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subscribe to style file blog via RSSretail heaven, traffic hell: europe’s biggest mall opens in london
October 30, 2008 5:14 pm
In the good old days of about six months ago, when the U.K.’s national pastime was flying to America to shop, the mall was a true discovery for Brits. Shop and eat under the same roof—and not freeze? How novel. But now, since the pound has fallen in a spectacular fashion and the British are canceling their Christmas shopping trips to the U.S. en masse, it’s very handy that the Australian company Westfield has taken a great American classic—the mega-mall—and, today, amid utter chaos and hoopla, opened the doors to Europe’s biggest one yet.
If the sky is falling—in London as much as Manhattan—it seems no one told the folks at Westfield. With—wait for it—over one million square feet of space and a luxury village whose tenants include LVMH, Gucci, Prada, Christian Dior, and Tiffany, it is the mother of all malls. Add a gym, spa, cinema, splashy chandeliers, and an undulating glass roof, and the sheer scale of it is on a level yet to be seen in this city, never mind anywhere on the continent. Today’s opening (which by midday had been attended by a mind-boggling 3.5 million people) featured a concert by Leona Lewis and appearances by Erin O’Connor, Twiggy, Yasmin LeBon, Paul Sculfor (Jennifer Aniston’s ex and Cameron Diaz’s current), retail kingpins Philip Green and Stuart Rose, and a gaggle of local stars. All fine, but there is one slight issue—the new Westfield Mall is in Shepherd’s Bush. In case you don’t know London, Shepherd’s Bush is in Hammersmith and Fulham, the borough with the highest concentration of social housing and one of the worst rates of crime and drug problems. But that apparently was not a deterrent for Westfield, who expect a minimum of 21 million people to visit the mall each year—neither was the fact that Shepherd’s Bush has always been and now will surely always be a place with total traffic gridlock, or that the local tube station (newly renovated to accommodate the mall) astoundingly does not include ramp access or an elevator for the millions of baby strollers and shopping bags bound to go through it. But never mind: Given the Calcutta-size crowds that showed up today to gape and maybe shop, mere traffic or tube problems won’t be a deterrent. After all, Londoners are well used to that by now. The message from Westfield is loud and clear: Stop your moaning, shop till you drop, then have a meal and shop some more.
tags: Westfield
Attention Shoppers
I was at Natick Mall .Business is booming..Are shopping malls driving the economy?.Is your local mall feeling the recovery?Better deals than last year.Off to shop..Friends say that Park City Mall is crowded, as well.
L8r
By immomiaPseusy on 11/16/09 at 2:23 pmAttention Shoppers
I was at Natick Mall .No room in the parking lot!.Have the incentives kicked in?.Interested in hearing others experience.Better deals than last year.Gotta go shopping some more..Seems like Park City Mall is shopping.
Enjoy
By immomiaPseusy on 11/17/09 at 9:45 amHi Folks
I was at Natick Mall .People are buying.Have the incentives kicked in?.Is your local mall feeling the recovery?I do feel that prices are down, though.Only a few shopping days left.Friends say that Park City Mall is shopping.
L8r
By immomiaPseusy on 11/17/09 at 11:39 am