Vigorous sales spur more outlet growth - Value Retail News

NaPlES
mcarthurGlen goes neapolitan
with La reggia designer Outlet
la Reggia Designer Outlet’s architecture reflects the Rococo style of the Royal Palace,
La Reggia di Caserta, built by the Bourbon kings, as well as the Mediterranean styles
and Byzantine domes seen on the nearby Amalfi Coast.
8 INteRNatIONaL OutLet JOuRNaL SPRiNg 2010
The center also has
an impressive solar
system to handle
its energy demands.
by linda humphers
Editor in Chief
More than 100,000 people who
attended the February opening
of McArthurGlen’s fifth designer
center in Italy demonstrated that
Italians are anything but blasé about the
outlet concept. And they’re certainly
not blasé about how McArthurGlen
defines outlet retailing.
La Reggia Designer Outlet is in Marcianise,
near Caserta in the Campania
region, 30 km north of Naples. Mount
Vesuvius bides her time in the background;
a gazillion pizzerias keep the 5.5
million people living within 90 minutes of
the center well fed, and the Naples airport
is just 20 minutes away. Besides being
Italy’s most populous region, Campania
is also a popular destination, attracting 21
million tourists each year, who are lured
by the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento, and the
islands of Capri and Ischia, as well as the
historic remains of Pompeii.
The 17,500-m 2 phase 1 opened 80
percent leased with strong fashion brands
and a selection of cafes and restaurants,
including well-known local names. Among
those brands to open in the first phase
are Blumarine, Calvin Klein, Gianfranco
Ferré, Hugo Boss, Liu Jo, Patrizia Pepe,
Pinko, Pollini, Replay and Valentino.
The 9,000-m 2 phase 2 is already
under way, with the first half opening
later this year and the second half in the
second quarter of 2011. The center will
have 140 stores when completed.
Campania is the most densely populated
region in Italy, with 5.5 million
inhabitants living within a 90-minute
drive of the center.
La Reggia Designer Outlet, which is
McArthurGlen’s 19th designer out