye view of the shops, is likewise buzzing with activity as staff keeps the gears rolling smoothly for operations and marketing. “We do everything in-house,” says Chris Rycroft, who as the village’s retail director heads a six-person team whose primary purpose is to work with tenants. The everything in-house statement makes sense, especially as Bicester Village is deep in construction on a 40,000-sf phase 3 due to open in late August or early September. Expansions can be disruptive on many levels, for shoppers and tenants alike. So the Value Retail tenant team focuses on maintaining that balanced level of serenity and urgency while the developer devises ways, such as a temporary two-level car park and hedges, to make the construction invisible to shoppers. When the expansion is open, Bicester Village will total 222,000 sf, and have added a stream, an eco zone, and 30 more tenants to the 103 already in place. Given the waiting list for tenant space at Bicester Village, one would think that adding 30 tenants would be a breeze. While Value Retail doesn’t deny that having a waiting list is a nice position to be in, Helen Pask, group leasing and commercialisation director, is quick to point out that successful tenanting “is all about choosing the right mix.” She and Rycroft said that continually refining the small-space brands is highly important, whether it’s to move the brand to a different location in the village or into a different size space (Donna Karen downsized; Mulberry upsized) or to simply say good-bye. In 2006, they said, about 25 percent of tenants were replaced. “What’s interesting now,” Pask says, “is 1 InternatIOnal Outlet JOurnal SPRING 2008 one of the busiest outlet centres in Europe, Bicester Village is adding 40,000 sf, bringing the scheme to 222,000 sf. The centre is 100 km northwest of London. that we’re getting demand for retailers not normally found in outlets.” Always listening to shoppers, Value Retail researches these longed-for retailers to understand where they are in the market. “We want longevity,” Rycroft says. “We don’t like to say good-bye, and we don’t like unpleasant surprises.” Once Value Retail is comfortable with a brand, its retail team helps bring it into the outlet fold. Rycroft lists a few brands that have graduated from a test store at Bicester Village to permanent tenancy: n Loro Piana, known for high-end cashmere and other expensive fabrics n Anya Hindmarch, maker of handbags ranging from whimsical to utterly luxurious n Agent Provocateur, Vivian Westwood’s raunchy underwear, whips, masks and gloves n Jimmy Choo, amazing shoes n Jack Wills, a UK Abercrombie n Bonpoint, incredible children’s fashions from France A fresh brand mix is important, Rycroft says, since “most customers aren’t mas- sively loyal.” They shop the whole village, he says, with most staying for four to five hours discovering the diversity of brands scattered throughout the village. “We don’t zone tenants,” he says. “We don’t believe in it and try not to do it. We prefer the shopper find surprises in the center. Convincing retailers of this can take some time,” and it does create some interesting juxtapositions, such as Dior next to Timberland, Tommy Hilfiger next to Zegna, Diesel next to Savoy Taylors Guild, Musto next to Mexx. But judging from Bicester Village’s sales performance and the fact that it has the second-highest VAT density in England (central London has the highest), its shopper has clearly embraced the eclectic concept. Thirty-five percent of Bicester Village’s shoppers are international, and one in five Chinese tourists to the UK visits the centre, which is 100 km northwest of London, in Oxford. Though Value Retail is a heavy international marketer, 30 percent of the centre’s
Bvs breaks ground in Landquart march was the scheduled date for the official groundbreaking of Alpenrhein Outlet Village, located in Landquart, one hour east of Zurich and close to Liechtenstein and the German and Austrian borders. Monaco-based BVS Outlet Villages is responsible for the concept, design, marketing, leasing and management of the 21,000-m² scheme, which will be developed in one phase. Other members of the joint venture include ING Real Estate Germany and MIAG Mutschler Immobilien. BVS chairman Robin Behar said that he learned to ski in Landquart when he was seven, thus he has a strong appreciation for the potential success of an outlet centre there. “We believe in the strong link between tourism and outlet shopping,” Behar told IOJ. “Unlike standard shopping centres, which respond to the daily and weekly needs of their immediate local catchment, outlets draw customers from considerable distances, often from over two hours away, often only once or twice a year. “But unlike standard shopping centres, you rarely see a car arrive at an outlet village with just one occupant – usually it’s the whole family, or a group of ladies on an outing, and they’ve decided to make a BicesTer CONTINUED customers live within a half-hour drive. “The local shopper is our core,” Rycroft says, “but the tourist is the icing on the cake. For many of our retailers, 30 percent to 50 percent of sales come from international visitors.” As a retail director, Rycroft works to ensure that brands evolve in the right way, he says, so that they can constantly improve their business, and not just in the outlet sector. “Their success at high street is important to us.” So the day after a new brand opens in Bicester Village, “We’re knocking on their door,” Rycroft says, “with anything they need – mystery shoppers, training, visual merchandising, marketing – and it’s all optional, supplementary to what the brands already do. There’s just a lot of interaction between staff and stores.” He might add, success is in the details. day of it, and that’s why we’re designing this centre to be a Swiss tourist destination.” Behar said at least 30 percent of visitors to outlet centres continue spending in towns and high streets. “If we attract 1.5 million to 2 million visitors a year,” he said, “we could put an extra half-million customers onto the local streets, bringing opportunities for local tradesmen, craftsmen, entrepreneurs and amusements.” When completed in spring 2009, Alpenrhein Outlet Village will have 100 shops with a brand mix of 50 percent international labels and 50 percent German/ Swiss/Austrian brands, with 50 percent being fashion apparel, 30 percent being casual, outdoor and sportswear, and the remaining 20 percent in all other categories. There will also be one major restaurant and several other catering options. Two-thirds of the 1,200 parking spaces will be covered. Within a 90-minute drive of the scheme are nearly 4 million people with above average income levels, probably due to the 2.1 million overnight visitors who annually come to the famous ski resorts as well as the luxurious Bad Ragaz spa, just down the road from Landquart. Heidiland, only 10 minutes from the BVS site, attracts 260,000 visitors annually. Easily accessible, Alpenrhein Outlet Village is on the A13 motorway, one of the major north-south arteries through the Alps for 13.7 million vehicles a year. There will also be two underpath walkways from the centre to the Landquart train station, which is a major Swiss stop for 5.7 million travellers annually. Gloucester Quays on track for 2009 The uK’s newest outlet centre is about one year away from opening with 50 percent of lettings in the pipeline, according to Franko Muccini, manager of the Peel Holdings’ scheme. Peel won’t yet reveal names of the new tenants for Gloucester Quays but describes the scope of the project as a 60-acre £522 million development that will include 100 outlet stores in 200,000 sf. The 1.5 million-sf mixeduse development will also include 12 to 18 mostly waterside bars and cafes, two hotels (budget and prestige), a grocery superstore, leisure and office facilities, and 1,000 residential units. Gloucester Quays is currently one of the largest mixed-use waterside regeneration developments in the UK and part of a £1 billion regeneration of this historic city. Muccini says that the outlet centre will feature upper-end, not premium, brands. “We are after quality, not quantity, and we’re talking to proven operators with good customer service,” he says. Muccini spent 13 years at McArthur- Glen, where he launched seven outlet centres including Swindon, Livingston, Bridgend and Mansfield. Opening is slated for 9th April 2009, by which time says Muccini, the supermarket and budget hotel will all be open. Remaining phases of the development, including the new homes, will be completed by 2013. SPRING 2008 InternatIOnal Outlet JOurnal 17
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Outlet Centre International's Designer Outlets Wolfsburg

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